Jack Yesner Week 6- The Superior Italian Ice Store

    One of my family’s favorite desserts is Italian ices. The large variety of flavors and refreshing taste of Italian ices makes it a great dessert, especially on a hot summer day. Additionally, and most appealing to my parents, Italian ices are significantly healthier than the other dessert alternative, ice cream. For example, a small cup of Italian ices ranges from 170 to 370 calories, while a small cup of ice cream ranges from 390 to 640 calories.

Over ten years ago, I used to go often to an Italian ice store called Rita’s in Boca Raton. The store closed due to poor management, and the nearest Rita’s store until recently was all the way in City Place in West Palm Beach. While I did get Rita’s on the rare occasions when I went to City Place, I longed for an Italian ice store to open closer to home. Thankfully, I got my wish last year, when two new Italian ice stores opened up nearby. Another franchise location of Rita’s opened in Coral Springs, and a different Italian ice company called Jeremiah’s opened in Boca Raton. Eager to see which one was the best, my family tried both places in the past couple of weeks, and compared the two. I have developed a favorite of the two places based on the taste of the Italian ices, the variety of offerings, the price, and location.

The most important part of a good dessert is having a good taste. At both places, I had the same flavors, cherry and cotton candy, so I could give an objective test for which store tasted better. I found that while both locations had great flavors, the taste of Rita’s was better because over time, the Italian ices from Jeremiah’s lost its flavor in the sun.

Having a large variety of flavors elevates the quality of the store. While both Rita’s and Jeremiah’s boast many flavors on their respective websites, I found that only a small portion of their advertised lists were actually available in store. However, Jeremiah’s had more flavors than Rita’s. Rita’s had only about 12 flavors, while Jeremiah’s had 24, including rotating weekly flavors.

While having good taste and variety are necessary for any good store, price and location are also aspects to consider when choosing a location to visit. For both of these considerations Jeremiah’s is superior. A small Italian ices at Jeremiah’s is $2.65, while a small at Rita’s is $3.99. Obviously location is subjective to where you live, but Jeremiah’s is closer to Boca Raton where I personally live, and has many more locations in South Florida than Rita’s does.

In my opinion, I would recommend going to Rita’s. The taste of the Italian ices is exceptional, if you are willing to travel farther, pay a premium price, and have a reduced selection of flavors. But if I am short on time and just want some Italian ices quickly, Jeremiah’s is still very good. In both locations, I would recommend the cotton candy flavor. It is the one flavor I get every single time because it is just too good to pass up. Have you been to either of these places? If so, which one did you prefer to go to?


Orlando's newest Rita's Italian Ice will give 50 people at the grand opening free treats for a year | Blogs


Jeremiah's Italian Ice • Jeremiah's Italian Ice

Comments

  1. AnonymousOct 26, 2021, 4:33:00 PM

    I have only been to Rita’s of the two, and I don’t really remember the taste of it that much. I agree with the Yesner family that Italian Ices are one of the best dessert options. There was this place in coral springs that I use to go to that I really liked.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousOct 26, 2021, 9:52:00 PM

    I have only been to Rita’s and I remember it was really good. I agree, Italian ice is a great option for dessert because it’s very light.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Mrs. HOct 28, 2021, 7:38:00 PM

    Wait. There is a Rita's still in south Florida? That is amazing, and I will happily drive from east Boca down to Coral Springs to get some. The original Rita's is from Philly, where my family is from, so I've been eating Rita's ice for years before they ever made it down south. I have tried other places that opened up, but nothing ever compares to Rita's for me!

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousOct 28, 2021, 8:31:00 PM

    Fun fact, I have never been to an Italian ice place, iv'e got the chance to try Rita's once but never did. I have yet to try it, so I will plan on going to Ritas or Jeremiah’s in the future.

    ReplyDelete

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