Oyster ice cream? Don't worry, you won't find that at the Dairy Godmother. But at nearby Mount Vernon, one learns that oyster ice cream was a popular savory flavor during George Washington's time, ice cream having been introduced to the U.S. by Thomas Jefferson. But suppose you're in northern Virginia and have a sweet--not savory--cold treat in mind?
The Dairy Godmother is a frozen custard spot in Alexandria that makes custard in the classic Wisconsin style. (They even sell Sprecher's Root Beer, a Milwaukee classic.) Chocolate and vanilla are always available, along with a specialty flavor that changes every two days. When I went, the third option was the even-better-than-I-ever-hoped Sopapilla. Honey cinnamon meets Mexican vanilla in this flavor, which is topped with crunchy-yet-chewy bits of fried dough. In short, this silky smooth spoonful of sweetness had my tastebuds doing the happy dance more than any frozen custard has outside of Wisconsin. And, believe me, I've tasted tons of the stuff over the years. I even went back for seconds.
Filling out the menu are frozen custard sandwiches (featuring a wide variety of custard flavors, including chocolate-hazelnut), inventive sorbets (pineapple cilantro), creative popsicles (mango lime), daily treats (peach cobbler), and shockingly inexpensive baked goods. My family agreed that everything available sounded and looked worth trying...and everything we had was wonderful.So, if you find yourself near Alexandria, make the effort--take a lengthy detour if you have to--and visit the Dairy Godmother. As a bonus, you can even sit in the chair Obama sat in when he visited in 2009.
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