BLVD Creamery
(samples) Watermelon Jalapeno, Black Cherry Ice Cream, Black Cherry Sorbet, Rice Pudding, Tres Leches, Maple Bacon, Avocado Bacon, Pink Grapefruit, Coffee, Lemon Cheesecake, Vanilla, Chocolate
Rice Pudding Ice Cream in an Oreo Chocolate Waffle Bowl
Snickerdoodle
Chocolate Chip
The latest roll-out in the reinvention of The Monte Carlo, and aside from Yusho the most interesting by far, BLVD Creamery opened with little fanfare but with elegant ice creams, sorbets, and baked goods made in house daily one can only hope artisan ice cream is the new ‘celebrity burger’ of The Strip. Large in both size and selection with high ceilings and kitschy cow décor plus a youthful staff already well trained it was just after 1pm that I entered the new BLVD and bearing no relationship to the cocktail bar in The Linq my experience started out with a tasting – no two-spoon limit like that of Sprinkles either, just a smiling face with recommendations comprising nearly half the selections and none but the overly-subtle tres leches less than impressive. Silky in texture and close to gelato in heft with large single-scoops starting at $4 it was eventually on the horchata-esque rice pudding that I settled and served in a fresh baked compressed-cookie bowl without accoutrements I can confidently say Art of Flavors finally has some creamy frozen competition – a bit of oneupsmanship from the newcomer, even, in the form of two warm cookies on par with the best of Las Vegas Boulevard. Similarly priced to AoF as well as Sprinkles with a patio adjacent to the new Sambalatte one can only hope that BLVD spurs the same sort of creativity and competition in frozen treats that Due Forni and Settebello brought to reinvent the Las Vegas pizza scene over the last ten years because in a city of two-million with triple digit temperatures and tons of tourists there is a whole lot of space between Monte Carlo and Chef Desyree’s spot up north for something cold and creamy.
FOUR AND A HALF STARS: Featuring bold flavors, immaculate textures, and a space conducive to sitting, chatting, and watching the scenes of The Strip one should applaud MGM Group for again taking a chance. First Japanese Streetfood, then a locally owned coffee house, and now the first true artisan scoop shop on the strip – I can’t wait to see what’s next.
RECOMMENDED: Snickerdoodle, Rice Pudding, Bacon Avocado, Black Cherry Sorbet, Lemon Cheesecake.
AVOID: Tres Leches – simply too bland, even the Vanilla is better.
TIP: Unlike many ice cream shops BLVD cuts you a break on subsequent scoops and more so on sundaes; with house made salty caramel sauce and fudge plus a number of 50cent toppings the sundaes look to be gluttonous bargain.
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor
http://montecarlo.com/