Haagen Dazs Vanilla...at Nespresso!

WHAT: Vanilla - three large ice cream scoops in a mug!  Base: Vanilla WHERE: Nespresso Boutique Bar, Upper East Side

WHIT’s scale out of 5: Creativity: Presentation: Taste: Texture: Value:

Overall Experience How Many Whits Out of 5 Is It? THREE WHITS!

STORY: I really was not expecting to eat ice cream today after all the cold front AND snow NYC received this weekend. However when the opportunity arises, why not?

And this golden opportunity happened to occur at Nespresso Boutique Bar! We were searching for a coffee shop on Madison Ave, after leaving the Guggenheim Museum. Surprisingly, there are not too many coffee shops along this street - there are very many high end clothing stores though! We did pass by a Starbucks, but didn't think much of it...

Then we came upon Nespresso! My friend immediately went "YESSSSS!!!" LOL. In our office where we both work at, we have a Nespresso machine.

But! I don't drink coffee. So what did I have instead?

ICE CREAM.

Listed under "Desserts" was Seasonal Ice Cream / Sorbet, and while I was this close to getting hot chocolate, my mind flipped to ice cream. Upon asking, there was only ice cream which you could get either vanilla or salted caramel. Vanilla! (not a salted caramel person) And then I found out the ice cream was not made by Nespresso :( But! It is made by Haagen Dazs :)

THOUGHTS: Hahaha I got three large scoops of vanilla ice cream in a cup! I think it was equivalent to one pint of ice cream. And I definitely did not regret my decision!

Haagen Dazs makes a truly straight up vanilla that appears simple, but really is a vanilla bomb waiting to explode in your mouth. On first bite, the texture of the Madagascar vanilla ice cream is silky smooth and caresses your taste buds. Classic Haagen Dazs.

On their website, Haagen Dazs lists vanilla as the "essence of elegance and sophistication". I would concur. Simple and elegant.

My friend comment that I could have asked to pour coffee on top of the ice cream as a topping. While I would prefer to not add straight up coffee, I did think adding a topping (M&Ms?) would be a good idea.

Would I taste it again? Yes, but not at Nespresso!

Green Tea Almond

WHAT: Green Tea Almond - Haagen Daz ice cream bar  Base: Green Tea  Coated with: Chocolate syrup  Toppings: Chopped almond WHERE: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

WHIT’s scale out of 5: Creativity: Presentation: Taste: Texture: Value:

Overall Experience How Many Whits Out of 5 Is It? THREE WHITS!

STORY: I had about two hours at the Shanghai Pudong airport before boarding the flight back to the States, and this whole (short) trip I had not had ice cream yet! I went ice cream hunting in the terminal, and found this Haagen Daz option at a cafe several gates away.

I wanted to try a flavor that is not found in the States, and while Green Tea is a popular flavor found there now, you don't always find Haagen Daz ice cream bars that are Green Tea Almond flavored!

THOUGHTS: What is up with the S-shaped ice cream bar? I am curious if this form only exists in Asia with Haagen Daz, or if it's also in other countries too... like the US!

Also, I love green tea ice cream. And I'm so glad I found this ice cream bar! Biting into the frozen chocolate exterior revealed a treasure of green tea inside that was creamy, tasty, and sweet. I think this was definitely sweeter than most, since actual green tea (matcha) has bitterness in it, however it hit the spot for now. Chopped almonds added the right amount of crunch to it.

I wish the S-form was the typical ice cream bar shape, because I definitely wanted to eat more of it. 😜

Would I taste it again? Yes, if I can find it again!