Mission Accomplished in Milford

In an effort to save money (and save a bit of sanity as well), I’ve been cutting back on my discretionary spending this spring – which for me means seeing a lot less theater than usual. So last weekend, I made plans to usher for a theater production in Milford, New Hampshire. I’d never seen Noises Off before and it’s one of those shows that everybody seems to know and love, so I thought it was about time.

I don’t get out to Milford often anymore – I have lived in Windham, Londonderry and Manchester in the past, but currently there isn’t a reason to head that way – so I knew I should try to fit in an ice cream trip while I was in the area. In fact, I could make ice cream dinner (with an apple for health, of course) and allow myself a few extra calories.

I did a quick search and was reminded that Hayward’s has a Milford location – even though that shouldn’t have surprised me, I’ve only been to the Milford location once, so I always associate Hayward’s with Nashua. I knew for a fact that their Nashua location had opened, but I wasn’t sure about Milford….but I was running ahead of schedule, so I had time to check and abort if it actually was closed.

Lucky for me and the Milford area, they were indeed open, with a special Lucky Charms flavor for St. Patrick’s day too! Despite temperatures in their 30s and talk of snow the next day, I could absolutely get my homemade ice cream fix.

I knew I would allow myself two flavors today – I went with Coffee Oreo (for either a real or imagined caffeine kick, not knowing if it contained any) and the Caramel Tsunami, which was a caramel based ice cream with chocolate covered caramels and a caramel swirl. Coming to just under $4 for two flavors, it was a very generous portion – and they gave me a huge spoonful of Lucky Charms ice cream to sample at my request. It was research, of course! Green vanilla ice cream with lucky charms and an Oreo cream swirl.

The report:

Lucky Charms – I kind of liked the mushy lucky charms in the ice cream! The Oreo swirl was a delight. This was a very pleasant couple of bites. Not my favorite ice cream ever, but for a one time thing, very fun. I was pleasantly surprised.

Caramel Tsunami – The caramel ice cream base unfortunately wasn’t my favorite. I’m really not sure why. I loved the caramel swirl, it tasted like it was high quality, and the chocolate covered caramels were really to die for, just incredible. That being said, the more I ate it, the more the caramel flavor of the ice cream grew on me. Although it wasn’t my favorite in isolation, it sure worked as a vehicle for the swirl and chocolates!

Coffee Oreo – Such a classic. A smooth, strong coffee flavor – it tastes like real coffee. Not all coffees do! It’s not too heavy or too sweet. I am a huge fan of Oreo ice creams and this one definitely didn’t disappoint, I’d happily order it again! 

I wanted to give a report on the state of seasonal ice cream in New Hampshire currently. Can you comment with your own additions?

As we’ve discussed, Arnie’s Place in Concord is open for the season.

Cremeland in Manchester opened on March 14 for the season.

Hayward’s is clearly open as I just visited! You can visit Milford or Nashua.

Mack’s Apples in Londonderry – their ice cream stand will open April 28th.

Meadow Ice Cream in Littleton (serving Slick’s) is open for ice cream and seafood.

Know of any other seasonal places that have opened for the season? Have any other opening dates to share? Please leave a comment below, and thanks!

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