If you’re in the mood for ice cream in Fredericksburg, VA, you have no shortage of great options!
The historic town is home to the famous Carl’s Frozen Custard (which you definitely have to try!), as well as many other ice cream shops that specialize in everything from soft serve to frozen yogurt, to gelato, to sundaes, and more!
Below are my top recommendations for the best ice cream in Fredericksburg, VA.
(Top photo courtesy Abner B’s Ice Cream.)
12 Best Ice Cream Shops in Fredericksburg, VA
1. Carl’s Frozen Custard
When looking for the best ice cream in Fredericksburg, look no further than Carl’s Frozen Custard!
The shop dates back to 1947. It’s part of the Virginia Historical Society and registered as a Virginia Historic Landmark.
Carl’s is also the birthplace of the root beer float, which is pretty cool!
They serve up delicious homemade frozen custard treats with favorite flavors like vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry. Custard differs from ice cream in that it is made with more eggs, which makes it richer than ice cream.
Along with frozen custard, you can order sundaes and shakes.
Carl’s is open seasonally from the Friday before President’s Day through the Sunday before Thanksgiving.
2. Jimmy T’s Soft Serve
Jimmy T’s Soft Serve is another top spot for ice cream in Fredericksburg. They specialize in soft-serve ice cream. You can also get shaved ice, shakes, and sundaes.
Jimmy T’s has 26 flavors available to choose from, so you’re sure to find the perfect flavor! Some of the specialty flavors include German Chocolate Cake, Peanut Butter, Pina Colada, Pistachio Nut, and, as a seasonal treat, Pumpkin!
The shaved ice comes in a wide variety of flavors, including favorites like Grape, Cherry, and Pineapple, as well as special flavors for the more adventurous taste buds, like Cajun Red Hot, Buttered Popcorn, and Dill Pickle.
3. Blue Cow Ice Cream Co.
Another great place to indulge your sweet tooth is Blue Cow Ice Cream Co. The company started in Roanoke. Today, they have multiple locations throughout Virginia, including Richmond, Virginia Beach, and Fredericksburg.
They focus on making their flavors fresh daily using fresh and locally sourced ingredients.
They have lots of fun and unique flavors, like Banana Puddin’ (with carmelized bananas and wafers); Blue Cow Patty (a decadent chocolatey combination of Butterfingers, Oreos, and chocolate chips); and the tangy-sweet Goat Cheese with Blueberry Swirl, which is like blueberry cheesecake!
4. Abner B’s Ice Cream
For delicious hand-dipped ice cream in historic downtown Fredericksburg, look no further than Abner B’s Ice Cream!
The shop is known for its homemade ice cream and a humongous selection of unique flavors. In fact, they’ve had 375 total flavors since opening in 2011!
Some of their extra creative and delicious flavors include Bavarian Doughnut, Black Cherry Espresso, Cinnamon Coffee Cake, and Old Fashioned Oatmeal Cookies and Cream.
You can find single and double-scoop cones, sundaes, banana splits, milkshakes, slushies, and soda floats on the menu.
5. Tilly’s Homemade Ice Cream
Tilly’s Homemade Ice Cream is another great place to satisfy your sweet tooth in Fredericksburg!
Tilly’s has 14 staple flavors and more than 24 rotating flavors at any one time, so you’re sure to find something you love!
They feature favorite flavors like vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry, as well as unique treats like Salted Caramel Snickers, Banana Pudding, and Irish Chocolate Crumb. They also offer gluten-free and vegan ice cream flavors.
And you can choose from a wide variety of 30 different toppings too!
Beyond ice cream, you will definitely want to try one of their mouth-watering sundaes. Some of the flavors include the S’mores Sundae, Reeses Cup Brownie Sundae, and the Buddha Belly Sundae, which comes with 5 scoops of ice cream!
6. The Village Creamery
Located in Spotsylvania Town Center, Village Creamery is another great place for ice cream in Fredericksburg.
One of their specialties is the incredible Hot Waffle Ice Cream Sandwich and Hot Belgian Waffle Ice Cream Sundae!
The Hot Waffle Ice Cream Sandwich features two waffles plus your choice of up to two flavors in between. They have a wide variety of flavors to choose from, including Cappuccino Crunch, Peanut Butter Cup, and Salty Caramel Truffle.
You can also order ice cream served in a waffle bowl.
They also feature a number of other delicious sundaes that go beyond just ice cream, whipped cream, sauce, and a cherry on top.
For instance, you can find the Caramel Banana Sundae, Jumbo Chocolate Chunk Chip Cookie Sundae, and Peanut Butter Overload Sundae.
Beyond ice cream and sundaes, Village Creamery also serves other sweets, like cotton candy, waffles, and brownies.
7. Happy Michocana
For unique ice cream treats, you’ll definitely want to try Happy Michocana! They win rave reviews for their excellent friendly service and delicious, creative sweets.
They specialize in artisan ice cream and popsicles. When you visit, definitely try the Mangonada, which is made from mango sorbet and chamoy topped with chili powder.
8. Cold Stone Creamery
This chain ice cream shop is always a winner. They have a special process of making your ice cream order by placing the ice cream on a cold stone slab, flattening it out, and then mixing in your choice of extras, like chocolate chips, Reese’s peanut butter cups, Oreos, nuts, and much more.
The choices are endless, but if you want to try some signature ice cream creations, you can get the REESE’S Take 5 Peanut Butter Pretzel Blast, Campfire Classic™, which is like a s’mores of ice cream, with Marshmallow Ice Cream, Graham Cracker Pie Crust, Chocolate Shavings, and Fudge; or the Mud Pie Mojo®, with Coffee Ice Cream with OREO® Cookies, Peanut Butter, Roasted Almonds and Fudge.
Cold Stone Creamery has much more than ice cream to offer. You can also order birthday ice cream cakes, or other specialty cakes, plus ice cream cookie sandwiches, and ice cream cupcakes.
9. Rita’s Italian Ice and Frozen Custard
Rita’s Italian Ice and Frozen Custard also has many locations throughout the country.
They specialize in Italian ice, which is a great and refreshing warm-weather treat, but you can also find creamy frozen custard, as well as other specialty frozen treats.
They have a huge selection of Italian ice flavors to choose from, including cherry limeade, chocolate chip, keylime, and root beer.
If you’re in the mood for a richer frozen custard, you can get a cake batter, cheesecake, or salted caramel custard.
And if you want the best of both worlds, you can even get a Blendini, which combines creamy custard and Italian ice!
10. The Italian Station
The Italian Station is an excellent coffee shop in Fredericksburg that serves up espressos, capuccinos, smoothies, pizza, salads, and breakfast sandwiches. But they also feature an assortment of delicious gelato flavors!
You can order a gelato in pistachio, chocolate, strawberry, hazelnut, coconut, coffee and more. Combine your gelato with espresso for an affogato in the Italian style!
Beyond gelato, you can also find a number of specialty sweet drinks, like Reese’s Mocha, Cinnamon Spice Brown Sugar Latte, Rose Garden Latte, and French Vanilla Blackberry Iced Macchiato.
And The Italian Station also serves up decadent baked goods, including cannolis, tiramisu, and pumpkin cheesecake.
11. Sweetfrog
Sweetfrog is a chain frozen yogurt shop. It’s another great choice to satisfy your sweet fix. Plus, it conveniently has multiple locations throughout Fredericksburg.
The flavors vary by location, but some of the top frozen yogurt flavors available go way beyond the typical chocolate and vanilla.
Some of their creative options to choose from include Cherry Icee, Eggnog, Irish Cream Iced Coffee, New York Cheesecake, Pina Colada, and Salted Caramel Pretzel.
Sweetfrog also offers a number of healthier “no sugar added” flavors.
After you choose your favorite flavors, you can choose from a wide variety of toppings, which include candy like Oreos, Butterfingers, and M&Ms; fruit like strawberries, bananas, blueberries, and pineapple; nuts; sauces; and more!
12. Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers
Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers has multiple locations around the country, including two locations in Fredericksburg, VA.
As the name implies, you can order steakburgers and fries, but they also serve up frozen custard that’s made fresh at each location each day.
The frozen custard comes in a variety of inventive and yummy flavors, like Birthday Cake Shake; Chocolate Brownie Delight; and the Signature Turtle, made with creamy vanilla custard, hot fudge, hot caramel & toasted pecans.
For each frozen custard, you can choose your own toppings, including hot fudge sauce, whipped cream, cherries, and hot caramel sauce.
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