The Best Fast-Food Ice Cream, Ranked (2024)

Home Food News Restaurants

Updated: Jul. 11, 2024

Have you ever wondered which chain sells the best fast-food ice cream? We did the hard work to find out for you.

FreshSplash/getty images

There’s nothing like the perfect ice cream cone to cool off on a hot summer day. With so many fast-food chains, we decided to sample as many as possible in the Chicago area to figure out which one serves the best fast-food ice cream. Some places offer soft serve, while others sell scoopable ice cream. When possible, we ordered with a cake cone, but sometimes only a dish was available. To even the playing field, a plain vanilla option was purchased at each location, even if other flavors were on the menu.

Here’s a list of all the places we visited:

• Baskin-Robbins
• Burger King
• Chick-fil-A
• Cold Stone
• Culver’s
• Dairy Queen
• McDonald’s
• Oberweis
• Shake Shack
• Sonic

Let’s see who had the best fast-food ice cream!

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

10. Burger King Vanilla Soft Serve

If you want bang for your buck (for real, it was only $1), Burger King is the soft serve ice cream for you. Unfortunately, the texture felt more icy rather than creamy, and it did seem to melt quickly. Burger King would be a good option for families with a lot of hungry kids, since everyone can get a treat for a reasonable price.

Bottom line: This $1 cone is the most budget-friendly option of the bunch.

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

9. McDonald’s Vanilla Soft Serve

This soft serve ice cream arrived with a nice consistency and it didn’t melt too quickly. As you can see, McDonald’s achieved a sky-high swirl, which was also impressive. However, the vanilla flavor definitely skewed toward artificial. FYI: This is why McDonald’s ice cream machines always seem to be broken.

Bottom line: At $1.79 a cone, McDonald’s offers an inexpensive dessert, but it’s not nearly as good of a deal as Burger King.

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

8. Dairy Queen Vanilla Soft Serve

With many locations all across the country, chances are there’s a Dairy Queen nearby to satisfy a summer ice cream craving. Here, a cone was $2.39 and the service was quick. However, I was sad to see ours didn’t come with the signature DQ curl on top. (Full disclosure: My husband worked at Dairy Queen in high school, and he said it takes time and practice to master that skill!)

Bottom line: While the ice cream was satisfying and nostalgic, the creaminess and vanilla flavor just didn’t stand up to some of our favorites in the bunch. I’ll stick to the amazing summer Blizzards instead.

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

7. Shake Shack Vanilla Frozen Custard

While Shake Shack is known for its fast-food milkshakes, it is also possible to purchase just ice cream. At $4.29, the price was high, and it only came in a cup. It also arrived quite soft and melted quickly. The vanilla flavor was nice, and I can see how it makes for a delicious base for other options on the menu. The ice cream also had a pleasant mouthfeel that was rich and creamy. If you’re looking for more options, here’s our list of the best fast-food desserts.

Bottom line: We presume that most people will opt for a blended shake at Shake Shack. This cup of plain vanilla ice cream felt like an afterthought on the menu.

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

6. Chick-fil-A Vanilla Ice Dream

Chick-fil-A offers its Ice Dream Cone at a cost-efficient $1.69. This cone was flavorful and refreshing, but it did have more of a frosty mouthfeel rather than creamy. However, they chose to call it an ice dream cone instead of ice cream cone, so there is truth in advertising.

Bottom line: Of all the budget-friendly fast-food ice cream cones, this one offered the most vanilla flavor. Though it’s impossible to resist Chick-fil-A’s famous peach milkshake.

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

5. Baskin-Robbins Vanilla Ice Cream

There are way more choices than the traditional “31 flavors” at Baskin-Robbins. While we ordered the vanilla ice cream in a traditional cake cone, there were many exciting options for waffle cones and toppings. The scoop of ice cream had a pleasant consistency with a mild vanilla flavor. Look for this hidden detail in the Baskin-Robbins logo, too.

Bottom line: There’s something for everyone at Baskin-Robbins and the whole family will leave happy.

LAUREN HABERMEHL FOR TASTE OF HOME

4. Sonic Vanilla Soft Serve

Known as “America’s drive-in fast-food chain,” Sonic offers its soft serve in a single-size dish option for a mere $2.19. While the ice cream I received looked sloppy (definitely lacking that iconic swirl on top), it made up for its appearance with an ultra-smooth, creamy consistency and rich vanilla taste. I was pleasantly surprised by Sonic’s soft serve and feel compelled to put Sonic copycat recipes to the test!

Bottom line: Sonic’s ice cream is unexpectedly delicious and creamy. I’d go out of my way to enjoy it again.

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

3. Cold Stone Vanilla Ice Cream

Cold Stone Creamery is known for its signature process of preparing custom ice cream creations on a frozen granite stone. With so many mix-in options, it was difficult to order just a scoop of vanilla ice cream in a dish! The ice cream was delightfully rich, and the firm scoop held up well to the summer heat. The Cold Stone French Vanilla tasted real and authentic, rather than imitation vanilla.

Bottom line: It’s so fun to watch the mix-in creations, a trip to Cold Stone feels like dessert with a show.

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

2. Culver’s Vanilla Frozen Custard

Culver’s vanilla frozen custard earned high honors in our book. From the first lick, you could taste the fresh dairy and real vanilla flavor. It was clear the frozen custard is prepared fresh daily in their restaurants. Frozen custard offers an incredibly smooth mouthfeel because it’s made with egg yolks and has less air incorporated during the churning process than classic ice cream.

Bottom line: This was our favorite soft serve-style ice cream of the bunch.

Kristina Vänni for Taste of Home

1. Oberweis Vanilla Ice Cream

A scoop of Oberweis ice cream makes you realize you can order vanilla and have it be far from plain. From the first lick of this high-quality ice cream, you can tell it’s made with real cream and quality vanilla. We purchased a scoop in a cake cone, but it was hard to ignore the intoxicating aroma of fresh waffle cones being handmade to order just behind the counter. Oberweis has drive-thru ice cream shops in Illinois, Michigan and Missouri, but they also sell ice cream in grocery stores throughout the Midwest. This super premium ice cream is made with 60% overrun, which means it is only one part air to every two parts cream. In addition, they use 18% butterfat, more than any other ice cream in the freezer aisle.

Bottom line: Oberweis sold the best fast-food ice cream of all the scoops we sampled, as well as the top ice cream experience overall.

Fast-Food Ice Cream FAQ

Which fast-food chains have real ice cream?

If you’re looking to enjoyrealice cream rather than soft serve, head to Baskin-Robbins, Oberweis or Cold Stone Creamery (or alocal ice cream shop). Culver’s and Shake Shack differentiate themselves from the pack by offering customers frozen custard, a richer ice cream treat made with eggs. It’s frozen more slowly than traditional ice cream and served at a warmer temperature to yield a denser, creamier end product.

Which fast-food places have ice cream cones?

You would think any place that serves ice cream or soft serve would offer ice cream cones. However, that’s not the case. If you’re committed to a cone, skip Sonic and Shake Shack as they only offer frozen treats in a dish or cup. McDonald’s, Burger King, Dairy Queen, Culver’s, Baskin-Robbins, Cold Stone Creamery, Oberweis and Chick-fil-A will all be happy to offer you a cone.

Does Hardee’s sell ice cream?

Hardee’s is known for its hand-scooped fast-food milkshakes, so one would expect them to sell ice cream in a dish or cone, too. However, ice cream is surprisingly not a listed menu option. While some folks on the internet claim to have been able to order a scoop of ice cream at their local Hardee’s, we were declined a scoop of vanilla at our location. The availability of Hardee’s ice cream may vary by location and the staff’s willingness to honor a secret menu item.

How much is a scoop of fast-food ice cream?

Prices for a scoop of vanilla fast-food ice cream run the spectrum. In our experience, the cheapest was from Burger King for just $1. Meanwhile, a single scoop at Cold Stone Creamery will set you back $5.49. It’s worth noting that prices vary depending on region.

Originally Published: June 17, 2022