Vic's Ice Cream 5537782 201130066 2008-03-26T19:48:25Z TexasAndroid 271376 Better cat '''Vic's Ice Cream''' (est. [[1947]]) is a [[restaurant]] located in the [[William Land Park|Land Park]] neighborhood of [[Sacramento, California]]. Although Vic's also serves sandwiches, it is known for its ice cream. All of the ice cream served at Vic's is made each morning on the premises. ==Atmosphere== Vic's is noted by customers and restaurant reviewers for maintaining much the same [[atmosphere]] that it had when the store opened in [[1947]]. The black and white checkered floor tiles, tight blue [[jeans]] and tucked-in shirts worn by employees, and menu items all date back to the store's inception during the Truman administration. ==Menu Items== Vic's Ice Cream, despite the indication implied in the name of the establishment, has a menu which includes more than just ice cream. ===Ice Cream Flavors=== Vic's carries 29 different flavors of [[ice cream]] at all times and at any given time during the year several seasonal flavors become available. Of the so-called everyday flavors, customer favorites include [[mint chip]], [[muddy mocha]] and [[toasted almond]]. Seasonal flavors include [[spumoni]], [[egg nog]], and [[pumpkin]] which become available during the [[Winter holiday season]] as well as [[butter brittle]] and [[lemon chiffon]] which become available during the [[summer]]. Vic's also carries the following flavors of 95% fat-free ice cream: [[vanilla]], mint chip, [[blackberry]], [[mocha chip]], and [[fudge brittle]] (which is a combination of fudge ribbon and butter brittle). In addition to ice cream, Vic's carries the following flavors of [[sherbet (U.S.)|sherbet]]: [[orange (fruit)|orange]], [[lime (fruit)|lime]], [[strawberry]], and [[pineapple]]. Sadly, Vic's no longer makes what many Sacramentans considered to be its best summer flavor: mango sherbet. ====Garlic Ice Cream==== Each year Vic's is contracted to produce three gallons of [[garlic]] ice cream for the [[Gilroy Garlic Festival]] in [[Gilroy, California]]. This is the only time that Vic's garlic ice cream can be consumed because it is never available at the Sacramento restaurant. ===Other Dessert Items=== Vic's serves a long list of old fashioned ice-cream-based desserts including [[milkshakes]], [[malts]], [[sundaes]], [[sherbet freezes]]- a blended dessert whipped up from sherbet, flavored syrup and seltzer water - and frappes. The largest dessert item available at Vic's is the [[banana split]] which is composed of three scoops of ice cream, a [[banana]], chopped and roasted [[almonds]], and [[whipped cream]]. ===Sandwiches=== Vic's serves sandwiches for [[lunch]] and [[dinner]]. The [[hot dog]] and cheese dog (which is a hot dog sandwich with American cheese) tend to be customer favorites, but the [[reuben]], [[egg salad]] sandwich, and [[tuna]] sandwich are popular too. ===Absence of Cherries=== [[Maraschino cherries]], popular as sundae-toppers in many North American ice cream parlors, are not featured at Vic's, by default or even by special request. This is because evidence was brought to the attention of owners and managers that such cherries are unhealthy and possibly linked to the development of cancers. Whether or not that link is proven remains dubious at best, but suffice it to say that the management is convinced and asking for a cherry on your dessert at Vic's will get you nowhere. ==="Secret" Menu Items=== Since Vic's is a traditional establishment, many of the customers who currently eat at Vic's have done so for many years. During this time, the menu has undergone modifications but customers can still order items that are no longer on the menu. These so-called "[[secret]]" items include: '''Orange Frisbee''': An orange sherbet freeze which contains vanilla ice cream. '''Black and White Sundae''': This is a layered ice cream sundae composed of a scoop of [[chocolate]], covered with [[marshmallow]] sauce. Atop this sits a scoop of vanilla ice cream covered with [[hot fudge]]. The black and white sundae is served in a tall beverage glass. '''Red Sauce''': Made from an undisclosed formula, Red Sauce is a cocktail sauce-like concoction that comes in a small cup and can be used as a dipping sauce for the [[potato chips]] that come with sandwiches or put on the sandwiches themselves. Customers, especially long-time Vic's customers, frequently speculate as to the composition of Red Sauce. These guesses tend to be that it is a mixture of [[Mustard (condiment)|mustard]], [[ketchup]], and a secret ingredient but these claims are unverified and purely conjectural. ==Vic's as Community Center== Land Park, the [[neighborhood]] in which Vic's is situated, is a populous and [[diverse]] residential community near downtown Sacramento. Many parents in Land Park bring their children to Vic's after events such as [[little league]] [[soccer]] and [[baseball]] games which take place in nearby [[William Land Park]] (the park for which the neighborhood is named). Many of these children have grown up and now take their own families to Vic's Ice Cream, creating a group of second and third generation Vic's customers. Since Vic's is so tied to the Land Park community, the front [[window]] of the store is used for not-for-profit community bulletins. These bulletins include announcements of free community events or lost pet posters. ===Vic's and Sacramento Politicians=== Vic's one of many local dining venues in which Sacramento's [[politicians]] engage in so-called "power lunches" - midday meetings in which policy or political strategy are discussed. Vic's is a favorite dining location of life-long Land Park resident and [[California]] gubernatorial candidate [[Phil Angelides]], who claims to have done much of the early courting of his wife at the ice cream parlor. Additionally, Vic's was a favored dining location of the late [[United States Representative]] [[Robert Matsui]] and his wife, current United States Representative [[Doris Matsui]]. ==Awards== In the Sacramento Magazine's 2005 Subscriber's Choice Dining Awards, Vic's received 3rd Place in the Best Ice Cream Parlor category. ==Rumors== Customers at Vic's reported having seen former [[Sacramento Kings]] [[power forward (basketball)|power forward]] [[Chris Webber]] dining with [[supermodel]] [[Tyra Banks]] at a booth at Vic's. While this claim was echoed by Vic's employees it was never documented or substantiated. There is also a Sacramento [[urban legend]] which holds that [[Cher]] came into Vic's one night before her [[concert]] at [[Arco Arena]] and asked to use the restroom. Supposedly she expressed her gratitude by signing a copy of one of her records which was then hung in the Vic's restroom. This [[rumor]] is widely believed by Vic's customers to be false and the aforementioned record is not in the restroom. However, a former employee of Vic's attests that this in fact did happen and the record was simply taken down by the owner. ==External links== *[[The Sacramento Bee]] "[http://www.sacbee.com/content/politics/ca/story/12708846p-13561279c.html The Man Who Would be Governor]" 11 April 2005 *[[The Sacramento Bee]] "[http://www.sacramento.com/static/archive/taste/features/cheap_eats/0905cheap.html The Flavor of Tradition]" 5 September 2001 *"[http://sacramento.citysearch.com/profile/1201848/? Citysearch Profile]" *"[http://www.starved.org/restaurant/Vic%27s+Ice+Cream/549514.html Starved.org Profile]" *[[Sacramento News and Review]] "http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/Content?oid=oid%3A13920 Food Stuff: Vic's Ice Cream]" 26 December 2002 *"[http://www.democraticunderground.com/articles/05/02/22_pizza.html Pizza, Ice Cream and the First Amendment]" *"[http://www.sacmag.com/media/Sacramento-Magazine/Dining/2005-Subscribers-Choice-Dining-Awards/ 2005 Subscriber's Choice Dining Awards]" [[Category:Companies based in Sacramento, California]] [[Category:Ice cream parlors]]