Rita’s Italian Ice

Loved Rita’s. However this location is closed, drove today ⁸⁄₂₀ and store is empty :(

Best dessert place in north Austin and maybe the whole city. So good we bought 3 quarts of different flavors about a week ago since we were going so frequently. Really hope it reopens soon!

I went today and was told that this location will be closed indefinitely.

Delicious! We had the owner host our apartment community resident party and I couldn’t believe how delicious the Italian ice is! We had strawberry kiwi and mango. Perfect treat for a hot summer day!

This was our first time to Rita’s. I was very impressed with the selection and the customer service. I definitely recommend this place!

Honestly I’ve never been the biggest fan of shaved ice/​popsicle treats. I would much rather have ice cream, cheesecake, or something fried such as a churro or funnel cake. While they do have frozen custard here, I ordered an Italian ice because it’s in their name after all so it had to be good.
I was intrigued by the fact that their ice is made fresh daily. Surely it would taste better than the ones I’ve bought from my grocery store’s freezer section in the past then, right? I am disappointed to say those tasted better than what I had here.
They did have some fun flavors you won’t find in the store like birthday cake, cookies and cream, Swedish fish, cotton candy, and fudge brownie. The other ones were more common like raspberry, black cherry, strawberry, and pink lemonade. It was nice to see that they offer sugar free Italian ice flavors too.
Looking through their Unilocal pictures, I saw one of Red Velvet ice which I was anxious to try. I was informed they have a watermelon flavor also which sounds awesome. If I go back another time hopefully one if not both of those will be available.
It’s hard to deny that a cup of shaved ice isn’t refreshing, especially given how hot it was yesterday. I got plain strawberry ice and found it to be one note and highly lacking in flavor. My husband on the other hand got a milkshake made with coffee custard and Oreos enjoying it a lot.
What didn’t exactly help my experience was that flies in the store were so out of control, one almost flew into my mouth when I gave my order. I know overall they can’t help that but it was annoying nonetheless.

My boyfriend and I love Rita’s and were very excited to find one down the road from my apartment. Delicious as always and great customer service. We will back very often!

Was looking forward to a cool treat on a warm day. Have had this place bookmarked to try since it reviews so well.
Well unfortunately this time Unilocalers I cannot accept the high star reviews.
Interior is not clean or inviting. The ices were mostly at the bottom of the tubs not looking too fresh.
I ordered their unique ice and custard combo. My standards maybe higher than usual from having just experienced excellent custard in Kansas City, this one was way too dense and quite flavourless.

If I want custard, I’m probably going to Shakes in Cedar Park. If I want a snow cone, I’ll go to GBJB’s off 183. This is the only place I know of that has both, though! A good, small collection of flavors, and several ways to enjoy your ice with custard. Really friendly, helpful service! Great place for a low-​key date, and there are always kids here so it’s great for that, too.

Rita’s … A regular stop on the Austin tour of «Cynthia’s Pregnancy Cravings.»
This is a bright, cheery, kid-​friendly shop. You can sample the Italian ice and custard flavors before you buy. I love the innovative and seemingly endless number of ways they can combine Italian ice and gelato.
Mostly I just order the smallest kiddie size (it’s plenty!) with a scoop of gelato in the middle of the ice. This works especially well with fruity flavors (raspberry ice and chocolate gelato? Don’t mind if I do!)

Rita’s Ice, that’s nice! This little place is delizioso. They have amazing Italian ice, super soft and creamy. Get the orange gelati, yum! Custard is also available for those lacking sophisticated European palates. Add plenty of kid friendly toppings and you’ve just pleased the entire family. Rita, can I just call you mom?

My boyfriend & friend say it’s bad, but I actually think it’s good. I even have discounts that never expire so that’s even more awesome!

I randomly found you guys on Unilocal and came to try it the next day and I LOVED IT. The lady at the register was so helpful because I had told her it was my first time she explained everything so well thank you for the good experience!

Such an amazing little place I love custard and that along with shaved Ice … I tried the orange one combined with custard it’s was so yummy!

Best custard I’ve ever had right down to the sugar cone. And, the employees were so nice and attentive.
Love that they have kid stuff everywhere for the little ones to play with; sidewalk chalk, bubbles, hula hoops and a crafts table. Super sweet! We will be back!

We tried a couple of the soft serve flavors, the coffee was my favorite with the chocolate a close second. Next visit, and there will be more, we’ll try the Italian ices, they even have a sugar free flavor every day, today’s was pink lemonade.

My first time to Rita’s was at the location in Galveston so I was super happy when I found out there was one here in Austin! So many Italian ice flavors to choose from and they are really good! There are also several different flavors of custard to choose from as well. The two young ladies working tonight were super friendly and even offered us doggie custard cones for our 2 dogs!!!

Sometimes you have a horrifyingly bad day and sometimes you have a horrifyingly bad week. So for those who know me, I’m usually one of those people that puts on a good face no matter what. I tend to work my problems out on my own and after I’ve solved them, or accepted that they cannot be fixed, I’ll usually confide in one of my close friends.
Since I’ve fallen off the social radar in the last few weeks, most of my friends have been extremely understanding and have catered our weekly food meetups to days where I can actually tear myself away.
This past Sunday I was able to grab dinner with one of those aforementioned friends and afterwards we decided to get dessert. We ended up here because I’ll be honest, they have some killer frozen custard. It’s as good as what I’ve had in Northern Michigan which is saying a lot.
I have come to discover that in the brutal Texas summer, I’m a fan of their Gelatis. What is that you ask? It’s kind of like a parfait made with your choice of Ice flavor and Custard flavor. It’s excellent and very refreshing. Also it doesn’t feel as heavy as getting entirely custard because of the lightness of the Ice. Perfect for summer!
Overall, this location definitely beats its sister location on the Drag. They actually hold consistent hours and it’s clearly a popular and bustling spot. Hey, the weather is only getting warmer so why not cool down with delicious treats?

yum yum, perfect for the summer.
this is no sno-​beach, but it’s closer to home…
Don’t know what Rita’s is? Here’s a copy of my other review:
«Think JimJim’s water ice + likkity’s frozen custard.
Their custard is creamy, dreamy, delicious.
Lots of options: ice, cream ice, custard, toppings, blended or not. (Don’t be intimidated by the fancy names like Misto or Blendini…) FYI: You can also sample a few flavors before ordering.
About $ 4 – 6 depending on what you get.»
Favorite flavors: Cherry (definitely artificial but I like that Valentine’s Day Lollipop flavor), Lemonade (probably the most «real fruit» flavor here with bits of lemon in it), Mango, Swedish Fish
Customer service: went in yesterday & the girl behind the counter was friendly & allowed us some samples & filled our orders as requested!
Ambiance: I like eating stuff before it melts, so we ate our delicious cups here. but I have a sensitive nose & I kept smelling bathroom cleaner as we ate here… so probably would be nice to take it to-​go next time.
oh man. It’s only been a day & I want another one already…

Is there something wrong with going to one dessert place three times in five days? Gosh, I hope not. I plan to make many more trips to Rita’s in the coming months, especially as it gets hotter. We stopped into the newly-​opened Rita’s last week for dessert for our anniversary. Neither of us had tried it before and we were bored with frozen yogurt. We each tasted several flavors (they give you a lot in your trial cup). I ordered the wild black cherry ice with vanilla custard and my husband had the strawberry ice with chocolate custard. We loved them! So much so that we went back the next evening when I had the juicy pear ice and vanilla custard and my husband had the cherry ice and chocolate custard. Yesterday, I went again and had the cherry ice and vanilla custard. I can’t wait for when they have watermelon and green apple again.
The staff members are extremely friendly and happy to let you try any of their ices and custards.
They post their flavors each day on Facebook, and they select a Facebook Fan of the Day who gets a free item and their entourage gets 10% off. You can also sign up to be in their birthday club which gets you a BOGO coupon when you sign up plus a freebie on your birthday. You can even sign up to receive text and email alerts when your favorite flavors are made. Why do I know all this? Because I’ve become obsessed with Rita’s. You will be too!