What goes hand-in-hand with our strenuous, 28,000 step per day Disney experience? If your answer is special treats, you are correct in our book! There is nothing like working so hard for your theme park day, only to reward yourself with some above average calorie indulgence to finish things off. Let’s face it, you’ve earned a little something extra, right? And both Disney Springs in Walt Disney World and the Downtown Disney District at the Disneyland Resort are the places to find your perfect match. One of our favorite snack stops is the famous ice creamery, Salt & Straw, where new and unique flavors are the name of their monthly game. Find out what’s new for May and plan out your next visit today!
Vanilla Custard with Butterscotch Swirls
Though often dismissed as ‘boring,’ vanilla is one of the world’s most thrilling ingredients. Its flavor is impossibly complex—composed of more than 200 compounds—each variety of bean and extract with its own distinct profile. And when you truly want to celebrate top-tier vanilla, you have to make ice cream. More specifically, custard; the added egg yolks intensify vanilla’s nuanced flavor. That’s why we churn a dense, decadent vanilla custard, then drizzle in housemade butterscotch. Brown sugar and butter melt together before cream and a splash of scotch whisk in, creating smooth, buttery swirls that amplify vanilla’s romantic, smoky character. When simplicity is done right, it’s anything but dull.
Chocolate Chili Crisp Peanut Butter Cups
A scoop that channels the spirit of Reese’s Cups, but with a flavor pairing that dates back to chocolate’s earliest days. The Olmecs first enjoyed chocolate as a bitter, chile-spiked drink, and we’re riffing on that tradition by swirling Fly By Jing’s Sichuan-style chili crisp into gobs of natural peanut butter. Layered between slabs of chocolate, our homemade peanut butter cups are smashed into bite-sized pieces and folded into milk chocolate ice cream. Swirls of peanut butter marshmallow fluff add a Moon Pie effect, further softening the chili’s heat while amping up its flavor. Proof that the best flavor pairings stand the test of time—and only get better.
Strawberry Tres Leches
There are a few ‘holy trinities’ in the culinary world, and when it comes to dessert, the combination of strawberry, vanilla and cinnamon is undoubtedly one of them. We start by roasting macerated strawberries, deepening their flavor so that they hold their own against the richness of cream and sugar. Vanilla and cinnamon come into play through a spiced tres leches cake, soaked in three (yes, three!) kinds of milk for a melt-in-your-mouth cake swirl. Strawberry jam streaks through every bite for another juicy burst of vibrant strawberriness. Strawberry shortcake, meet strawberry-soaked cake, made for your spoon.
Matcha Matcha Man
The Frappuccino that never was. This flavor was originally conceived by the late, legendary teamaker Steven Smith while leading Starbucks’ tea division. A true virtuoso, Steven had a gift for pairing unexpected flavors—like ceremonial-grade green tea with a dose of… tangerine juice. Matcha’s grassy, umami-rich profile can lean bright and vibrant or deep and savory. When served cold with cream and sugar, we look to bring out matcha’s fruitier notes—and that’s where sunshine-y citrus comes in. It lifts matcha in a way only Steven’s masterful palate could’ve imagined. Think you don’t like matcha? Taste again.
Coffee Chamomile Sherbet (v)
Coffee isn’t a single flavor—it’s an ingredient as varied and nuanced as wine. This sherbet is a reminder that coffee is a tropical fruit, capable of tasting delicate and floral rather than bitter or chocolatey. We partnered with Roseline Coffee, a specialty roaster in Portland, OR, to craft a cold brew using their Colombian Nariño beans, chosen for their fragrant, tea-like qualities. To bring out those delicate floral notes, we steep soothing chamomile and blend it into coconut cream and oat milk alongside the cold brew. The result is a light, refreshing scoop that just might make you rethink coffee.
Which flavor will you choose?
