By Pam Ohno
I Cried at Work Today.
Well, actually, I tried the flavor, I Cried at Work Today, at Christy’s Dream Ice Cream Bar in Ponte Vedra Beach. With chocolate ice cream, Heath bar, chocolate liqueur, and caramel drizzle, a scoop of I Cried at Work Today should make anyone’s day better.
Ponte Vedra has been missing a good ice cream shop for years (RIP Old Bridge and Cold Stone Creamery). Opened in December 2015, Christy’s Dream Ice Cream Bar is located in the newly renovated Sawgrass Village in the same building as the Hilton Garden Inn, just across from Trasca.
Christy’s mission is to bring homemade ice cream back to PV. The owners, Jason and Christy Leinheiser, moved to PV about a year and a half ago and got sick of driving 20 to 25 minutes to find good ice cream (I can completely relate). They thought it was crazy that there wasn’t an ice cream shop in a beach town (it is crazy).
Christy’s features an ever-evolving menu of flavors for both kids and adults. Flavors have fun names, like Beauty School Dropout (strawberry), Pooh Bear (vanilla with honey), and It’s Not Easy Being Green (pistachio pie). What makes Christy’s truly unique is its assortment of adult flavors that feature alcoholic beverages. Bananarama (bananas foster), If Your Not into Yoga (pina colada), and Amaretto by Morning (Amaretto liqueur with chocolate chips) are just a few. The most popular flavors include Chocolate Thunder (chocolate with chocolate chips), MJ’s Totally Coconuts (self-explanatory), and Shut Your Face! (Oreo cheesecake). All of Christy’s ice creams are made fresh each day using the best ingredients they can find. You can follow their daily flavors in Instagram (christysdream) and facebook.
The shop itself is clever, half traditional ice cream parlor, half living room. The owners wanted a space for young kids to play games and space for the older crowd to hang out and relax on the couch. The place is dedicated to pop culture, with posters of superheroes and 70s TV shows on the walls (think the Brady Bunch and Captain America). Jason sports a Scooby Doo apron.
A small scoop (the Rugrat) is $3.00 and a large scoop (the Average Joe) is $6.00. You can buy a family pack of four Average Joes for $20. Christy’s has a frequent buyer card that, when filled, gets you a free scoop and a spin on their Wheel of Fortune, where you can win free ice cream for a whole year. Christy’s can also make custom ice cream for parties or special occasions.
Just for the record, I have never actually cried at work.
About the author: Pam Ohno is a writer/editor and lives in Ponte Vedra Beach.
