Ya let’s pretend like it’s 04,
Like I’m eating Ice-cream off of styrofoam trays,
Trying to be the next student coming out with an A’ (level),
Hoping for A’ certificate to ignore my pain.
Island Creamery used to be my go to ice cream parlor in Singapore, back in my high school days. Even though I spent almost 6 years in Singapore, and of those years mostly near this little creamery, I only tasted this secret hideout very recently. It was only a couple of my friends who used to study in the nearby schools introduced this place to me that I realized such a place existed in the heartland of Singapore.
I love ice cream from a very young age, but never had gourmet goodies before coming here. It used to be either Nestle from a nearby grocery shop or $1 ice cream cone from the “fancy” McDonald’s ice cream stand. Hey, no judging. I did not grow up within an affluent neighborhood in a well-to-do city. We are talking about Asia during the millennium here.
Tucked away in a tiny corner along the very busy Bukit Timah road, Island Creamery is located in a shopping mall (Serene Center) catered for the well to do crowd living around the area, many of them Expats. If you are around the area, head to the nearby famous Botanic Gardens (now with its own MRT station) for a walk and cool off with some ice cold dessert here. You will thank me later.
Island Creamery was hippy and cool before hipsters were born. There is still an instant printer to print pictures and paste them on the wall in the shop. This tradition was rampant even before I stepped foot here a decade earlier. Something never changed, such as the different flavors of Ice cream offered and those walls filled with pictures of random people enjoying the same great Ice cream. I can’t guaranteed this, but if you happen to visit during after-school hours, this place should be filled with middle and high school students from the nearby Hwa Chong (Chinese High) and Nanyang schools. The place is definitely popular among the younger Singaporeans.
I found out recently that the owner, Uncle Stan, participated and probably improved on his recipe from the well-known ice cream making class at Penn State. In some ways, the ice-cream here at Island Creamery, Ben & Jerry’s and the ones found at Penn State are all related. I’m not attributing Island Creamery success to Penn State, but it is easy to taste the similarities. Take for example how the Ice cream is presented – the texture is smooth but that’s not the highlight; it is the burst of flavors on top of the creaminess of the Ice cream that steals the show. There are a couple of local flavors to choose from besides the standard chocolate and Oreo, all in all there just aren’t that many flavors to select from. I believe the reason being the Ice cream here are made fresh in house and flavors are being rotated all the time, and so unless the previous batch of ice-cream is sold out, nobody is getting new goodies. If you want to try something different, come another day!
Of all the years I have been visiting this place, I had never seen the elusive owner. We all knew his name from the email listed on all takeaway containers (the containers they use are quality Tupperware containers rather than disposable plastic or paper bags. I’m still using these containers at home). By sheer luck, I met him during this visit. The cashier could probably see my eyes sparkled and my excitement when I checked with her if he was indeed the boss. We chatted a little bit and Uncle Stan is as cool as I imagined him to be. Take a picture with him if you ever get a chance. :D
Even though many Singaporeans heard of this place, most of them had never tried the Ice Cream here. It used to be hard to get to using only public transports, but now that the subway station is literally a stone throw away, there shouldn’t be anymore excuses. Moreover, there are two more branches somewhere in Singapore. Seriously, if you want a locally crafted Ice-Cream in Singapore, it’s hard to find a better place than this!
Website: http://www.islandcreamery.com/
Address: 10 Jalan Serene #01-03 , Serene Centre, Singapore 258748
Visited: Dec 30th, 2014. Dessert at 11am