One of Birmingham's only true creameries, where they're making all the ice cream in house. I am a self proclaimed Ice Cream Snob, but Big Spoon checks all my boxes. Unique flavors, classic flavors, the smell of fresh waffle cones inside. Big Spoon does a ton of business, as they should. The location here in Avondale is great, but not super walkable from any really good restaurants. I would love to see them open another spot on 2nd Ave. I had the strawberry tres leches in a waffle cone and it was delicious. I appreciate the care and craft that went into making sure every bit down to the bottom of the cone had ice cream in it. 10/10. read more

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The Sweet and the Absurd: A Birmingham Creamery's Baffling Economics To step into Big Spoon Creamery in Birmingham is to subject oneself to a masterclass in both artisanal delight and bureaucratic absurdity. On my visits--a pilgrimage undertaken reliably every month and a half--the front-line staff have never been anything short of exemplary. They are the cheerful stewards of a deeply baffling system, executing their duties with a warmth that almost distracts you from the institutional quirks around them. I say "institutional" because the management themselves are entirely phantom. They are never seen on the floor. Perhaps this is a calculated evasion; if they were ever present, they would surely have to field a relentless, exasperated inquisition regarding the tragic and ongoing absence of their finest creation: the "Magic City." Why an ice cream parlor would willingly suppress its undisputed masterpiece remains an enduring mystery. Even if the economics of its ingredients demanded a premium surcharge, "Magic City" ought to be enshrined as an immovable staple on the menu. Instead, the menu is a restless, ever-shifting carousel. I concede that a relentless churn of novelty is a virtue to a certain type of customer, but the soul of a great neighborhood institution relies on the comforting reliability of a few anchor flavors. At Big Spoon, just as you develop an affection for a flavor, it vanishes into the ether. Then, we must examine the rewards program, an endeavor so poorly conceived it borders on the avant-garde. The mathematics are punishingly flat: one point per order, regardless of whether the patron spends a single dollar or one hundred. The rational response to such a broken incentive structure is, naturally, to weaponize the system. To extract any genuine value, the savvy customer is forced into a theatrical display of micro-transactions, paying for each scoop separately. It is a loophole that needlessly punishes the very staff who make the establishment shine, forcing them to run the register three or four times for a single family's dessert. Finally, there is the creamery's bizarre pricing taxonomy. A close study of the board reveals an accidental arbitrage opportunity: the customer is objectively better off purchasing two distinct pints of ice cream and two empty waffle cones to assemble on their own time, rather than engaging in the straightforward, intended transaction of ordering ice cream scooped directly into a cone. Whoever is pulling the levers behind the curtain at Big Spoon clearly fancies themselves a clever operator, disrupting the traditional ice cream parlor model with dynamic menus and gamified loyalty. But in their pursuit of perpetual novelty and labyrinthine economics, they have embodied the old proverb perfectly: they are entirely too clever by half. read more

Came for the Make B'ham event benefitting NHICA event protesting ICE. Ironically, nobody likes ICE, but everyone likes ice cream. The service is very good. The really moves. The servers in the overalls and bandanas look really sharp. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Similarly, the interior has clean lines and the outdoor seating is great.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Kiddie scoop - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

I thought I was coming in for the classic vanilla bean ice cream chocolate chip Cookies , but I ended up trying the Bourbon Peach Pecan Crisp, and I must say, that was a really great choice. It was so good! This place also has a good amount of seating, both inside and outside, if you want to sit and enjoy your treat. read more

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Dessert first, thoughts after... A solid goto for ice cream. They are always open later. Tonight we tried the tiramisu and strawberry tres leches. Delicious. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Clean and spacious seating with beautiful interior.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]Kids friendly.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Tiramisu and strawberry tres leches - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

My family loves "Big Spoon Creamery", I have visited so many places and yet this ice cream is in a league of its own, plus excellent customer service. read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

Nothing beats an old fashioned ice cream sandwich from the popsicle truck but the Sammie is next! My mom had been wanting an ice cream sandwich so I swung by big spoon on a Saturday afternoon to grab her one. [[HIGHLIGHT]]It wasn't too crowded so I was in and out.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] The staff members are always nice and friendly. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The inside of the ice cream shop is clean.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] There's always ample parking available. read more

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Seriously over priced. That being said very creamy and smooth so it is a very good I re cream. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Steady line of customers when I got there so definitely people really enkiybit even on a cooler night[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

Great ending to date night! Had a few samples before deciding on half king cake and half chocolate. King cake is a fun seasonal flavor! Highly recommend trying it before it's gone. My husband went with the "little" sundae, it's anything but little. The brownie was my favorite bite! The servers were so friendly! read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Half king cake and half chocolate Little Sundae - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

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One of my favorite places for a sweet treat! Service is always pleasant, there are many choices of unique flavors and the price is reasonable for a boutique creamery that makes their own ice cream. I love the greenery that surrounds the outdoor seating area. It's a whole vibe! read more

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What a great little ice cream shop. We were visiting from out of town and stopped in. The gentleman that helped us was great and explained each flavor and let us sample as much as we wanted until we found the perfect flavor for us. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Everything was fresh and the shop was nice a clean.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

My family is obsessed with big spoon. We go every Friday night for family night and the staff is always so kind and energetic. They're so sweet to my toddler and are extremely patient. Flavors are top notch. I appreciate the rotating menu and exciting new flavors. The caramel one is my favorite right now! [[HIGHLIGHT]]Everything is always clean and adding the kids table was so smart!![[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] We will keep returning every Friday! read more

Big Spoon Creamery - So good! - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

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[[HIGHLIGHT]]Cute place![[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] We dropped in after dinner one night while in town and they have allot of wonderful flavors. The staff was helpful and so nice. I got the upside down pineapple in a waffle cone. read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Upside down pineapple - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

[[HIGHLIGHT]]We came here on a Sunday afternoon and it wasn't too crowded.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Google maps took me down a road leading up to it that goes right next to some trains and then told me to go down an alley, but I didn't trust it and should have as you can enter their parking lot through the alley. They share this lot with a coffee shop next door, but there was no problem finding a spot. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Upon entering, there was no one in line or sitting inside as everyone was outside in the small courtyard between the two business.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] This was great for us as they had so many great flavor options and we didn't feel bad taking our sweet (see what I did there?) time to sample them. My decision was a no brainer as they had 3 of my favorites in one flavor...coffee, almonds, and toffee. Guys...it was seriously perfect. If we didn't live so far away, I would have taken a pint or more home. My wife got the pre-made Goat Cheese Strawberry Hisbiscus Sammie on a brown sugar cookie, which I had a bite of and thoroughly enjoyed. [[HIGHLIGHT]]We sat inside and there was a free library in the shop, which was great for my kids.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]They also had self service water and the bathrooms were clean.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] The staff was super friendly and I highly recommend this place for your ice cream needs! read more

I took my mom here for an afternoon sweet stop. She was hankering ice cream. I love how they make everything in house, well maybe except the honey --- the bees make that. [[HIGHLIGHT]]There are some seats inside, some seats outside.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] I dug the inventive flavors and the traditional ones too. My mom got a coffee ice cream in a waffle cone and loved it!!! We also got four sandwiches to take with us. We enjoyed each one of them!! You can't go wrong here! Supporting a local family business, that house makes just about everything.. and makes it so damn well!!!! Stop in you'll Be happy!!!! read more

[[HIGHLIGHT]]Cute little place! We were staying on an Airbnb nearby and stopped in on a Saturday evening. It was decently busy but the employees were friendly.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] I'm a little confused by their allergen info. They have a binder with allergens listed but it contradicts their instagram page & the girl working couldn't tell me why. On the insta it says the coffee ice cream, caramelatto, has notes of peanut, but the binder in the store says no and the menu doesn't list peanut as an allergen for this flavor. As someone with a severe peanut allergy I opted not to try it just to be safe but this inconsistency needs to be fixed, especially if it does have peanut in it. I got the brambleberry buckle and it was good! The cake part wasn't my favorite and I wanted more berries but the ice cream was smooth and I loved the waffle cone bits as a topping. I like that the flavors are unique and interesting - definitely not your typical ice cream shop. read more

Oh my goodness! Fresh made ice cream, made daily! Incredible flavors made with local ingredients including seasonal fruits. Fresh made waffle cones. The best I've ever tasted! Wonderful customer service! We were offered tastes of any of their flavors! [[HIGHLIGHT]]Casual atmosphere.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Highly recommend this incredible and flavorful ice cream shop!! read more

Big Spoon Creamery in Birmingham, Alabama is an amazing ice cream shop that not only has wonderful homemade ice cream, but they make all of their own toppings with the exception of the sprinkles. I went with two scoops of ice cream, one scoop of the tiramisu blueberry and one scoop of their peanut butter honey and I had this topped with their homemade peanut butter cups and their homemade whipped cream. This was a fantastic frozen dessert and words cannot describe how we good this was. The staff was incredibly friendly and professional and only added to my overall experience. There is also indoor and outdoor seating. There is decent parking and the place has a pleasant overall ambiance, bright and appealing. Big Spoon Creamery is an excellent ice cream shop and I would definitely recommend here and I will give it five stars overall. read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

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One of my fav stops in B'ham! Came here a little before 8pm, and thank goodness, bc a long line started to form out of nowhere. Friendly service, while getting to try a few samples. Went with the classic ice cream sammy (he got the cookies & cream sammy). Creamy ice cream and can't go wrong with either one of them. The ice cream sandwiches are pre-made and neatly wrapped. Wish you could mix and match the cookies with the ice cream though. Cups of water are also in the back. Would be very dangerous if this was in my town! read more

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People are so friendly. Flavors change all the time. Can be hit or miss but when they hit, they HIT! The current flavors are fire! But sometimes they can be tryna do too much. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Nice outdoor patio to sit at too.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

We were traveling with kiddos during a hot weekend, after a long day of outdoor activities we decided to look for a local ice cream place as a mid-day break snack. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The place has an awesome chill ambiance.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]There are tables inside the buildings that are air conditioned and cute.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]There are also seating outside on the patio and in both cases totally toddler appropriate.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] More importantly the ice cream flavors are amazing! and service was friendly, fast and efficient. We got a coconut yuzu salt, plain chocolate, plain vanilla, almond toffee something there was no ice cream left behind. I still dream about this ice cream, after leaving the city. read more

One of my absolute favorite stops in Bham!! Staff is always so friendly and helpful in explaining allergy-friendly options!! The dairy free/gluten free options are plentiful (typically) and they're actually good!! Not just allergy-good, actually delicious and perfect texture!! [[HIGHLIGHT]]The spot itself is super cute and spacious![[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

Here for Big Spoons 10th anniversary. Come enjoy what I will call craft ice cream. Great flavors. Even just vanilla covered with their Italian cherries. Love the place. read more

Big Spoon Creamery - 10 Anniversary - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

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What an amazing place, the ice cream is great and delivered exactly what was promised on our referral. I had the Tiramisu and Chocolate Carmel Truffle in a split bowl. Each of the flavors was fabulous. My coworker after tasting a couple decided to try their Frothing Chocolate drink - she loved it but after a further taste of Golden Milk wished for some of that. Service was great and conversation with the staff was fun and enjoyable. Highly recommended if you're in Birmingham or probably at any of their other locations. read more

10/10 highly recommend! I googled vegan ice cream near me and this came up. While this Sammie is not vegan, I was able to taste the vegan flavors and was willing to risk it all for this Sammie lol. I'm a sucker for anything lemon so the fact that the strawberry shortcake ice cream was going to be served on mini lemon chiffon cakes was a win/win in my book. The gentleman who helped me whom I believe is the owner was super nice and helpful. I left with the complimentary lactaid tablet that they have available (genius!) and a sorbet to go! If you're in Bham or stopping by, add this one to your list read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Roasted Strawberry Shortcake Sammie - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

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they have a few unique flavors, and many classics. You can get a flight of six scoops or a half flight of three. I also have an excellent menu of ice cream sandwich sandwiches, as well as both vanilla and chocolate waffle read more

The service here is really hard to beat. All of the servers are super friendly and helpful. They are always changing their menu and it's super unique, always fresh and delicious. The Avondale location is so cute! They have a nice outdoor seating area that is kid friendly. They just renovated their interior and it looks so nice! Much more seating and more room in general now. Big spoon, you never disappoint and we got to share it with our newest big spoon fan this time! read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Outdoor area/seating - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

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Atmosphere: Big Spoon Creamery is a welcoming ice cream shop in the Makebhm space. There are a couple of tables inside and a patio area too to enjoy a scoop on a nice day. Service: The person who helped us was very friendly and patient. The counter is actually quite small but we got our ice cream with no issues! Food: We ordered a scoop of the Meyer Lemon Sorbet and White Chocolate Mousse Ice Cream. Both were absolutely delectable! The Lemon Sorbet was bright and had a nice, natural lemony acidity to it. It might've been one of the best lemon sorbets we've tried. It paired perfectly with the White Chocolate Mousse, which had a smooth, white chocolate flavor that didn't taste overly artificial. Overall: We came to Big Spoon on a whim and probably found our favorite ice cream spot in Birmingham! The flavors we tried were amazing and we'd love to come back to try their other ice cream creations! read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Meyer Lemon, White Chocolate Mousse - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

Was a really hot day. Sitting at home. Started to see if wifey wanted to go out for ice cream and dismissed the idea. Walked into the kitchen and showed up and I said I almost asked if she wanted to go get ice cream snd she got happy. Saw this place when baby girl and I visited the mini donut place next door. Did not know what to expect but the gamble paid off. I got three scoops and I didn't know the scoops would be so big lol so I had some for later. Wife got the banana split and she loved it. She said we could have split it. All three flavors were delicious. I would recommend this hidden place over near Avondale. P S I had Vanilla Bean, Brambleberry Cobbler and Peanut Butter Caramel Peanut flavors. read more

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Ok pricing but divine ice cream- will be a line during the evenings, but well worth the wait. Good parking & location. Great spot after dinner. read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

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We love Big Spoon! My husband has enjoyed every flavor he has ever tried. I am DF and they typically have a good option-- always a hit or miss. I wish there were more vegan flavors and that they rotated them more frequently. read more

Let's get into it ! Parking- this place had a good size parking lot and it was free but beware if busy you might have to find another place. It started to rain when we arrived so we didn't stay to eat. They had some outside seating but it was too wet. And the inside had very little seating and it's small inside so really I say take it to go ! The lady said they make it all in house and they didn't lie I tasted the cookies and cream and I have never tasted the cookies ground into the ice cream. I ended up getting a waffle cone with the vanilla bean and the strawberry shortcake flavor. Vanilla bean - nothing special but tasted amazing ! The strawberry shortcake stole my show !!!! Omg it was so creamy , not overly sweet , I think it was real strawberries and the crazy part ready it had bites of the shortcake in it. I thought I was dreaming and also was trying to understand how they got it in there and it didn't taste freeze dried or hard !!!! Totally recommend! They offer SAMMIES which they have in house made cookies and can smash the ice cream inside. Made to order so you can mix up cookie and ice cream I believe. They were select cookies but I might get this next time ! They also offer regular and chocolate cones. If I ever come back to Birmingham I'll be back for more scoops ! read more

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Best ice cream in AL without a doubt. You cannot go wrong with anything from this place. Also super accommodating for allergies and celiac.

This creamery is by far my greatest discovery during my two hours in Birmingham. I stopped by on a Thursday afternoon and the shop was quite empty, but the workers were lively and energetic. The man was super helpful in describing their ice creams -- I was stuck between the tiramisu and magic city. His response was, "if you don't like to chew your ice cream, you won't like the magic city." I got the tiramisu and it was life changing -- there was a perfect blend of the deep coffee/cocoa flavor and the pieces of ladyfingers added an amazing texture. I think I'll have to return to Alabama just for this ice cream! read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Tiramisu Single Scoop Cone - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

We ordered for pick-up, and the server was super sweet and accommodating! Pick-up was no hassle, and the ice cream flavors and textures out of this world! A bit pricey, but worth it. read more

My first time here and it did not disappoint. Cute outdoor seating area for warmer weather. Not a ton of flavors but enough choices to be reasonable. The ice cream is definitely very creamy and sits heavy after you eat it, if you know what I mean. Really like their 1/2 flight/full flight option that lets me try multiple flavors! read more

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It's good. Magic City is the clear winner for me. They use a big spoon to serve the ice cream, and I have a suspicion that is why they are called Big Spoon. read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Magic City in a chocolate cone and blueberry tiramisu. Yummm - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

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Yeah, IDK. I think Big Spoon is very hit or miss. I either leave loving it, or I wish I'd saved the money/calories. And it's pretty expensive, for the record. I'm happy to pay for premium, but I'd say the woman's name chain is more reliable if you want to leave certain that you didn't waste your money. Also, the staff is always (superficially) friendly; I've never had a bad experience with the service in that regard. But I do find them not to be accommodating at all. Like they are genuinely not going to put any extra effort in or employ minimal problem solving efforts on your behalf, so don't bother asking. It's good! Check it out. But it's not in my top ten. To be fair, though, I spend half of the year in a dairy farm state where craft ice cream is a lifestyle so maybe for this area, it's the best. read more

If I could, I would give Big Spoon 10 stars and would not be exaggerating in my love of this ice cream shop. The flavors: The best part of Big Spoon is their revolving door of flavors. Good flavors. I think some ice cream shops like to make weird flavors just to shock people, but I think of Big Spoon's ice cream as a culinary experience rather than an experiment. They also have core flavors you can count on if you aren't into the flavors. These include one of the most delightful dark chocolate ice creams I have had, cookies and cream and vanilla bean. All are good. I often get the dark chocolate as one of my flavors. Flavors I have loved (In no particular order): Strawberry Elderberry Sorbet 2020 or maybe 2021 - this had a lemon curd and graham crackers Magic City - Vanilla and chocolate ice cream with chocolate crumbles, cookie dough, a caramel swirl AND chocolate covered potato chips in it Watermelon Margarita Sorbet Blueberry cobbler On top of having creative flavors, they usually are scooping at least one sorbet and another vegan option. This is great for people who need or want dairy-free options. The Berry Crumble is so delicious, and I never would have guessed it was vegan! It was so creamy. I have had berry crumble my last three visits because it is that good. Scoop options: I love that there are so many options for how this ice cream is served. I am not just talking about them having two flavors of waffle cone (chocolate or vanilla) or cup versus cone. They have flights. I am basically a pilot at this point because I have had so many flights. They are perfect to split between 2-3 people so you can try 6 different flavors (smaller scoops than a regular scoop). They also have a half flight with three scoops (these are the smaller scoops). This is perfect, so if you don't love one flavor (though I am sure you will), you can have another. Locations: Two locations. I like the parking at Avondale better but the Homewood store has more comfortable seating in my opinion. What would I get if it was my first time visiting? Everything. I kid. Kind of. Get a flight so really experience the beauty of the creativity and expert flavor composition. Up next for me? Trying the sammies. They sound so good, but I just love splitting a flight.m read more

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The local choice for ice cream had one main drawback: lack of choice. Roughly ten flavors, including a few basics, some interesting seasonal choices, and a couple of sorbets. No mint chip or anything like it, which is always going to irk me. They do have a lot of options for sandwiches and three flavors of cone. They're expensive cones, but the chocolate one I ordered was delicious and the bottom was sealed off to prevent leakage of melted ice cream. You might hope from the small menu that everything they do is well-executed, and you'd be right. The oatmeal cream pie I tried had quite a lot of oats and certainly tasted like cream pie. I don't usually order straight chocolate, but their dark chocolate flavor was strong and best savored slowly, and just sweet enough. It was like a quality Godiva bar or something was slowly melting in front of me. Even if they didn't quite have what I wanted, what they had was certainly delicious. read more

Big Spoon Creamery - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama