Your New BFF: BBBB [Bonnie Brae's Butter Brickle]

Denver, CO

On a recent trip to Denver, I was able to sample a couple of Denver’s local must-see ice cream shops.

Bonnie Brae’s Ice Cream has been a small Denver neighborhood gem for over 30 years. They have that authentic, classic vintage ice cream parlor vibe and the store was filled with people of all ages. Sometimes ice cream shops have a trendier young adult crowd (which is fine – I don’t discriminate when it comes to ice cream loving crowds) so it was interesting to see such a range of ages enjoying ice cream on the Tuesday evening I stopped by….and again on the Wednesday afternoon I stopped by (yes, it was THAT good).

About two thirds of the ice cream flavors were very “traditional”. Rocky Road, Oreos & Crème, Mint Chocolate Chip, Cookie Dough, Toffee, were all among the options. They also had some fun and more unusual flavors like Mexican Chocolate, Black Walnut, and even Cherry Mash, which featured a cherry ice cream base, with chunks of dark chocolate and peanuts.

There was one flavor that stood out from the crowd: Butter Brickle.

Butter Brickle Ice Cream has such a special place in my heart. As a child, I remember “The Schwann Man” had the BEST butter brickle ice cream money could buy. He would come driving through the neighborhood about once a month. We never had a standing order with him like some families did – but some summer months when I saw him coming, I would race home on my bike and ask my parents if we could get some ice cream. Occasionally, the answer was yes, and I would go flying out the front door after the Schwan Man, a check in hand, hoping he had some Butter Brickle left on his truck.

This was always my favorite ice cream flavor – and my dad’s as well. As I got older you could not find Butter Brickle anywhere except with Schwann’s. No store has it – no ice cream shop has it! So the moment I saw Butter Brickel – all bets were off.

I got a huge scoop of BB in a Waffle Cone. This ice cream was divine. The texture was perfectly creamy and smooth, sprinkled throughout with the buttery, caramelly crunchy bits that make this flavor so amazing. The waffle cone was on the crunchy side, but the texture worked well with this particular flavor.

I forgot to take a picture of my ice cream before devouring it BOTH times I visited. So below is a photo of someone else’s Bonnie Brae scoops. :)

I have a lot of family in Colorado, so I know I will be coming back to Bonnie Brae’s again!