Holsten’s

Wow, what can I say but I am not sure what the big deal about this place is. First of all, only order Ice Cream. The menu is old and they really do not put anything into what they are making. As far as Ice Cream goes, I have had better — much better. Their flavors are run of the mill. The only thing that really stands out is their Whipped Cream — which you have to pay extra for. Really? Why? It is good because it is made fresh and not Readiwhip. Very thick and rich. But the ice cream is just ok. The place is old and they get away with that for «nostalgic» sake but in reality it is just old and not updated. Not sure why they do not have fountain root beer but they don’t. You get a root beer float and they use a can of A&W. You want a better milk shake? Go to the Tick-​Toc. Again, I don’t see why people «love» this place other than it is one of the few actual Ice Cream parlors that is open to 11pm.

The ice cream was DELISH! The coffee flavor was one of the best I have ever had and they give really generous portions. The customer service is excellent too!

A return to the classic ice cream parlor.
In a very fitting manor, as I had just watched Back To The Future for the millionth time, to step into an ice cream parlor and restaurant that still maintains that vintage feel with bar stools at the counter and with a wide variety of freshly made home style ice creams, Holstein quickly shows you that it’s a vintage family place for local families to come and reunite around a large banana split sundaes. Their ice cream options change throughout the week so you can always go in and expect to find a new flavor you may not have had before each more delicious than the last. They also offer a variety of sizes for their sundaes and splits if you’re sharing in large groups or you can just simply take it on the go!
If satisfying ice cream isn’t your thing, fear not, Holstein chocolate cake, alongside of their bakery items are some of the most satisfying flavors. Indulge yourself in their menu options in their little diner area, from breakfast to desserts, they’ll have you covered. The business has been around for a while, family owned, with a lot of locals making their way in just to say hello then heading about their day. The look is nothing luxurious but the quality and effort from the staff is equal if not better than, any of the high-​end places that have developed over the years. It is their simplistic approach to making appetizing meals and desserts paired with a staff and quintessential atmosphere that makes Holsteins a must stop in your travels.

Love this place! The best ice cream and chocolates around! One day I’ll stick around to try the food. ^_^

Food is greasy and tasteless. The food does not seem fresh at all. Our server must have had the worst customer service skills I have ever seen. My wife left them a nice note on a napkin recommending they get more customer service training. I can make this food at home better tasting and much cheaper. I am from Bloomfield and I will never go back unless something changes.

Wife and I went there tonight, we ordered the cheese steak, and waited 10 to 15 minutes before the waitress came back and informed us they were out of cheese steak. So I ordered the cheese burger with onion rings, and my wife ordered the grilled cheese and bacon. Waited another 20 minutes for our food, The grilled cheese and bacon was pretty good, the burger was bland, and tiny, about the size of a mcdonalds dollar burger. The onion rings were good, but there were exactly 5 smallish rings on my plate. We ordered a banana split for desert, the ice cream was good, but a spit should have 1 full banana split in two, this one only had a half banana, I guess to save cost on the already over priced ice cream. We will never be back.

Not worth the time. Waitresses took to long screwed up our order didn’t even make it right. Who cares about the sopranos I went there for the food. Burger was dry, and bun was stale,
Didn’t like it at all. Wife had a greasy blt. I won’t go back

I can’t believe being a jersey native I have never heard of this place but I loved it.
I love the 50s vibe and of course the ice cream and milkshakes.

I went here with a group of co-​workers and wasn’t sure what to expect, but I have to say that the food was very good.
We all ordered a bowl of onion rings which were crispy and tasty. Then we each ordered a cheeseburger deluxe which is a cheeseburger with tomatoes, pickles and lettuce served with a side of French fries.
I mean, it’s a burger so how can it be that good, right? The burger was so juicy and well seasoned that I didn’t need any condiments on it. I’m usually a mustard and mayo girl on my burgers, but didn’t need anything on it other than tomatoes.
I had a coffee shake and my co-​workers had a chocolate, double vanilla and cherry chip shake respectively.
The prices are dirt cheap and the food is pretty damn good.

Came here just for the ice cream. Sat down and I wish I could remember the guy that served. He was awesome and recommended me some flavors. Ended up getting a sundae and he made it into a work of art. There is more food I’d like to try there. Great service and the ice cream is on point

Crap time here. I’ve come here years now. This place when down the tubes. The waitstaff don’t care about anything or try to help u. Me and my girlfriend got some burgers that smelled and taste like it was spoiled and smelled horrible. They need to get the stuff back on track. Stuck to ice cream

Best Ice cream that I’ve ever had in NJ. I have been going to this place since I was a kid. They have amazing homemade ice cream. They are an old school diner type place. Great burgers and fries and awesome ice cream and candy. My favorite candy there is the raspberry jellies. During Easter time, they make out of this world chocolate bunnies. Doesn’t hurt that Sopranos was filled there either!

Ok, so a large part of the reason why I came here is because I had to see where Tony Soprano did or did not take his last ever bite of onion ring. I also love ice cream, so that just made the decision that much easier for me.
The boo and I stopped in around 9:20 on a Sunday night, and the place was still pretty bustling with activity. We sat at the counter and were greeted quickly by one of the friendly employees. I decided on a brownie sundae with salted caramel crunch ice cream, and my boyfriend got the black raspberry in a cone.
The ice cream is really good. So creamy, super rich, and no ice crystals (yay!). Minus one star because my bf asked for wet walnuts, but wasn’t given them. The ice cream was still delicious with out them (and he was too polite to ask for them a second time), but I know he would’ve liked them.
Our bill came to around 12 bucks which I think is pretty fair given the quality. Plus they’re located a stones throw away from Brookdale Park, meaning I can easily work off a few of the frozen, delicious calories consumed here.
I’m certain I will be back, and hopefully I’ll be able to try some of their yummy looking chocolates and those onion rings which I’ve heard are *to die for*.

In the 1970s, I used to stop in here for their delicious ice cream, milkshakes and chocolates when walking home from school.
Who knew years later, this quite old-​fashioned ice cream parlor would be made famous from the Sopranos. LOL…
Recently, my family and I stopped in for a light dinner. To me, the interior restaurant set up has not changed. Upon entry, there is a lengthy candy counter to the right. That good old butter crunch candy definitely caught my eye in the counter.
To your left, the counter still has the parlor seats where people were enjoying milkshakes and other delicious food. The restaurant is still filled with booths.
Saw several families in the restaurant.
This place is affordable for a family to go out to eat.
Truly enjoyed their Egg Salad BLT double decker sandwich and Orange Aid Fizz.
The menu has good all-​time basic food items like Burgers, Fries, Grilled Cheese, Salads etc.
The service was excellent. The servers were highly attentive. The restaurant was very clean. There is street parking and a back parking lot.
By the way, I couldn’t leave without buying their yummy butter crunch candy!

I recently dined at Holsten’s and it seems like some reviewers aren’t really paying attention. Apart from a counter and candy section there is nothing 1940’s about this establishment. The décor is clearly 1970s and hasn’t been touched since. Tired looking counters and booths, faux wood paneling and dirty carpets wasn’t that appealing at all. The ice cream is average at best and our server had to come back and double check our easy 2 person ice cream order because she didn’t write it down the first time.
If Holsten’s is so great and famous — why is there a line at the Rita’s across the street and a Friendly’s a few blocks away?

Great ice cream sundaes! Ten times better than the overhyped Applegate Farms.

Time Warp in the most complimentary way possible! My genuine Jersey girl, Christina R. was so excited to show Bianca C. and me this place next to where she used to work in her teen years. Their seasonal window display happened to be on Easter with eye-​popping choco-​and-​candy-​goodness! We had an awesome lunch across the street at Yellow Plum and in less than a heartbeat, decided to dessert-​it-​up here.
Once we were through the door, it was so dreamy! There was a retro lunch counter to the left and major display cases and wall shelves of homemade chocolate bunnies, crosses, lambs, eggs, you name it to the right. I couldn’t help but get a stuffed animal little lamb and a milk chocolate bunny for my daughter who’ll soon be able to have some chocolate. I also got a box of dark chocolate non-​pareils for myself– my favorite!
The three of us each had ice cream at the counter. I ordered one scoop of coffee ice cream with fudge and sprinkles… but they gave me an extra scoop! Was it «Be Nice to Florence Day?» Super yummy. Christina had vanilla fudge ice cream with marshmallows on top while Bianca had pound cake a-​la-​mode with coconut chip ice cream. Both to die for! Let’s do the Time Warp again!

I luv ice cream! I love chocolate! I love The Sopranos! I love Holsten’s!
Being here was a super treat. Call me EMO or whatever u want, but I love the show Sopranos and this is where as you all know by now the last episode was filmed. You know that episode that kept us all asking what really happened? Did Tony get killed or not? Well in real life the homie Gandolfini did pass away and that made a lot of us sad, may his soul RIP. The show is another topic, but this spot truly made me feel star struck. Just chilling here was fun for me. I’m easy like that.
It was time to get serious so I ordered my goods. To my surprise I learned that the ice cream is homemade. Oh yeah! I got one of their specialties and I highly recommend this, pound cake a la mode with coconut chip ice cream and chocolate drizzle. One bite and I rolled my eyes to that back of my head while humming hhhhmmmmmmhhhhh! Yes! This is what I’ve been missing in my life, some seriously delicious creamy-​flavorful ice cream that is non-​traditional. I mean really who knew coconut and chocolate chips was so freaking good together? Then they put my ice cream on top of pound cake, dude! This was heaven. Never had anything like this and I can’t wait to go back! My sister in law and our gf had their faces stuffed too and nobody was talking, texting, or making eye contact with anybody. It was just us and the spoon. Awesome!
We got some chocolate bunnies to go, it was nice to see all the Easter basket being made. It seems like you can pick stuffed animals and candy to put in your basket for a pretty reasonable price. They had the big ass royd up choice-​bunnies for like $ 30 so if u have kids and need to get a basket this is the spot.
I am updating my review soon cause Ima comeback and taste their food which I hear is pretty delicious as well. Oh yeah and I guess I can have some more dessert as tool.
PS
The staff is super nice.

Got a date with you and want a nice place to go for ice cream after dinner? Or just have a group of friends craving some ice cream? Holsten’s is a great place for that!
Open till 11:30pm everyday but Sunday (10pm), Holsten’s allows you to enjoy nice scoops of ice cream in a very retro/​throwback setting (There are little jukeboxes on the tables you sit at!). Once you enter this establishment you feel that you time has went backwards around 50 years if not more! Their ice cream here is homemade and so delicious!
If just s scoop of ice cream is satisfactory, then they have a vast variety of flavors for you to have. Look out for their special ice cream flavors too! However, just do not expect any unorthodox, as Holsten’s is very classic in terms of flavors. My personal favorites here are Mint Chip, Maple Walnut, Black Raspberry, Cookies-​N-​Cream, and Orange Sherbert. The ice cream that I get is just based on what I am feeling at the time! They also have the ability to create an ice cream soda/​float for you, which is a nice complement to a meal if you decide to get food here. I have to say however, even though there is food here, the dessert is what you should just come here for.
If you have a heavy sweet tooth, then maybe a sundae is for you! They have a wide variety of regular sundaes, with my favorites being the Hot Caramel, Wet Walnut, Pineapple, and Marshmallow. As for their «Special Sundaes» these are larger serving sundaes which I would recommend splitting with someone else. My personal favorite Special Sundae I get if I have someone to share with is the Brownie Sundae. That extra brownie is heavenly!
Finally, for a show like The Sopranos to film their final scene here, it illustrates how special a place like Holsten’s is and how much people enjoy their ice cream here!

I’m so crazy for not knowing about this place sooner!
My charming BF introduce me to their homemade ice creams and shakes and now this is my 2^nd fave place in the area.
I tried vanilla, chocolate, chocolate chip cookie dough, banana splits, coffee chip, cookies an cream and black raspberry (surprisingly, I really enjoyed it). All were phenomenal! Many more to try. They always have ice cream specials so I will never get bored. This is great!
Most of the Staff are young. Never had a problem once. In fact, they are super friendly and respectful.
Keep in mind, this place isn’t cheap but is affordable. I don’t spent less than $ 11 on small portions for two people.