The time is HERE! After much anticipation, the grand opening of the very first Pittsburgh location of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream is THIS WEEK!! Located in Bakery Square in the Shadyside neighborhood, this nationwide favorite will be celebrating with yinzers on Thursday, October 20th at 7 pm. Mark your calendars now!
Jeni’s will be handing out swag bags filled with goodies to the first 50 people in line during their GRAND OPENING, but don’t if you can’t make it early to snag a bag. Jeni’s will also be offering FREE scoops all night long on the 20th to all patrons that take part in celebrating their store’s launch at 7 pm. With creative flavors of ice cream and frozen yogurt, it will be a hard decision on which scoop to go for. If you’re on the fence, you can’t go wrong with one of the classics! Jeni’s top 5 best sellers are the following:
- Brambleberry Crisp (our fave) – oven-toasted oat streusel and a sweet-tart brambleberry jam layered throughout the vanilla ice cream
- Brown Butter Almond Brittle – brown butter almond candy crushed into buttercream ice cream
- Darkest Chocolate – packed with Fair Trade cocoa and not much else
- Salted Peanut Butter with Chocolate Flecks – salted and roasted ground peanuts with grass-grazed milk and crunchy, dark chocolate flecks
- Salty Caramel – fire-toasted sugar with sea salt, vanilla, and grass-grazed milk
If you want to try something seasonal, Jeni’s Ice Cream has a collection of fall favorites! One that customers go crazy for is the Pumpkin Cake Roll made with a pumpkin base swirled with spiced sweet cream cheese and cake pieces. Reading the full description of this flavor on Jeni’s website is enough to make your mouth water! Others in the “How Is It Fall Already?!” Collection include Boston Cream Pie, Cookies In Cream, Green Mint Chip, and High Five Candy Bar.
Are you more of a winter-season flavor person?! Join the Splendid Rewards program and get early access to the holiday collection on 10/27! Early access is online only, but logging in gives you access to the new and returning holiday ice creams to order for your home! Flavors this year include Cranberry Crumble, Boozy Eggnog, Pistachio Macaron, Mexican Hot Chocolate, and White Chocolate Peppermint. If you order online, these are the perfect addition to a holiday party!! These flavors will be hitting our local shop later in the year for in-person scooping.
All of these awesome flavor recipes are exclusive to Jeni’s shops and the online market. As an award-winning ice cream maker, founder Jeni Britton has been developing recipes from the beloved Wildberry Lavender to newer Butterscotch Popcorn since 2002. Believe it or not, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams originated one state over in Columbus, OH! Luckily, Jeni’s has finally made its way to the Burgh 20 years later.
For our gluten-free friends, Jeni’s didn’t forget about you! With 6 gluten-free flavors ranging from fruity to savory, there will be something to tickle your tastebuds!
Gooey Butter Cake can be found in the gluten-free category even with homemade vanilla cake pieces. That is something you truly don’t find everywhere.
Something else that we love about Jeni’s that sets it apart in the ice cream world is the fact that the ingredients used to create these insanely delicious flavors are sourced from sustainable community partners. Smith’s Farm in Orrville, OH is a great example of this. As a centuries-old dairy, Smith’s Farm works with small family farms within 200 miles of Jeni’s kitchen. Other partners that make the unique flavor combinations possible include The Peach Truck (which recently visited Pittsburgh!), Middle West Spirits, Slingshot Coffee, and more! It is because of partners like these and Hirsch Fruit Farm, who supplies Jeni’s with buttercup pumpkins used in their Pumpkin Cake Roll flavor, that Jeni’s Ice Cream is a Certified B Corp. What does this mean? It means that Jeni’s is endorsed by the international nonprofit B Lab as a company that meets rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. SO… not only are you enjoying creamy deliciousness by visiting Jeni’s Ice Cream, but you’re also supporting a socially and environmentally conscious business.
Keep an eye on our social media Wednesday night for a sneak preview of the space and some of the goodness to come on grand opening day! Now call your friends and make those plans to go out and support this woman-owned business on Thursday, October 20th at 7 pm in Bakery Square! Bring your whole squad to Jeni’s to celebrate with a big yinzer welcome! Whether you’ve tried this chain in other cities or are a first-time visitor, you’re sure to love it all the same!
This content was provided by a local, independent contributor to Made in PGH, a lifestyle blog.