Gene&#x27;s Dairy Delight

We ordered a kids chicken strips and a basket of fries. While we waited patiently with our number…read more(12), other guests arrived and placed their orders. After noticing that people who ordered after us had finished their entire meals, I went up to the management and asked what happened to our order. I was then told that it was because I ordered chicken strips that it took over forty minutes to make such a simple order. Keep in mind that a family with four children who came in after us had already gotten their fries and were halfway done with their ice cream. Another table that had two gentlemen who also ordered after us had finished their cheeseburgers. I have been a professional in the short order cooking business for over twelve years in the past, and I know for a fact it does not take that long to make chicken fingers (even if they were made from scratch and not frozen). I usually buy the gift certificates every Black Friday, but that will never happen again. I will never return to this establishment. Please feel free to reach out to me to buy my unused $30 gift certificates at half price, but be warned---this place is poorly managed, understaffed, and desperate for a line cook who can manage a couple deep-frier orders in a timely manner. Although I prefer to support local businesses, there are far better alternatives in town, like Culver's and Gene's. So ends about twenty years of patronage and many good family memories.

Review Visit: June 10th, 2015…read more Carl's Ice Cream.... Home of the Creepy Ice Cream Cone. Those eyes. Those ice cream eyes still haunt me to this day. They will never leave my memory. Nor will the decent ice cream served here. During one of my many trips to explore Bloomington-Normal, I decided to start trying out the ice cream shacks in the dual city. Twin cities. Hyphenated names. Whatever you want to call them. I used some Google-fu to look up places to grab the sugary snack and Carl's was one of the first results. My girlfriend at the time said that it was good enough for her, so we punched the address in to the GPS and headed that way. Upon pulling up, I was startled by the feeling that I was being watched. After getting out of the car, I had to look around and see what was causing that feeling. It was then that I locked eyes with Carl. The incredibly creepy ice cream cone on a pole that is staring down on you. Trying to ignore that, we shuffled to the front of the building and looked over the menu. Looking at their current online menu to help refresh my memory, I am surprised to see them offering only ice cream and ice cream-style treats. Most ice cream shacks offer not only a ton of different frozen dessert items but also a multitude of food items as well. Not Carl's. They just have ice cream and ice cream-related products. We eventually figured out what we wanted and placed an order. I remember getting my usual (peanut butter malt/blizzard/shake) and being just slightly disappointed in the flavor and lack of a wow-factor. Not but a year later, we ended back here by some stroke of luck and I got a cone of ice cream. It was mutli-colored (as seen below) and I remember enjoying that more than I did with my 2015 choice. Back to 2015, I remember us standing our and enjoying the nice snack after a long day of exploring. I just couldn't help but feel that Carl, the ice cream mascot, was looking down on us. Like a chef watching a VIP eating their signature meal to see their reaction. All in all though, the place was pretty good. More-so the second time around. The second trip would've scored a 4.75/5. I am still surprised they don't offer non-ice cream options, but maybe The Carl doesn't allow them to serve anything but ice cream. There is a second location in Normal, Illinois. They seem to have a 'muffler-man' statue that was repurposed in to a man holding ice cream. I have yet to visit that place but hopefully his stare is less soul-piercing than Carl, the Ice Cream Cone's.

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Dairy Queen Grill & Chill

2.6(11 reviews)

0.7 mi

I am allergic to dairy and ordered a dairy free dilly bar through the drive-through and got a…read morereduced sugar dilly bar. I ate half of it and thought it tasted weird and saw it had dairy. I went inside and stood at the counter and multiple employees just walked right past me and didn't say anything to me just looked at me and walked away. I finally got to talk to an employee and he just said "sorry" and I had to ask for a new one he only said sorry. I am disappointed I got given food I'm allergic too when I asked for that was dairy free.

Very disappointed in the location! On numerous occasions I have asked and paid for additional…read moretoppings on my ice cream. Time and time again they give me a blizzard with plain vanilla ice cream! These employees are clueless!

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Culver's

3.2(73 reviews)

1.8 mi

This location had a young crew on hand and they were on top of their game. The drive through was…read morequite busy so I went in to order. I was greeted and my order taken. You're provided a number. I had my order in no time! Quite an efficient crew! My deluxe double basket with fries and sweet tea was just the meal I needed after coming back in the country. Nothing like a good ol' beef burger seasoned to the T! The lettuce, tomatoes and pickles were so fresh and made sure to reposition them in my sandwich to eat!

Stopped by to grab a quick afternoon snack. The flavor of the day was barely a scoop of ice cream…read moreand the majority was the snicker's topping. This is the second time this has happened. I didn't write a review the first time because things do happen, but after a second incident, I thought management should be aware.

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The Mystic Kitchen & Tasting Room

4.7(119 reviews)

0.8 mi

We were there on a warm summer evening and dined outside where the classic downtown buildings…read moreprovided shade for the setting sun. The staff was friendly and welcoming. We ordered drinks and two special appetizers, shrimp in a spicy cream sauce and pork belly bits with diced mango. Both were delicious. For our mains, we chose: Sassy Chicken Thighs and Brown Sugar Brined Pork Chop. The chicken thighs melted in my mouth. We spoke at length with the manager after our dinner and tried to guess the ingredients in the outstanding sauces. The sassy sauce had in addition to the honey and Dijon, some cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, and cumin. Not too spicy, just enough zip to make it interesting. The pork chop was also amazing. Tender and juicy with a cherry balsamic glaze. We would definitely recommend a visit and plan to return the next time we're in town.

The atmosphere was great above and beyond what I thought it would be. The charcuterie board was…read moreneat and I love the fact that we barely sat down and they offered us a free sample of wine to try. The price for the board was I think a little high not major but a little but a glass of wine was I think very competitive very good no matter where you are. My overall rating for this place is either a 4 or 4 1/2 out of 5. It was a great first experience and will go back again.

Inside

Side mystic salad

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Dining area

Schooners

3.8(178 reviews)

0.8 mi

For a small local chain that has locations in Bloomington and Peoria. You can't go wrong with this…read morelocal bar. The onion rings are delicious. The price point is good. They're known for their big pork tenderloins if you so want to try to eat it all

I like the food in Peoria but the Schooners in Bloomington knocks it out of the park! I had the…read morelargest, thickest, perfectly cooked tenderloin I have ever had in my life and I am 72. The onion rings, 1/2 order were crispy, so good I took what was left home! I ate leftovers for four days by putting in an aluminum pan in the oven. I am in love and will be back soon!

Back bar

A delicious Pork Tenderloin sandwich

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Mini Tenderloin

Epiphany Farms Restaurant

4.5(517 reviews)

0.7 mi

•$$$

Good selection of food on the menu for something different to suit your taste. Check out the menu…read morein advance. The service is adequate to excellent depending on your waiter or waitress. The atmosphere is pleasant. Well lighted. You must climb steps to get to the second floor which makes it hard for the disabled. Other than that fine.

Our late night visit to Epiphany Farms/Anju was exceptional! A huge drink menu welcome us and we…read morehad the Beyond jalapeño cornbread for a starter, which proved to be quite yummy and not hot at all. We decided to go with the rustic pizzas that were delicious and unusual: harmony, Korean, chicken and loaded supreme. The crust tasted like it was from a woodfired oven and the Korean chicken pizza was so unusual and tasty with kimchi and pickled shiitake. The fresh from the forest mushroom side dish they gave us a special treat to us was quite a delicacy. Even the farm to table items they have for sale when you walk in to take home are a treat, Especially the homemade marshmallows! Ended with dessert of a fresh orange olive oil cake with just tremendous flavor and blood orange on the side and orange marmalade on the cake. It served exquisitely with a side of homemade ice cream that was to die for. We can't wait to come back! Our waitress, Lupe, treated us like family and was incredibly personal and warm. Put this on your must visit List.

Farm Restaurant

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Epiphany Farm Restaurant

Green Top Grocery

4.7(19 reviews)

1.0 mi

Best natural foods market in Bloomington. Green Top Grocery might be the only one of course. It has…read morea lot packed into this kind of small market and store. Has a lot of things grown locally. The prices are kind of high, which is the only bad thing. A lot of all natural and organic food and items. It's got some pretty interesting things and you can even order a hot meal. The selection isn't as good as something like Whole Foods, but it's locally owned. Has a lot of the things you can find somewhere else cheaper. That's the bad thing about it, so if you're just looking for good prices they won't have these. Even so, there's a few things that aren't bad. The staff is fairly knowledgeable. Comparing to other stores, it seems best as a complement to other places to get groceries. Its worst thing is the prices. The good things include locally grown products, and plenty of options for vegans and vegetarians.

This is by far one of the best health food stores I've ever been too in the state of Illinois. It's…read moreway better than anything too in Chicago nearly 3 hours away! This place offers so much to guests, it's a newer, very clean and well kept store. The selection of what is offered is comprehensive. Amazing health food that is great for my wife who is on gluten free diet. Their soups are absolutely delicious. Great deals and best of all, there's hard to find products I've never seen before! They have an eatery upstairs, they offer classes too! They're always promoting local happenings in the area on the bulletin board by the restroom. Staff here was a pleasure to be around. They even encourage everyone to become an owner too which really isn't much. They have over 6,000 owners and after my experience here I might consider becoming one too! Free boxes! My wife was really happy about how they sort out their trash here too! This is the standard bearer of what a health store should be. I don't come to Bloomington much but I highly suggest visiting this place! One of the best health food stores I've been too!

Inside

AtoZ Catering

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Anju Above

4.2(453 reviews)

0.7 mi

I may have gone into this with too high of expectations because of what I heard about the epiphany…read moregroup and that may have been unfair of me. But that being said there were a lot of GREAT things about this restaurant so I'll start there. The restaurant itself it's so moody and vibey I LOVED it, was such a good place for a date night, our waiter was so attentive, helped with all of our questions and a very patient with us as we worked through the menu. 10/10 service! We got the dumpling and pork bun appetizer and both were AMAZING, seriously the pork bun?? I could have eaten 1000 of them. Next was the sushi, I got the Atlantic hand roll and another member of the table got the rainbow roll, both were very fresh and flavorful, highly recommend. Next was the entree, I got the pork belly ramen, as a huge ramen fanatic I was SO excited, especially following up our appetizers, the bar was set high and unfortunately I was so disappointed. The broth was not very good and everything so extremely salty, I couldn't even eat the mushrooms in the bowl because they soaked up so much of the broth and it was like a salt bomb in my mouth. The pork belly was cooked well and I did really enjoy that, but for a $20 bowl of ramen, it really fell flat for me. I also got the sweet heat cocktail, and it also wasn't for me, cocktails are so personal so it's not that I wouldn't recommend someone try it, it's just that I didn't hit for me, and that was the general consensus of the table. While I had a great night, I would probably try a different restaurant for Asian food before I came back to this one!

What an elegant night I had here for my husband birthday. food was good . A time was had go with…read moregreat people and laughter and you will al have a blasts .

Downstairs - different restaurant but you can order from their menu upstairs if you want

Fried veggie dumplings

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Yellowfin Tuna handroll

Harmony Korean BBQ

4.2(48 reviews)

1.1 mi

The restaurant needs a bit of an update. It feels more Chinese and ambiguous Asian than Korean…read more Service was amazing. She knew her menu and answered all the questions. We did not experience the cooking our food due to our party having a few who didn't want that. I t was delicious, savory, and definitely worth the price.

This is a high 4. Probably 4.5. We were in town for a…read moreconference and saw this was part of the Epiphany Farms group (which we've been to previously). It seems like a unique concept for this area. The service and decor is so... intentional and earnest. Like they realize educating their patrons is part of the experience. (There is a how-to guide on soju on the placemat). Our group has had some experience with Korean BBQ. We ordered the Harmony combo and the Gangnam combo. The meats were very good and you could definitely distinguish the wagyu from the ribeye. I also got the pork belly ramen - which stands out with the inclusion of kimchi in it. Very nice. The prices are in line with steakhouse prices, which can seem high if you're coming from an AYCE perspective (this is not that, btw).

Modeum pajeon

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Corn cheese and combo meat

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Christopher B.

0

1

0

12 years ago

Honestly the ice cream isn't very good. Anywhere in town that sells ice cream is a better choice. The owner is not a very nice person. On top of all that this is not the best neighborhood. Check the news there have been two dozen shootings on this block in the past two years. If you want decent ice cream and a low chance of being shot in a drive by go to emack and bolios (spelling?) in uptown normal. Also check the pantagraph there is always something bad going down in this neighborhood. read more

Kristi R.

1

34

0

18 years ago

I'm afraid I have to disagree. I find their ice cream to be flavorless with a bad texture. My parents drove through their once and we all ended up throwing away our ice cream cones as they were nothing but tasteless fluff. I gave them a second chance last year and wasn't any more happy with the product. Dairy Queen is better than they are. If you want truly great ice cream, go to Carl's! read more

Amy W.

20

16

0

8 years ago

My kids and I love coming here for ice cream. Everything is so fresh and the staff is always so friendly. They really go above and beyond to ensure their product is top-notch. Make sure to bring cash! read more

Kelly M.

15

168

4

19 years ago

New owner...same great ice cream....LOVE the fact you can just drive up and get back on the road so easily....the floats are the best....really pleasant staff. read more

Katie C.

5

260

27

10 years ago

Always been one of my favorite places to go since I was a kid. The soft serve ice cream is wonderful. It never changes! I would recommend this place to anyone. read more

Meredith C.

21

15

0

8 years ago

CASH ONLY! But this place is SO GOOD!!! The ice cream is so creamy and sweet. Not like that soft-serve crap you get at other place. YUMMY!!! read more

John S.

0

16

0

17 years ago

Gene's is where memories are made. Carl's is good too, but I prefer Gene's. If they were open in the winter, I'd go there.

Jennie L.

0

12

0

19 years ago

Best ice cream - can't get it like this anywhere else in town. Everything is good.

Gene's Dairy Delight - icecream - Updated October 2026

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Carl's Ice Cream Factory

3.7

(29 reviews)

We ordered a kids chicken strips and a basket of fries. While we waited patiently with our number…read more(12), other guests arrived and placed their orders. After noticing that people who ordered after us had finished their entire meals, I went up to the management and asked what happened to our order. I was then told that it was because I ordered chicken strips that it took over forty minutes to make such a simple order. Keep in mind that a family with four children who came in after us had already gotten their fries and were halfway done with their ice cream. Another table that had two gentlemen who also ordered after us had finished their cheeseburgers. I have been a professional in the short order cooking business for over twelve years in the past, and I know for a fact it does not take that long to make chicken fingers (even if they were made from scratch and not frozen). I usually buy the gift certificates every Black Friday, but that will never happen again. I will never return to this establishment. Please feel free to reach out to me to buy my unused $30 gift certificates at half price, but be warned---this place is poorly managed, understaffed, and desperate for a line cook who can manage a couple deep-frier orders in a timely manner. Although I prefer to support local businesses, there are far better alternatives in town, like Culver's and Gene's. So ends about twenty years of patronage and many good family memories.

Review Visit: June 10th, 2015…read more Carl's Ice Cream.... Home of the Creepy Ice Cream Cone. Those eyes. Those ice cream eyes still haunt me to this day. They will never leave my memory. Nor will the decent ice cream served here. During one of my many trips to explore Bloomington-Normal, I decided to start trying out the ice cream shacks in the dual city. Twin cities. Hyphenated names. Whatever you want to call them. I used some Google-fu to look up places to grab the sugary snack and Carl's was one of the first results. My girlfriend at the time said that it was good enough for her, so we punched the address in to the GPS and headed that way. Upon pulling up, I was startled by the feeling that I was being watched. After getting out of the car, I had to look around and see what was causing that feeling. It was then that I locked eyes with Carl. The incredibly creepy ice cream cone on a pole that is staring down on you. Trying to ignore that, we shuffled to the front of the building and looked over the menu. Looking at their current online menu to help refresh my memory, I am surprised to see them offering only ice cream and ice cream-style treats. Most ice cream shacks offer not only a ton of different frozen dessert items but also a multitude of food items as well. Not Carl's. They just have ice cream and ice cream-related products. We eventually figured out what we wanted and placed an order. I remember getting my usual (peanut butter malt/blizzard/shake) and being just slightly disappointed in the flavor and lack of a wow-factor. Not but a year later, we ended back here by some stroke of luck and I got a cone of ice cream. It was mutli-colored (as seen below) and I remember enjoying that more than I did with my 2015 choice. Back to 2015, I remember us standing our and enjoying the nice snack after a long day of exploring. I just couldn't help but feel that Carl, the ice cream mascot, was looking down on us. Like a chef watching a VIP eating their signature meal to see their reaction. All in all though, the place was pretty good. More-so the second time around. The second trip would've scored a 4.75/5. I am still surprised they don't offer non-ice cream options, but maybe The Carl doesn't allow them to serve anything but ice cream. There is a second location in Normal, Illinois. They seem to have a 'muffler-man' statue that was repurposed in to a man holding ice cream. I have yet to visit that place but hopefully his stare is less soul-piercing than Carl, the Ice Cream Cone's.

Uncle Bob's Homemade Ice Cream

4.9

(44 reviews)

Uncle Bobs has the BEST ice cream!! We usually buy it from Hyvee, but made a trip to the motherland…read more(aka the storefront in Eureka). It's a cute little store with indoor and outdoor seating and a drive through. The employees were friendly and helpful. They gave my dog a pup cup which was so thoughtful!!

Review Visit: April 1st, 2015…read more Good ol' Uncle Bob. He is the Uncle you never hear of. But when you do, you love him. Well, that's how I feel about Uncle Bob's Homemade Ice Cream. I discovered this place while grabbing coffee in Eureka, IL. Oh boy, was it a good discovery. I sampled a few ice creams and loved each one. Conveniently when I was there, they also had dollar hot dogs! So between amazing ice cream and cheap hot dogs, I was in heaven. If you love ice cream and haven't visited Uncle Bob's, do yourself a service and go try some! The do sell Uncle Bob's ice cream at some local eateries, so keep your eyes peeled if you can't make it to the Eureka location.

Carl's Ice Cream Factory

3.5

(73 reviews)

Amazing ice cream! I love supporting local and all of the flavors that they have! Service has been…read moregood the last three times I have went. The ambiance is nice. Very family friendly! Also the serving sizes are BIG! Perfect for an ice cream lover like me!

The soft serve was yummy, HOWEVER! $1.65 to add sprinkles?!?!? My friend ordered fries, and we…read morewaited 15-20 minutes for a singular basket. When I asked for no sprinkles because of the price the lady who checked me out rolled her eyes because she had already printed the receipt. The atmosphere is littered with children, makes it a very loud and stuffy environment. With that said not everyone's cup of tea. So if you like rude servers, lots of kids, over priced add ons, and long long waits this is the place for you! Update! It's been 50minutes since we've ordered. Still no fries.

Ice Cream Shack of Sunnyland

4.3

(18 reviews)

Quick service, loved the wizards, shakes, and cheeseburgers. The super nacho was very…read moreunderwhelming especially for the price.

Review Visit: September 7th, 2014…read more The Ice Cream Shack of Sunnyland... located in Washington? We are here to talk about the ice cream shack of....... Sunnyland. My friend Matt and I decided to come here after grabbing some pizza from Aurelio's in Peoria. After having some greasy pizza, you need something sweet and delectable to wrap up after a day of exceeding the recommended number of calories per day. We arrived shortly after the sun went down. You almost wouldn't be able to tell as the line of cars in their drive-thru was enough to make it seem like midday. That is a bit of an exaggeration but whenever I cruise by and it's 'ice cream shack season', there is a line about 10-15 cars deep. This night was no exception. After squeezing in a parking spot, we got in the human line that wasn't as long as the car line but still impressive for the time of day. As we had plenty of time to look over the menu, Matt and I couldn't help but remark at the millions of items on the menu. The size of the building leads you to be fooled in to thinking that this place serves only the basics. It felt like reading a novel as I looked over the dozens of options. I'm not sure what Matt ordered but I remember getting a peanut butter malt/shake/blizzard. I don't remember what the specific type of ice cream novelty drink it was but I remember it being delicious. I could tell by Matt's smile that he was equally enjoying his drink as well. Not wanting to be locked in the parking spot by the ever-long line from the drive thru, we hopped in at took off. Since it was a quick visit, this is a short post. I have only been here the one time but I would love to revisit some day and try the bazillions of food offerings they have along with another peanut butter... anything. Yeah, I have a peanut butter addiction.

Pinky's

4.7

(9 reviews)

Wow! The hand dipped ice cream is amazing! Friendly and happy young woman took our order. The…read moreoutside is super cute!

Tremont, IL staple! They stay busy, because of the excellent service, I imagine…read more Directly across the street from a beautiful park.

Carius Creamery

4.3

(4 reviews)

Moved to town not to long ago and a new ice cream place opened up over the summer! It's in place of…read morethe Old Dairy Queen in case you didn't know! I've visited a couple times and I took a few pictures every time I went. The people that work here are super friendly, helpful and quick! I have discovered that the blueberry cheesecake creamer is my absolute favorite! The ice cream tastes so fresh and Light! They have a ton of seating surrounding the building and when I go I also see a lot of people hanging around, happy, and having fun! They usually get through the lines pretty quickly though. If you see a big crowd of people don't hesitate to stop, the wait won't be very long! Get over there and try a blueberry cheesecake creamer, you won't regret it!

Carius Creamery in Morton is a hometown gem--still under the same ownership as when it was Dairy…read moreQueen downtown for so many years. They've kept all the charm and quality you'd expect, with a fantastic ice cream selection that feels very familiar if you loved the classic DQ menu. The service is always quick and incredibly friendly--it's the kind of place where you feel welcome the moment you walk up. There's plenty of parking and outdoor seating, which makes it perfect for families or a relaxing treat. And with a park just across the street, it's a great stop when you're out with little ones. Delicious ice cream, great people, and a perfect location.

Holland's Caramel Corn

4.5

(16 reviews)

Review Visit: September 17th, 2014…read more Pop. Pop. Get your popcorn here! Popcorn is like a burger sandwich or pizza. You can get your basic form of the food but the sky is the limit on the various ways to prepare it. Pizzas, sandwiches and popcorn are one of the many foods that comes in a million different flavors and combinations. Maybe not everyone loves popcorn (do these people even exist?) but places like Holland's Caramelcorn can offer popcorn lovers a seemingly endless variety to pick from. Having been through the Washington Square a few times, I noticed there were some cool and interesting shops to check out. So, I planned a day to explore the town's square and see what the local community has to offer. Upon finding a parking spot and entering the store, I knew I liked the place. It had this welcoming feeling to it and the person behind the counter was super friendly. The store was wide open and kept the merchandise against the walls. This allowed my friend and I an easy way to browse their wares. If you came here expecting to get much beyond the popcorn and soda, you will be disappointed. This store specializes in the popcorn and random sodas you've never heard of before. Luckily, there is a shop next door called Holland's Mercantile. But that's for another blog post. While we wandered the store, I managed to accumulate a handful of popcorn and sodas to take home with me to enjoy at my leisure. I don't remember how much everything cost but I wasn't worried about spending a few extra bucks to support local businesses. I will be honest, I may not have waited to get home before sampling some of the goods. The soda was a root beer variety and was bubbly and good. The popcorn, which the flavor escapes me, was good, tasted fresh, and had a bit of that grandma's love put in to it. Overall, it was a nice stop to pick up some goodies and to support a local business. If you happen to need some need for gourmet popcorn and odd ball sodas, you can't go wrong at Holland's. I believe they even do bulk orders for businesses. Remember, try to support those local businesses around you if at all possible.

Great old fashion shop, however they only pop once a week per the owner and the prices are higher…read morethan other small midwestern popcorn shops.

Holland's Mercantile

3.8

(11 reviews)

Review Visit: September 17th, 2014…read more Sugar. Spice. Everything nice. Like in a lot of smaller towns, you'll usually have or find a business that deals in candy. Sugary confections. Sweet treats. Candy from yesteryears. Soda (pop) in more varieties than you care for it to come in. Things you think you'd never see again and things you fall in love with. Holland's Mercantile fills that role for Washington, IL. My friend Matt and I decided to spend an afternoon exploring the Washington Square to see what the town and it's folk offered. The words on the front of the store's glass got me excited at the possibilities held inside. As we opened the door and headed in, the excitement increased tenfold. It was like being a kid in a candy store. Except that we are adults... in a candy store. Upon entering, I first noticed the long row of candy in the glass containers where you can scoop out as much as you want. Lining the walls were a million different candy from a million different times and cultures. I saw things I hadn't seen in years. They had stuff I didn't think existed in time where color TV is the norm. On top of the candy, they also had a display case full of baked goods. Whether these are made in-house or from a local bakery, I am not sure. Either way, the stuff looked fantastic behind the glass. Turtles. Truffles. Caramel Bars. It all looked so good that I think my blood sugar level elevated just looking at the offerings. This store has more than just candy, baked goodies, and sweets from everyone's childhood. They also had the novelty toys from the same time period the candy/sweets come from. There were novelty toys that tied in to current day trends but they also had toys that kids from our time would enjoy just as much as kids from the time from which they came. I also think there was a back room that was full of a combination of everything the store offered. On this day, I let my inner child run wild and I picked up a small sack full of candy. I didn't want to get too much because I don't have the best self-control when it comes to my sweet tooth. Next door is another Holland's store that offers up popcorn in many different flavors and even more soda to pick from. This store did remind me of the candy store from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, minus the Candy Man tossing candy to and fro. Though that would've been quite the sight to see. The store just has this feeling of being a great place to get your sweet tooth fix while reliving items from your childhood and also your parent's childhood. I will end this with a warning. If you have kids and bring them here... expect to drop a lot of money on sweets and toys. It's easy to spend a small fortune in a place like this. Also, don't let your kids see Holland's Caramelcorn next door. They might get loaded up on sugar and then get popcorn cheese everywhere. How sweet it is.

The best variety of popcorn indulgence is waiting for you at Hollands. It is hands down better…read morethan Garrett's! I make trips to central Illinois, and this is one of my must do stops!

Boba for Life

3.4

(41 reviews)