The Parlour’s Bus

I always missed The Parlour’s spot. But today, I finally have a chance to try some of their scoops. I ordered beginner cup with Vietnam coffee and vegan mint. I love the coffee one, and the ice cream seems really fresh and free of processed sugar. But mint is a disappointed choice.
The price is alright, 4 dollars for 2 scoops.
Their bus looks sketchy but interesting.

Key lime pie ice cream. (has actual key lime pie in it)
Chai tea ice cream with candied ginger. (my personal fav)
Blueberry buttermilk ice cream
Vietnamese coffee ice cream
… and the list goes on.
This place is amazing and if you go to the store in downtown Durham and see a long line outside the door… trust me its worth the wait,

I’ve been here twice! I think I got the banana bread pudding and smores. They have unique flavors and both times I was super happy with my choices!

Intro:
Visited Parlour last week after a former coworker sent me «Eater’s 16 Hottest Ice Cream Shops in the U.S.», on which Parlour was #16. I’m brand new to the area after moving from DC and am a frozen-​treat fanatic.
Product:
I’m pretty tough with my ratings, so I’d give this a 4. The ice cream was very good, great texture and inventive flavors, but the sugar cone was stale (big bummer) and it wasn’t ohmygodtheBESTICECREAMINTHEWORLD! I took a photo of the flavors, and was very impressed with Vietnamese Coffee, Pear Brie, and Orange Date.
I sampled a few of the flavors and settled on the Labneh (olive oil, mint, yogurt) and my partner tried vanilla with sprinkles (despite how it sounds, my partner is not a little boy). The Labneh had a great yogurt flavor, but I didn’t pick up any olive oil. The vanilla tasted exactly like a vanilla bean, which is good or bad, depending on your preference. I thought it was yummy, but pretty standard.
Experience/​Service:
The place was relatively crowded, considering it was 10pm on a Thursday– groups of teenagers, a few couples with babies, a few date nights. It’s located on a somewhat hidden back street in downtown Durham, right next to the Marriott. There’s a cute park across the street with benches where many patrons were enjoying their treats. Relative to other ice cream options, it was expensive, but worth a try for sure.

I say to my charming 5 year old, «lick the cone, don’t stick your whole face in it.»
My charming 5 year old replies, «But Mommy, I can’t help it, it’s just so delicious.»
There is nothing else I can say about this ice cream to describe it better.

I went two times in two days. There’s always a line, but it goes really fast. I shared a coke float with vanilla and got a mint chip in a waffle cone for myself. The single scoop is only $ 3.50 which really isn’t too bad. The coke float was quite a lot; they give you the rest of the bottle to pour yourself, too. Very traditionally delicious. The mint chip was crisp and clean and good but not mind-​blowing.
The second day, I got the Earl Grey which was fantastic! It was like eating milk tea from a cone. It was great! I would highly recommend it! Sweet with a touch of tea!
The thing I like about Parlour ice cream is that it tastes very clean, and I don’t feel that slight throat-​clogging feeling like I do after eating other dairy items. 5 stars for the Early Grey, but I don’t think every flavor will be that great so 4.5 stars overall.

The Parlour has wonderful ice cream (which just happens to be my favorite food in the whole world). Luckily, even after the owners opened their own shop, they still take the «bus» (aka food truck) around to special events in the Triangle.
All of the ice cream flavors are great, but the salted caramel is definitely a personal favorite. Their ice cream is really luxurious and creamy – you can taste that it’s thicker than what you get at the grocery store (except maybe a few premium brands). The flavors are also really pronounced. And, it is ice cream, so it does melt – but it’s definitely not the type of ice cream that’s melting before you can eat two spoonfuls (which makes me a bigger fan), particularly when it’s served out of their truck!

I absolutely love the Parlour food truck! All their ice cream is creamy and delicious, but I have a sick love for their salted butter caramel and will order every time I visit the truck. It is rich, creamy, and has just a hint of saltiness that balances out the sweetness of the caramel cream.
They have a new location in downtown durham that will be convenient when the truck is not around the neighborhood.

The Parlour is my favorite food truck in the Triangle! I’ve never had ice cream as awesome as theirs and every flavor I’ve tried has been super tasty! I love taking visiting friends and family for their inaugural Parlour trip, and nudging them towards the Salted Butter Caramel. If it’s your first time, be sure to try this flavor! Some of my favs are the Vietnamese Coffee, Malted Cinnamon, Sweet Potato, and Key Lime.
I think the price point is great for the density and creaminess of this ice cream (Salted Butter Caramel is very filling). Sure you can get a super cheap half gallon at the supermarket, but you’re mostly paying for air and corn syrup :)

Ahh I get to finally be the jack-​ass that gives a lower rating for a business that everyone else loves. What can I say but Parlour has always been decent but not super-​astounding, knock your socks off good to me. I’ve had their ice cream several times and my last go around was a vanilla sundae with peaches and toasted sesame brittle. Tasted decent but mostly because of the toppings. I’m focused on the ice cream and always found Parlour’s to be a bit icey. Ice cream should be creamy and smooth with just the right amount of density, butter-​fat, sugar and flavor. And Parlour makes good ice cream but I don’t think it’s better than say, Maple View.
And yeah, since they are a food truck I am expecting them to kick some serious lactose-​booty. The other part of it is that I’ve found their service to be a bit odd. Ice cream should be a fun and happy time, yet I don’t really get that kid-​like feel from Parlour. So yeah, I do like Parlour but I don’t find myself missing them like I do some other food trucks. Cest la vie…

Finally, The Parlour and I have met! Salted Butter Caramel ice cream was all mine, and WOW, was it ever worth the wait! Don’t make the mistake I did and eat it first if you pair it with a scoop of the Vietnamese Iced Coffee flavour, too, because after the magic of SBC it was all I could taste — and all I wanted to taste! — and while I know the coffee flavour was good, SBC just knocked it out of the park. If you get two scoops, save the caramel heaven for last.
The Parlour’s bus is adorable, with green and pink dishes to match the colour scheme (or you can opt for a cone and save the plastic) and friendly, efficient service. They’re on their way to opening a brick and mortar shop, too, so soon I won’t have to stalk my Parlour prey via social media for a location to get my SBC fix!
PS: Salted Butter Caramel. Do it.

They’re finishing up a (successful) kickstarter to get a brick & mortar, which might make me sad when they stop showing up to all my favorite spots. I hope they plan on keeping the truck.
Now, for you types who don’t know what food trucks are or anything about Durham, we [heart] our food… trucks. And Parlour isn’t one of those «dingaling» ice cream trucks. They make milkshakes, hot chocolate, and sundaes too.
Every ice cream shop has its strength and what Parlour does really well are the flavors. Salted butter caramel, chocolate, mint chocolate chip, coffee… are just some of my favorite flavors. I saw a lavender flavor on their menu recently, so you know these guys are always experimenting with some new idea.
Also, these guys use the Square app for payment. I love it because it means no cash and generally can be as quick as running a credit card and keeps track of my purchases. Sorry, that was a bit of a tangent…
Bottom line, the Parlour is delicious. It’s not the most authentic, straight from the farm, just milked kind of ice cream, but it’s the most exotic & intense flavors you can imagine ice cream being.

What could be better after a sweaty CrossFit workout than a walk to the Durham Farmers Market and ICE CREAM!
Specifically, the mango sorbet. It’s amazing. It’s mango heaven. It’s the kind of ice cream you don’t want to share. And trust me, I didn’t share.

I can’t be trusted at the Parlour, most often because I’ve already had a few at Fullsteam, so loads of ice cream just seems like a really good idea. Salted butter caramel is pretty much my favorite. But their strawberry and toasted coconut (vegan!) are also freaking rad. I think that’s all I’ve had here, because I already know how awesome they are and can’t seem to bring myself to try something new.
I also like to add Thin Mints when they offer it as a topping. Yes, that’s Thin Mints with salted butter caramel and toasted coconut together. It’s weird, I admit it; but still so freaking delicious. They also have Nutella sometimes, which is always rock ‘em sock ‘em.
Last visit my husband had an ice cream sandwich, which is any flavor you like between two chocolate chip cookies. It was awesome.
I also love that the Parlour takes credit cards and can email or text you your receipt (if you need it). Oh, and also that they’re always there waiting at Fullsteam after my run club meets on Wednesdays.

So the reason they sell out of the Salted Butter Caramel all the time is because it is the best ice cream you’ll ever have. It tastes just like a Werther’s Original in ice cream form, which, if you didn’t realize, is way better than a Werther’s Original.
I want to try other flavors, but Salted Butter Caramel: I can’t quit you.

I was EXTREMELY glad to try The Parlour this afternoon at the RTP Food Truck Rodeo, and hope that I’ll get the chance to sample more flavors soon.
I checked their menu online before I went, and I already knew what I was going for — salted butter caramel. Salt = good, butter = awesome, caramel = jackpot.
I sampled it, even though I had no doubt in my mind what I was going to order. This flavor did not disappoint. I’m a little blah (and cheap) so I didn’t order any toppings, but this ice cream absolutely doesn’t need it. You can taste buttery, burnt sugary goodness and it was worth every calorie. I think I almost skipped back to my car, spoon in hand, and savored each mouthful — not wanting to head back to work (which has a SEVERE lack of ice cream).
I usually get my salted caramel fix from a store bought gelato (also amazing), but now I can get The Parlour’s brand of yum without the shame of eating out of the pint on my couch! Until we meet again — magic school bus.

I had the simple strawberry ice cream. I like to use the simpler flavors as a staple to compare to other ice creams. The Parlour definitely does not lack in the butter fat departments. I would say it’s at least 15% if not higher. The higher the better! It was very rich and creamy and very delicious.
My boyfriend had the vietnamese coffee. i have to say though, i’ve had stronger, better, coffee ice cream but this one was still very coffee-​like.
They ran out of salted butter caramel, which i was looking forward to tasting to compare to San Francisco’s Bi-Rite’s version, but maybe next time.
Overall, a great place to get ice cream. my only complaint is that it is somewhat expensive.

–double facepalm– How can I have passed The Parlour every time thinking it’s just another food truck with ice cream that I can wait until the end to get, and chase after the famed monsters? Oh, The Parlour, how I did you wrong all these times?! but you waited patiently for me to realize the error of my way.
Now I know what I missed out, and it was totally worth the wait. Since I waited for almost an hour, and there are a few popular flavors already scratched off the white board, I was not going to risk to chance and went for broke: Fig Honey (so glad it was still there, the taste of honey was refreshing,) Roasted Banana (I thought it might taste like fried plantain for some reason,) Basil Pineapple (oh yea! you read it right! surprisingly these two flavors worked well together, herb-​y basil and fruity pineapple,) and to round off two-​double scoops I picked dark chocolate since that’s always my favorite.
For you, The Parlour, next time I’ll make sure to get my dessert before my entrée!

By pure, but wonderful coincidence, I managed to catch a glimpse of the first ice cream truck I have seen in downtown Durham. The flavors are creative and good, fantastically creamy and natural, and if I had room for it I would have tried all of them.
The peach w/​honey vanilla milkshake was the best milkshake I’ve ever had. Creamy, not overly sweet, and deliciously peachy. I also had the peach and blackberry buttermilk scoops which were absolutely divine. My favorite was blackberry buttermilk, which tastes just as you would expect.
A taste of creative/​gourmet flavors with a quality that I have only found in the highly rated ice cream places of the big cities is humbly driving around Durham.

Yet another exceptional treat from one of Durham’s amazing food trucks!
I found her truck by a happy accident when she was partnered up with KoKyu for a Bloody Brunch at Motorco one Sunday afternoon. After having Korean bbq, I thought a bit of ice cream would hit the spot.
She had so many interesting and one-​of-​a-​kind flavors from which to choose, I had a tough time making a decision. She suggested I try a sample or two to make up my mind. I decided on the Honey Chai and loved every bite. There is a flavor for everyone, even vegans!
Follow ParlourDurham on FB and Twitter to find out her location.

Magnifique! It’s unmistakeable the feeling you get ordering ice cream out of a truck twenty years from when you first did it…
But in place of Flintstone push-​up pops, the Parlour has delightfully gourmet treats. I recently enjoyed their Vietnamese coffee which was just about the best coffee ice cream I’ve had anywhere. Topped with chocolate sauce, the combo couldn’t have been yummier (except now I’m reading Oliver’s review and see that with salted caramel and donuts, it’s true that it can… Next time!)