La Monarca

If you’re looking for an alternative to LocoPops, this is the place. A huge selection of flavors, and the ones we tried were delicious.

First off, this place is a little hard to find. When I went here yesterday, Google Maps directed me to a Japanese restaurant in the same complex. This place is actually on the other side of the parking lot, where most of the stores are located.
My experience here was surprisingly pleasant. The store doesn’t look like your typical young and hip ice cream shop. There are, however, tons of flavors, for both ice cream and popsicles. The ice cream is strong and heavy, much better than the usual «brand» alternatives. What’s most delightful is the size of each serving. A scoop here is much bigger than elsewhere and the lady kept adding more. Our two-​scoop cup ended up more than enough for two people.

Thanks to Steve A. for finding La Monarca (I can always count on him to find a tasty spot when he’s got a craving!) If you’re looking for a huge variety of flavors, ice cream, popsicles, frozen banana treats or cake pops, this is your stop! La Monarca is located in a strip mall in the heart of Durham’s «Little Mexico.» (FYI: the GPS took us to the Compare Foods side, but the shop is actually located directly opposite, around the corner from Alpaca Peruvian Charcoal Chicken i.e. Mami Nora’s) It truly gives you a different cultural perspective, which can be very eye opening and honestly is needed for so many of us that live a very cookie cutter lifestyle. But don’t get me started on that… let’s talk about the ICE CREAM!
There are TONS of flavors, both typical and unusual. The employees were very willing to let us sample several things: coconut, mocha, coffee with almond, pistachio, cookies & cream and even Kahlúa. The ice creams are in huge blocks, so flavors might interact a bit, for example, the cookies & cream had a slight red hots flavor to it, but was incredibly rich and had HUGE cookie chunks. Also, the portions are large and the price is very reasonable for the amount you’re getting. $ 2 for a small cup and $ 4 for a double scoop waffle cone. The popsicles looked really great, which big chunks of cookies or fruit, I’ll have to try one of those next time! I highly recommend taking the ice cream to go and driving six minutes to Northgate Park for a little walk along the Ellerbe Creek Trail. La Monarca is a great spot to satisfy that sweet tooth craving!

The best ice cream and pops in all of Durham. My favorite was the gansito ice cream and the coffee with almonds. this stuff is worth every single penny.

I want to really love this place because I love paletas and I love supporting local businesses. My experience has been a bit mixed, though.
We went last summer and picked up three paletas for around 6 – 7 $ altogether — if I remember right, we got a chocolate paleta, a pineapple with chamoy, and a watermelon. The first was a milk-​based paleta while the other two were not. All were pretty delicious, although my husband found some of the fruit pieces in his pineapple paleta a bit too chewy. No place to sit as the place was busy, but we hung out outside to finish our paletas.
Just went again yesterday and had a less satisfying experience. My husband ordered a pistachio paleta and I asked for a non-​milk based blackberry paleta. They only had milk-​based, but the woman at the counter gave me a taste of the blackberry ice cream which was amazing. Unfortunately, my paleta came nowhere even close to the taste of the ice cream. It just tasted milky and sour, with no blackberry taste at all. All of the edges were very icy and chewy (you know when you’ve left a popsicle in the freezer too long? That kind of chewy). I was really sad as I love blackberry paletas but this was definitely not doing it for me. My husband loved his pistachio paleta, though — it was definitely rolled in lots of pistachio bits.
What drives me nuts and there doesn’t appear to be a sign anywhere specifying the costs of the paletas (although they do list the price per ice cream scoop). We paid with a $ 10 bill and got back $ 2.11 in change — that made each paleta about $ 3.95. I guess perhaps the milk-​based paletas are more expensive than the ice paletas, but I was really surprised that the total was so high. Since we saw no prices anywhere and our Spanish is unfortunately not sufficient to clearly ask the price, we had no way of knowing beforehand but I was surprised that we paid more for two paletas this year than 3 last year.
Despite these annoyances, I’d recommend La Monarcha and will keep going back. They have a huge, delicious-​looking assortment and you can tell they’re handmade — full of whatever the main ingredient is. I just wouldn’t recommend the milk-​based blackberry paleta!

Single greatest popsicles of all times. Get the water based one and bask in freshness

Excellent homemade ice cream, Popsicles and things I don’t even know what they are. The variety of products and flavors is very impressive for this small family run business. When I have visitors from out of town I always take them here and everyone has loved it! Awesome!

I am back again on a really cold Friday night. Instead of going for a popsicle, I chose to try several flavors all at once. I had, coffee with almond, moka, and chocolate vanilla with strawberry. Scopes are huge portions and costs like 5.9 bucks. Although they have a limit on using credit card (minimum 6 dollars), they are kind enough to let it pass. Thank you, and thank you for doing that!
I personally fall in love with coffee with almond and chocolate vanilla with strawberry. The flavor is smoothy and what’s important is the ingredients taste fresh and balanced and milky. Better than any processed ice cream on the market (Ben&Jerry’s sucks!)
I happened to be there around 8pm and you can see a lot of Mexican immigrants here with their families so it was bit crowded. And I found out that some mexicans chose really nice ice cream combos: chips with ice cream and fresh fruits with ice cream choices. It looks good but my task is to finish all the flavors here and at the end choose a good combo for the fresh fruit ice cream plate!
OMG, I love this sketchy place, a hidden gem for mexican food craving.

Pros: Super affordable, A wide variety of traditional and authentic Mexican flavors.
Cons: A little difficult to find the first time. Located right next to the Boost Mobile. $ 6 min purchase if using credit
Bottom Line: If you are craving something sweet, spicy, or sweet and spicy, stop by here for dessert!
During my time in Durham I was on the hunt for a local dessert eatery that I could try and found that my fellow Unilocalers gave all 5 stars to this hole in the wall. Unfortunately I had trouble finding the location because Google Maps directs you to the same plaza but the wrong location. Instead look for the Boost Mobile across from Compare Foods and Big Lots and you’ll find La Monarca.
As soon as I walked In, I noticed the giant freezer filled with popsicles of every fruit and color. The ice cream doesn’t lose out in variety either as there are all sorts of colorful concoctions spread throughout the store. The sheer number of choices was a little overwhelming, but the kind owner walked me through all of the selections including her own recommendations and favorites.
For $ 2 per popsicle it’s tempting to go ham and order 3 or 4 when you have options like strawberries and crème, mango habanero, and salsa picante. Since I had a big dinner though I was able to hold back and ordered a chocolate covered banana topped with pecans, and a guava popsicle. The banana was delicious; I mean who doesn’t like chocolate covered anything?! The guava was delicious too! My only warning is that she uses fresh fruit when making her concoctions so beware of seeds when ordering the guava popsicle. If you are like me and love fruit junks in your desserts, you’ll definitely want to try La Monarca.

Delicious, clean, and friendly. Had a great treat here with my 3yr old sidekick. They’ve got your classic flavors as well as traditional paletas. Something for everyone!

Correction: this place is called «Monarca Michoacana» in reference to the monarch butterfly migration to Michoacan, Mexico. It’s very hard to find, especially because the don’t have a lit sign but it’s worth looking for! It’s next to the «2000 city» sign in the shopping center. Ok enough about details and onto the good part. AMAZING SELECTION AND DELICIOUS HOMEMADE POPSICLES. can’t say enough good things about this place. Can’t wait to go back. The Popsicles have giant chunks of fruit in them.

Really great option for dessert any night if the week. The flavors can be a bit daunting, so plan to go back often for new flavors.
I’d recommend against anything with cheese in the paleta. A bit too authentic for my tastes. The fruits are the clear winners here like mango, coconut, and guanabana. Rice pudding is a fun choice especially if you like raisins.

Love this place. Found it while looking for Popsicle to eat. This place is like the Popsicle variety kingdom! There are so many different types. I bought a kiwi one and you could see all the seeds in them. So fresh. Love it! Will go here when I’m in NC again!

This paleta place has the cheapest and tastiest popsicles around. And, the biggest selection. Only downside is that some of the flavors are more or less a mystery – so you might be surprised at what you get when you pick one! But, they’re all good so it doesn’t really matter. The staff is helpful, and you can ask them questions about the particular flavors (but that takes the fun out of it!).
This is a must-​try – along with a lot of the other taquerias and the likes in this part of Durham.

La Monarcha is the OG of ice cream shops in the area. There’s no free wi-​fi, no locally sourced ingredients, no added excuses to charge YOU an arm and a leg for the simple idea of good honest treats. Instead you are welcomed into a shop with a fantastic array of choices – exotic, creamy ice cream and chunky fruit Popsicles all made in house. The pricing is very reasonable as are the sizes. You will leave very satisfied— having experienced a rare pocket of truth in an increasingly pretentious food scene.

Again with the ridiculously tasty frozen deliciousness.
Four paletas for $ 8.56, tax included.
My beloved got the rice, which is essentially frozen rice pudding (complete with raisins). Our oldest daughter got the chocolate, which was pretty straightforward (and included chocolate sprinkles). Our youngest had the coconut, which even I liked (and I don’t tend to enjoy coconut anything) — think creamy, smooth sweetness with coconut shavings throughout. I went for the coffee, and good grief, I was pleased. This thing tasted like a sweetened cup of pretty good coffee with cream, frozen solid with some sliced almonds thrown in for effect.
Honestly, I really can’t recommend La Monarcha enough.

YUM!
Soooo many flavors to choose from. I can highly recommend Butter Pecan with lots of chunks of pecans and Mint Chocolate with lots of chocolate bits. $ 2/​pop. Super friendly employees. We didn’t have enough cash and they said, ‘Just bring the tax next time.’ You’d better believe there will be a next time!
The pops are delicious and the price is right. The strip mall is like a Little Mexico. Right across from Compare Foods (great veggies and spices!).

I have this theory that the sketchier the strip mall where a restaurant is located, the better the food. With this in mind, let me tell you that La Monarcha’s ice cream and paletas are AMAZING. We stopped in one scorching July day hoping for delicious, creamy refreshment and got all that and quality, too!
The extremely extensive menu of both paletas and ice cream flavours is in Spanish and English though if you can muster up enough Spanish to order, give it a shot. We went with the curdled milk ice cream, which I’ve been wanting to try since I saw it on Bizarre Foods, and a mamey paleta. The scoop of ice cream was Large — capital-​L for sure — and filled the delicious, tastes-​freshly-​made cone completely. The paleta was also pretty massive, easily twice the size of a Locopop, though both it and the ice cream scoop were $ 2.00 apiece. And how does curdled milk ice cream taste? Like sweet, caramelized goodness with small chunks of chewy yumminess in it, that’s how. Try it! The mamey paleta was creamy and fruity without being too sweet; the husband pronounced it quite refreshing.
The strip mall blessed with La Monarcha is located directly off 85 and Avondale and if you aren’t familiar with the area it’s easy to miss the turn while looking for a street number (tip: you will not see it); if you see a large blue and white tentlike structure in a parking lot, that’s where you turn. If you miss it, take Club and turn into the shopping center from there; La Monarcha is across the lot from Big Lots. Bring cash, try out your language skills and fill up on what must surely be Durham’s finest frozen desserts!

This was awesome ice cream. Best in the Triangle, at least compared to Local Yogurt and Goodberry’s (don’t get me started about Maple View). The service was great — we had about 6 samples between us. I had mint chocolate chip, which is tied for best-​ever (see Mt. Tom’s Ice Cream in Easthampton, MA for the tie). It’s blue, but don’t let that fool you: it’s extremely minty with minced tasty chocolate throughout.
Spouse had pine nut, which was pretty good — combined with a scoop of our server’s favorite, curdled milk. Through a slight language barrier, it took me several minutes to realize she was talking about *curdled* milk — in part because: what? curdled milk flavored ice cream?! It was AMAZING. Sort of milky and caramely, with a hint of good-​quality cinnamon. Spouse enjoyed.
We didn’t try any fruit flavors — but I look forward to cantaloupe or mango or kiwi.
It was a bit hard to find — Liz B’s directions below were helpful. La Monarcha is directly across the parking lot from the Compare grocery, and around the corner from Mama Nori’s.
Highly recommended!

«Mexican paletas/​popsicles & ice cream– a shop to rival Locopops!»
We all know and love Locopops, but this is some serious competition. A quick walk around the corner from Mami Noras as well as several other Latin American food places, this dessert stop has tons of Mexican paletas as well as ice cream. As the other review notes, there aren’t any labels, but you can look closely and guess the flavors or ask for help from the friendly staff. Kiwi, watermelon, pistachio, mixed nut, strawberry, etc.- all look REALLY good, and there are tons of options. Cost is $ 2 for either the popsicle or a cup of ice cream. If you get ice cream, they also have standard toppings available.
The quality is very high– the paletas are very dense and clearly fresh-​made. You can see/​taste big chunks of fruit in all the fruit options, for example. Restaurant is also strikingly clean (albeit a little Spartan).
What’s especially nice here is that most of the same flavors are available as either ice cream or as a popsicle. Relatedly, they give you small sample spoons, so you can see if something tastes good by tasting the ice cream before plopping the $ 2 investment in the popsicle or cup. That worked for me– I almost got something else but tried the pistachio, and it was SO good I had to buy it instead.
The flavors aren’t as «experimental» as at Locopops (more «straight» flavors), but I do really like the opportunity to sample that this place affords. I’d say this place rocks– am excited to come back.
PS– This is my 100^th review!