No sandwich, sub, classic roast beef, or anything served up in The Bear (though we don’t doubt Carmy could do it if he tried) has sh*t on the ice cream sando. The only way to improve upon the tastebud igniting ecstasy that is a cold lick of ice cream on a hot summer’s day is to stick that ice cream between something that provides crunch or texture and allows you to enjoy said ice cream completely bowl and utensil-free. It satisfies what the rich and decadent combination of cake and ice cream does, without the need for a spoon, plates, utensils, or, you know, cake.
From Australia, where it’s known as a “cream between,” to Vietnam, the home of the bánh mì kęp kem, the whole world loves slapping ice cream between wafers, cookies, or whatever they can find to make a sandwich out of it. It’s the perfect snack of the summer, so if you haven’t hit up the freezer aisle at your favorite grocery store to pick up a box of one of the many ice cream sandwiches available to you yet, get on that ASAP! But with so many ice cream sandwiches out there, which one is actually worth your money?
We decided to find out by picking up as many ice cream sandwiches we could find and putting them head-to-head in the ultimate ice cream sandwich ranking of the summer. Let’s get into it and find out which brands to avoid, and which deserve that coveted freezer space starting with the worst of the bunch…
20. Good Humor — Chocolate Chip Cookie Sandwich
Price: $4.99
Tasting Notes:
Before I tried Good Humor’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Sandwich, I was all in. Why don’t more cookie sandwiches have actual chocolate chips in the ice cream itself? It’s a great idea. Then I realized Good Humor’s small concession was just an attempt to distract us from how bad this ice cream sandwich is. It’s awful. The chocolate chip cookie used as the ‘bread’ of this sandwich has this dirty and dry graham cracker-like flavor to it that dominates the whole sandwich.
The cookies ironically don’t have more than a few tiny chocolate chips on them, which makes all the chocolate chips in the ice cream look more comical than appetizing. The cookie along with the insane amount of chocolate chips give this sandwich an overall bitter flavor, with the vanilla ice cream acting as more of a mouthfeel than a flavor.
The Bottom Line:
Avoid at all costs!
19. Le Cafe De La Plage — La Vanille Macaron Sandwich
Price: $3.99
Tasting Notes:
I love the idea of a macaron ice cream sandwich and I’m sure when you order this treat at the actual Le Cafe De La Plage in Malibu it’s delicious. But in this pre-packaged form sold at Whole Foods? It fails to deliver. The ice cream is incredibly dense, with a sweet vanilla bean flavor, but the macaron buns are soft and mushy and don’t really provide that same crispy airiness that makes macarons so addicting.
The Bottom Line:
A great idea. But in practice, it tastes and looks like something that melted in the freezer and then re-formed.
18. Le Cafe De La Plage — Rose Macaron Sandwich
Price: $3.99
Tasting Notes:
Le Cafe De La Plage’s Rose Macaron Sandwich isn’t at all an improvement over the vanilla version, but it is a bit more novel. And that’s something right? This sandwich has a refreshing floral flavor but still suffers from that mushy macaron construction. Also, the presentation isn’t quite as beautiful as the packaging suggests. This wasn’t so much a pretty pink ice cream sandwich as it was something that resembled a pineapple and cherry Big Stick popsicle in disk form. I kind of wish it tasted like one given what this brought.
The Bottom Line:
Don’t give in to the novelty of the rose flavor or the macaron construction, this sandwich will only bring disappointment.
17. Cool Haus — Dairy Free Tahitian Vanilla
Price: $12
Tasting Notes:
For this ranking, we tried to stay away from dairy-free options to make way for the insane amount of traditional ice cream sandwiches that are on the market, but we wanted the dairy-free crowd to have at least one entry, so we went with Cool Haus. It’s not great. It’s by no means bad, but there is hardly anything redeemable about this sandwich aside from its dairy-free status.
The cookie is too soft, the texture is more like raw cookie dough than an actual fully baked cookie and it sticks to your tongue and the roof of your mouth in this really off-putting way. While the sandwich has a slight sweetness to it, the dominating flavor is this blunt blandness that overpowers the vanilla and leaves your mouth feeling dry and in desperate need of some sort of liquid to loosen the cookie that has coated your palate.
The Bottom Line:
Bland and certainly not worth its obscenely high price tag.
16. Tillamook — Vanilla Bean Waffle Cone Ice Cream Sandwich
Price: $6.49
Tasting Notes:
Tillamook’s Vanilla Bean Waffle Cone sandwich is another snack that fails to deliver on the promise of its concept. This sandwich attempts to satisfy the craving for a cone while using the ice cream sandwich form factor and it, unfortunately, ends up failing at both. The chocolate-dipped waffle pieces that make up this sandwich don’t have that same cone crunch, they’re soft and mushy, but hard enough not to break apart easily causing the ice cream filling to wedge around each time you bite it, spilling out the sides and causing a mess.
You’re better off throwing this in a bowl and eating it with a spoon, which kind of defeats the purpose of an ice cream sandwich.
The Bottom Line:
Another great concept with poor execution. This is a great idea, Tillamook just hasn’t figured out how to make it work.
15. Favorite Day — Cookies and Cream Sandwich
Price: $4.49
Tasting Notes:
Not only was I surprised to find that there were more than ten different ice cream sandwich varieties in the supermarket, but I was also surprised by the fact that the ice cream filling in almost all of these sandwiches was of pretty decent quality. I fully expected more of them to taste like this Cookies and Cream Sandwich from Target brand Favorite Day, which is to say: cheap, icy, and watery.
This sandwich isn’t good and that comes down to the fact that the ice cream itself tastes more like ice than it does cream. You can just tell this one is cheap, but we’re ranking it a bit higher than the other bottom-of-the-barrel stuff because I liked this dark Oreo-like chocolate cookie.
The Bottom Line:
It tastes cheap and freezer burned.
14. Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Sandwich
Price: $3.29
Tasting Notes:
I love the classic Nestle Toll House chocolate chip recipe. It’s simple and results in one of the most straightforward but best-tasting chocolate chip cookies you can make at home, so I fully expected to love this but I’m a bit disappointed. Don’t get me wrong, the cookie absolutely delivers, it’s delicious, with a brown sugar and butter forward flavor and the perfect amount and distribution of chocolate chips, but it totally overpowers the vanilla ice cream sandwiched in-between.
Here the vanilla serves more as a cold mouthfeel. The flavor doesn’t really register beyond the cookie.
The Bottom Line:
You’re better off making some Nestle Toll House cookies yourself and putting your favorite ice cream between two cookies than buying this.
13. Tillamook Chocolate Mudslide Waffle Cone Sandwich
Price: $3.99
Tasting Notes:
Tillamook’s Chocolate Mudslide still suffers all of the same structural problems as the Vanilla Bean iteration but the combination of chocolate ice cream and a chocolate waffle cone tastes so much better than the vanilla combo that we’re willing to give it a pass. I’d say all of the sandwiches proceeding this entry aren’t worth your money or time, but the Chocolate Mudslide gets a pass. The flavor is rich and decadent, and while as a sandwich it’s a mess to eat, it’s definitely worth throwing in a bowl with a fresh banana, some cinnamon, crushed nuts, and whipped cream for an easy ice cream sundae.
The Bottom Line:
As a sandwich it sucks, but flavorwise it definitely delivers and will inspire you to get creative with it and turn it into something better with a few more ingredients. If you don’t have the patience for that, skip this one.
12. Kroger Snowboard Sandwiches
Price: $4.49
Tasting Notes:
It’s exactly what want it to be. Kroger’s Snowboard Sandwiches are that classic chocolate wafer cake ice cream sandwich, with a creamy vanilla-forward flavor with notes of chocolate cake. It’s not going to wow, but it’s undeniably delicious.
The Bottom Line:
A classic ice cream sandwich that tastes just as good as you remember it. It doesn’t have the flash of a cookie sandwich, but it delivers.
11. Le Cafe De La Plage — Chocolate Chunk
Price: $3.99
Tasting Notes:
After the disaster that was the Le Cafe De La Plage Macaron sandwiches, I didn’t have high hopes for this one. But it managed to surprise me. The Madagascar Vanilla Bean ice cream is refreshing and creamy but the real star of the show here is this cookie which has a delicious cinnamon, brown sugar, and butter flavor with giant chocolate chips (only on one cookie for some reason, the bottom cookie is standard chocolate chip) that infuses each bite with gooey chocolatey goodness.
The Bottom Line:
Of all the cookie sandwiches in this ranking, this one is in the running for having the best chocolate chip cookie. Unfortunately, the vanilla ice cream doesn’t live up to the promise of the cookie.
10. Alden’s Organic Old School Vanilla Ice Cream Sandwich
Price: $4.99
Tasting Notes:
I have nothing bad to say about Alden’s Organic Old School Vanilla Ice Cream Sandwich, but nothing really nice to say either. This is a good ice cream sandwich, the vanilla is sweet and delicate and the chocolate cake is a bit thinner than your typical sandwich, allowing for a more vanilla-forward flavor. Overall, it’s solid but I just can’t see it being anyone’s favorite. For a similar price, there are better brands out there that do this same classic ice cream sando formula better.
The Bottom Line:
Good, but not good enough that you should seek it out. Buy it because it’s on sale, eat it because it’s offered to you, but don’t make space in the freezer for it.
9. Whole Foods 365 Organic Ice Cream Sandwich
Price: $5.29
Tasting Notes:
Whole Foods Organic Ice Cream Sandwich is another standard chocolate cake vanilla ice cream combo with a great flavor. The vanilla here is a bit creamier than what Alden’s offers and the chocolate portion of the sandwich is sweet, decadent, and rich.
The Bottom Line:
It’s nothing special but if you love that classic ice cream sandwich flavor, you’re going to love this.
8. Klondike — Classic Vanilla Ice Cream Sandwich
Price: $3.74
Tasting Notes:
The Klondike Classic Vanilla Ice Cream Sandwich might look like a standard ice cream sandwich from a well-known brand, but it actually presents a different take on the classic flavor combination. The chocolate Klondike uses has a distinctly smooth and rich quality to it, it comes across as lighter and more natural than a lot of other chocolate-covered ice cream treats while still delivering an intense flavor.
The Bottom Line:
This isn’t just your standard ice cream sandwich with Klondike branding, if you love the brand you’re going to love this. It delivers the classic chocolate vanilla flavor combo but with a characteristic Klondike twist that you’ll either love or hate depending on how you feel about the brand.
7. Fatboy — Premium Vanilla Jr Ice Cream Sandwich
Price: $4.64
Tasting Notes:
I love the Fatboy Jr. It might look like a standard ice cream sandwich but everything is on point here. The chocolate cake is rich, the vanilla creamy and refreshing, but what really gets me is the form factor. The Fatboy Jr. is a three-bite snack, and that’s its strength. The flavors never overstay their welcome, and by the time you’re finished with it you’re left wanting more, rather than feeling burnt out or overwhelmed.
It also lives up to its name, the ice cream filling is thick, offering a different ratio of chocolate to vanilla than your typical ice cream sando.
The Bottom Line:
For a no-frills ice cream sandwich, the FatBoy Jr. is one of the best tasting in a bite-sized less indulgent form factor.
6. Klondike Sandwiches — Mrs. Fields Cookie Sandwich
Price: $3.27
Tasting Notes:
The Klondike Sandwiches Mrs. Frields Cookie Sandwich delivers where the Tollhouse version fails. The cookie is soft and buttery and the vanilla is milky and rich with both flavors elevating one another to something greater than the sum of its parts. There’s a true marriage of flavors here that stands out above a lot of the other chocolate chip cookie-based sandwiches on this ranking.
The Bottom Line:
This is the best budget chocolate chip cookie-based ice cream sando.
5. Favorite Day — Mini Ice Cream Sandwiches
Price: $3.59
Tasting Notes:
This was the biggest surprise of the ranking. Target’s Favorite Day brand is generally pretty middling but this is one of the best-tasting standard ice cream sandwiches I’ve come across. The chocolate has this fluffy texture to it that makes it taste more in line with actual cake, and the vanilla is creamy and refreshing. This really delivers on the promise of an ice cream sandwich, no complaints here.
The Bottom Line:
It’s a great standard ice cream sandwich that delivers more flavor and quality than its affordable price would suggest. A real surprise from the Favorite Day brand.
4. Klondike Cookies and Cream
Price: $4.99
Tasting Notes:
What’s not to like? This is essentially a giant oreo cookie. It’s sweet, creamy, chocolatey, rich, and decadent. My only complaint is that Klondike didn’t team up with Oreo to get some legit Oreo buns for this sandwich. The cookie is softer than I want it to be. Small granules of chocolate in the ice cream attempt to make up for that but come up a bit short. Overall though, this is a winner.
The Bottom Line:
It tastes exactly like it looks, like a giant Oreo cookie.
3. Blue Bunny — Simply Vanilla Ice Cream Sandwich
Price: $5.49
Tasting Notes:
This is the highest-ranked standard ice cream sandwich on this list because it does everything that those other ice cream sandwiches did, just a bit better. Blue Bunny is a brand that knows how to deliver on its various products and the ice cream sandwich is no different. The vanilla is thick and creamy, with a luxuriously soft mouthfeel that melts on the tongue slowly while the chocolate cake notes take over and dominate the aftertaste.
The Bottom Line:
The best standard ice cream sandwich your money can buy.
2. It’s It — Original Vanilla
Price: $3.99
Tasting Notes:
Had I been able to find the mint chocolate It’s It I have no doubt it would’ve swept this ranking. Unfortunately, all I could find was the original vanilla, which we’re giving the second place spot. I’m an It’s It fan, such a big fan that I ate mine before I could remember to take a picture of it. This cookie sandwich just offers something completely unique to the competition: an oatmeal cookie.
That cinnamon-infused oat cookie is covered in chocolate with a thick scoop of creamy vanilla sandwiched between, offering a crispy mouthfeel and a sweet, earthy, rich, and distinct flavor that tastes so good a single bite will stop you in your tracks.
The Bottom Line:
Perfect texture, perfect flavor, it’s hard to beat the unique combination of flavors offered by the It’s It.
1. Cool Haus Classic Vanilla Ice Cream Sammie
Price: $15
Tasting Notes:
I didn’t want this to be my top choice. Cool Haus’ Classic Ice Cream Sammies come three to a box at $15 per box. That’s $5 per sandwich, which is absurd. The form factor is also ridiculous for the price, this isn’t a large chocolate chip cookie, the sandwich is built on your standard three-inch cookie. But holy shit does it taste f*cking delicious.
The cookie is perfect, it’s sugary and buttery with semi-sweet chocolate chips that deliver the right balance of sweetness and bitter cocoa notes. The Tahitian vanilla ice cream is rich, luxurious, and perfectly creamy, with a texture that matches a fresh scoop of ice cream. Every component is perfectly realized.
The Bottom Line:
As perfect an ice cream sandwich as you’re going to find in the freezer section. It easily rivals what you could make with some fresh baked cookies and your favorite ice cream.
