Many people love to eat ice cream for dessert. Just recently, the newly established Afters Ice Cream has replaced the once-popular Ben and Jerry’s in Victoria Gardens!

It all began with two college boys whose hearts were set in the right place, but their brains…not so much. They tried to come up with the craziest dessert combinations. The duo thought of ice cream and donuts, and BAM, they put them together their Milky Bun creation. Their business first started in their dorm room, but they later realized that it could be shared with others. From there, these ideas lead to the creation of Afters Ice Cream! The word “afters” comes from “dessert” in Europe, so they thought it fit perfectly with ice cream.

When I walked in, the place was a bit small but very modern in appearance. The decor was simple but contemporary. On one of the walls, they had two metal frames with ice creams decals displayed. The first one announced LESS TALK MORE ICE CREAM and the second one added, COUNT BLESSINGS NOT CALORIES. They played popular songs that every Coyote should know on their speakers, the pop songs that catch people’s attention because of their addictive beats while still being a bit annoying when listened to too often.

The staff greeted me with a warm welcome and a positive attitude. They smiled as though I were a regular customer. It took me a while to make my decision and a worker politely waited as I sampled numerous flavors.

At first, I tried Peanut Butter S’mores. I could taste creamy peanuts swirled in with the chocolatey fudge, stuffed with fluffy marshmallow. It was sticky, gooey, salty, and sweet with a thick texture. This was amazing! It’s a great flavor to enjoy anytime.

Next, I tried Cookie Monster. It tasted like cookies and cream, but fancier. It had pieces of Oreos and chunks of cookie dough which added to the “monster” part of the name. The ice cream was a bright blue that made my lips look like they were soaked all day in blue raspberry Icee. With that vibrant color also came a crunchiness and a sweetness that was made just right.

Then I tried Cookie Butter. This ice cream tasted like straight up snickerdoodle. It had a vanilla base with a cinnamon-like taste and cookie crunches of snickerdoodles inside. It tasted like cinnamon cookies on a crisp winter morning!

I moved on to milk and cereal. This was supposed to be like actual milk and cereal. They used vanilla ice cream as their base and added “Afters Flakes” (Honey Bunches flakes) as a topping. It tasted exactly like it was supposed to: real milk and cereal, but in ice cream form.

Lastly, I tried frozen hot cocoa. This had a chocolate base with marshmallows stuffed everywhere and crushed Oreos sprinkled into the ice cream. It tasted just like the drink and had a thick, crunchy texture.

Afters ice cream is all very unique. They take simple flavors and toppings, and turn them into their own creation. Some flavors are unlikely to be found anywhere else but at Afters.

Afters also has merchandise. If you go online you may notice logos and designs that are similar to other big name brands. I know we’re both wondering, Why would they copy the same logo and designs? Julie, the manager at Victoria Gardens, explained that they’d received permission from the other brands to replicate their logos. Luckily, they didn’t do this without asking because that would have been another story for another day and a whole lot of lawyers.

The history of how Afters started is just as interesting as their unique flavors of ice cream. Their merchandise may not be as original as other companies, but it adds hype to the brand. One more interesting fact is that every franchise starts off with its own unique theme!

I definitely recommend visiting Afters Ice Cream again and again. It’s not like your typical ice cream shop. It’s unique, different, creative…it’s Afters!