Ben & Jerry’s

The worst experience. False advertising on the James J Hills website, it advertised «2 free mini Vermonsters» the line was out the door but I patiently waited while the chaos behind the counter struggled to serve the customers. I asked for the advertised special. The lady looked at me in confusion. She said she would have to call the owner, I said that’s fine. She explained the website advertisement to the owner and then told me this is for a drawing and you can «win» this… but didn’t know where you sign up but it’s not in the store. I said so we just stood in this long line for nothing — sorry. No lady, I am sorry that a local ice cream shop is this clueless and sends a mom and her kid out empty handed. I didn’t have my wallet — I came in for the free treat they advertised. They handled it with a confused shrug.

This Ben&Jerry’s is nothing special. It is located in a gorgeous older building on the shores of Lake Minnetonka. This is where it stops; I love the ice cream (even though I can’t eat it because of my lactose), but come here for the sorbet. The flavors are generally mixed (they don’t seem to clean their utensils well) and I find chunks of ice cream mixed in with the sorbet.
The store is staffed by nothing but teenagers; this would be fine (I’m all about teenagers learning the value of a dollar) if they actually wanted to be there. They tend to be a little rude, give a lot of side eye, and you can just see the judgement in their eyes (at least that was my last visit). The inside of the store isn’t kept well! There was ice cream on the floor, dripping down the woodwork on the front of the coolers, and overall had a sticky feeling all around. I honestly don’t feel it’s that difficult to spray some windex and clean it up.
This place would be fantastic, if they hired individuals that wanted to be there and cleaned up the interior a little more! Will I be back? Probably, because I love Ben&Jerry’s and the views are wonderful.

Great location. The prices were really night for not a lot of ice cream. Service was friendly and got helped right away. You can enjoy your ice cream with a great view of lake Minnetonka!

This is a fun little ice cream shop with a fantastic location. It’s right on the main drag in downtown Wayzata and right on the waterfront. The city beach is only two blocks away. It’s perfectly located for those hot summer days.
The summer staff is generally teenagers working a traditional summer job. The service is pretty quick — even with long lines. You can sample any flavor you like, and they have quite the variety to choose from. They offer bottled beverages, which is nice because they are portable, but I’d prefer fountain beverages. The bottled ones are often warm, because the ice bucket near the cash register only holds a handful of bottles.
There is limited indoor seating, but there are also benches and tables immediately outside — and more benches along the garden rows by the railroad tracks across the street. It’s a great place to stop for a quick treat!

While the prices are a bit steep, the friendly service my husband and I received was beyond the expected. The employees made sure to greet us right away, offered us samples, and were able to explain the different flavors with ease. And you really cannot beat enjoying your ice cream while overlooking Lake Minnetonka.

So filthy. Every surface from the front doors to the floors to the bathroom is covered in grime. Almost threw up my ice cream.

Checking out the Schweddy Balls :-)

Have to love an evening stroll down Lake Street in Wayzata, grabbing a cone of Chunky Monkey, then camping out in the benches across the street and looking out over Lake Minnetonka to enjoy both the view and your ice cream!