Emack & Bolio’s

I really like a couple of smoothies I’ve had here, including a peach. Some of their ice cream flavors I remember were pretty decent, but I can’t quite recall. I’ve tried an assortment of their chocolates which were decent, some a bit too heavy to my liking, but that’s chocolate for you. You can’t go wrong with turtles.

Emack & Bolio’s has GREAT reviews, so my husband I were very excited to try it! I’m sorry to say, our experience was a total letdown. As another reviewer mentioned, the shop smelled more like cigarette smoke than ice cream and chocolate treats. The only employee (owner?) was unwelcoming and dismissive toward us. The ice cream was good, but the scoop sizes were sad. As we sat down to eat and looked around, I realized: This probably used to be a great ice cream shop, but now I see the telltale signs of a business being run into the ground: Small portions, nearly-​empty display cases, dirty baseboards, dust on the signage, crooked picture frames on the wall. Whoever owns this business stopped caring. At this rate, it won’t be here two years from now. Maybe we’ll try the downtown location to see if the experience is better, but it won’t be anytime soon.

Quaint ice cream shop with a hometown feel. Fun candy covered bowls and cones to choose from. The ice cream was good. Plus they have a bunch of candy store chocolate items like homemade peanut butter cups and chocolate covered pretzels if you are in the mood for something else!

The best place for ice cream in all of central Illinois. Also the staff is very cool at both the Peoria and the B-​N location. If only there were more locations!

Ordered a sundae. Order whatever ice cream you’d like (can mix flavors) with toppings already included in price. Portion control was on point and reasonable, but I want more!!! Hence the loss of one star.

Emack & Bolio’s is actually an ice cream chain. But you would never expect that, because each shop is unique. The owner of this one is very friendly, talkative, and helpful.
They have ten-​fifteen rotating flavors from their original thirty-​two combinations. They also serve yogurt and sorbet. If you would like a cone or a cone-​cup, there is an extra charge.
The ice cream itself is a little pricey; one scoop came to about $ 3.50. I would recommend getting one scoop because the ice cream is very rich and creamy. I couldn’t finish mine because they gave me so much.
Emack & Bolio’s is definitely a must-​go ice cream stop in Peoria!

My fave ice-​cream destination in Peoria! Limited but high quality flavors, creatively named.
For those wondering, this place does not serve soft-​serve ice-​cream, rather the traditional kind dug out from a scoop.
This particular location also serves some dessert treats such as chocolates and some baked goods. If you feel like splurging, you can cradle your scoop in a ginormous size waffle cone dressed up with rice crispy treat chunks, toffee bits, or cookie crumbs to name a few.
Will definitely be stopping by various more times this summer to get my frozen treat fix.

Fabulous Ice Cream! So Many Choices. I also Love their Smoothies.
The chocolate candy puts Fannie Mae to shame
A Must go

Good ice cream, sherbet and smoothie. My dad fell in love with the chocolate malt which was really good. My only complaint is that we went in and it strongly smelled of cigarette smoke. Would have given three stars instead but I was happy to see they take a variety of credit cards including American Express.

Seriously the best. Went in for the first time today and it was amazing. They have many choices of ice cream and dipped waffle cones. They also have smoothies and a variety of treats like fudge or chocolate covered pretzels. ⁵⁄₅ would go again.

Best ice cream in Peoria, so delicious we go even in the winter! I love the unique flavors they have (peanut butter Oreo anyone?), and they’re always rotating. If you haven’t been there, you gotta try it!

Emack & Bolio’s is a Brookline, MA-​based chain of ice cream shops, who apparently are trying to break into the central Illinois market. I was curious to see if these guys could displace Jeni’s of Columbus as the «go-​to ice cream of the midwest».
Short answer… no. But this is still a good place to go for great ice cream, and compared to Vermont-​based Ben and Jerry’s, Emack & Bolio’s is better.
I had a Bananas Foster with a Waffle Kit Kat cone to stave off lunch for a while. I don’t normally like bananas in ice cream form, but this was fantastic; just enough dark rum and caramel to keep things interesting. It would be an excellent middle scoop for a unique banana split.
My wife got a root beer float, which was greatly helped by 1.) serious amounts of vanilla, whether by bean or by extract, in the scoop of vanilla ice cream, and 2.) a very bite-​y root beer. Some root beers go down full and smooth (A&W’s), but theirs punches you in the face. It’s nice.
I got a vanilla bomb cream soda, which seems to fit the mold of «let’s take something familiar, and crank the flavor to 11». Lots of vanilla… not necessarily coming from a bean, but that’s OK — you won’t regret sipping this out of a glass bottle.
Flavors alternate, and today there seemed to be a *lot* of chocolate or chocolate-​based flavors. I also forgot to try some of the freshly-​made candy, so whenever I’m in Peoria Heights next, I’ll have to make sure to try a Nutella Cup.
And as far as being a chain goes, this place gives a few mom-​and-​pop churn-​your-​own places up here in Chicagoland a run for their money. I think only Gelati in Naperville is better. I’d consider that a high compliment; even better, I’m looking forward to my next trip.

Cute place to get something cold on a hot day @ the Riverfront!

Best ice cream in Peoria. My only complaint is the last 2 times we’ve been there, they were out of Serious Chocolate Addiction, which is seriously the best ice cream. Try one of their candy cones (Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup mmmm)

Wow. This is probably some of the best ice cream I have ever had. Stopped in with my son one afternoon, and noticed the chocolate-​dipped waffle cones. Topped one with a scoop of mud pie ice cream, which was to die for.
My son had a dipped waffle cone that was also rolled in Oreos with a scoop of chocolate.
Pricey, but it was an awesome treat. I’ll be back!

Ice cream flavors are always rotated.
‘Deep Purple Cow’ is amazing if you like fruity mixed with chocolate.
‘Beantown Buz’ — must have for coffee lovers
Great ice cream, but in comparison to the amazingly fun atmosphere that has been cultivated at the Emack and Bolios in Normal, IL this location rates pretty low.
Service was nice, but boring. The shape of the building is awkward and uninviting.
Make the 30 minute drive to Bloomington-​Normal. Its worth it :)

Exactly the kind of place that justifies the fifth Unilocal star. Ice cream made in Boston and served with a smile in the River City. High in butterfat, and — for as hip as it is — low in pretension. Can’t beat it.

This is one of my favorite spots to stop in the summer. They have a Raspberry Limericky that I ALWAYS buy and guzzle down in no time. SO DELICIOUS! They make it with fresh fruit though, so if lime’s aren’t in season… you have to order something else. Like ice cream.
The ice cream is extremely good and there are so many fun candy covered cones that you can have something new and delicious every time. Not to mention the plethora of mixed drinks and smoothies they offer. Also worth noting, my sister had the Citrus Cooler and was a big fan.
However, I feel the absolute best item in the whole shop is a bottle of Free Tibet Ginger Ale. If you get nothing else out of this review, stop in and buy one. Especially if you are a ginger ale fanatic like I am. The taste is out of this world. Sweet, gingery perfection.

Best ice cream in Peoria, hands down!

OMG! Delicious!
I have been wanting to try this place for a while, but never got around to it. First off, it’s ice cream, in case you were wondering. What makes it even more cool is that it is an East Coast ice cream chain. How it ended up here in Peoria, I’ll never know, but I am super happy about it, I’ll tell you that.
There are an array of options to chose from, like peanut butter chocolate (yum!!!), cake batter, coffee, moose tracks, etc! The flavors are out of this world! They also have shakes, frozen yogurt, drinks, etc. You must try this place! It got a Zagat rating of 26! Come on people.