Nice coffee shop with delicious cookies. I like the peanut butter. Hot coffee comes in a ceramic…read moremug, which is nice, ceramic plates for the cookies. Nice young man at the cash register who did NOT say "have a nice rest of your day" making my visit perfect.

Absolutely the best cinnamon roll and sugar cookie in town. It's my favorite spot to get a treat. I…read morelove the seasonal, rotating decor inside, the prices are great, and the employees are always really nice.

Super good Ice Cream. Always packed on the weekdays so it's best to find a good time that works for…read moreyou. I personally enjoy swinging by here during the night time, looks really nice later in the day and the stuff are pretty cool. Very nice interior and they let you sample before you buy.

Enjoyed the chocolate milk ice cream with the chocolate sugar cone :) $7 something for 1 scoop.read more

I LOVE GENE's ice cream. Thick, creamy and custardy. I celebrate when they reopen each Spring, and…read moremourn when they close each Fall. Their staff of youth will bring a smile to your face, and if you request "eyes" on your cone, even your cone will be smiling backatcha!

Any time I am in the Downtown Bloomington area, I make a point to stop at Gene's Dairy Delight…read more Its a 50+ year landmark business in the Bloomington area, not just for amazing soft serve custard but for friendly fast service. You can walk up or hit the drive thru but always the same great service and wonderful soft serve. They have an extensive menu with something for everyone in your group! I especially recommend the strawberry lemon twist soft serve. Delicious and refreshing on a hot summer day. Highly recommend this business for yummy treats in the heart of Bloomington! Cash only so hit the ATM before you stop by and tell them Kate sent you!

Have been getting cupcakes here and they always get rave reviews. Salted Carmel and red velvet are…read moregreat. Love that they offer GF and vegan as well.

I have never felt more unwelcome at a small business. My 3 year old son loved the gumball machine…read moreand kept checking it out and twisting the lever. I saw no harm. I received several glares from the worker. I just figured she maybe was having a bad day. My son went to the gumball machine again and then the owner came out and looked at the gumball machine and then glared at me. Excuse me, sorry for brining a child in to your establishment. We will never return. And I love to support small businesses but people matter and you should treat everyone with kindness.

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! My colleague and I are here for a business trip…read moreand popped into here after dinner and shopping. She got the coconut almond and I got a mint chocolate chip cone with sprinkles. We asked a lot of questions at the counter and the young lady was so helpful. The ice cream was creamy and yummy. They were generous portions for the cost. And the sprinkles are complimentary! Definitely a must try!

HORRIBLE employees! We came after a fun filled days with our special olympics kids to have a nice…read moretreat. The staff was rude, short with us and had NO interest in being nice people. I heard the f word several times, I asked for a different kind of bowl and was screamed at that in ordered a plain one not a sprinkle one. I offered to pay the difference but he threw the bowl at me. I mean...how hard is it to serve ice cream to happy humans? Shame on you for being asses. Ice cream was good though so there's that.

We were greeted when we entered. It was only one young lady working! It was a group of about five…read moreahead of us. She started working on their order and then assisted us. Although she was busy and diligently working but she was very attentive, kind and even gave us suggestions when we inquired. Once she took our order she completed the first groups orders and began working on ours. She was very efficient! It was my Mom and her finance's first time trying insomnia and they enjoyed it. The cookies and brookies were good! We enjoyed our order! I look forward to trying it again as this was only my second experience!

Review Visit: March 15th, 2015…read more Late. Night. Cookie. Shop. That is exactly what Insomnia Cookies is. No serious, they sell cookies til about 3am. Now I am not sure how the great idea came about to sell cookies until 3am, but I love the idea. I have never been there that late, but I can vouch for the deliciousness of the cookies. They even warm them up for you before they hand them over. If you consider yourself a cookie lover and you have not tried one of the 80+ Insomnia Cookies in America.... do it now. It's fine, they will still be open by the time you get there. Also, if you see magnets behind the register, ask for one. I have one on my fridge and it was free of charge (your mileage may vary though).

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.

So in 2018 we took a short weekend trip to Champaign, went to Allerton, got lost in the woods while…read moretowing a child who didn't walk and felt we were doomed. After getting back to our car finally in air conditioning, I looked for a place for lunch and picked Destihl in Champaign. VERY MEMORABLE MEAL. My husband and kids were very happy. Fastforward 8 years. My kids are teens and we go down to ISU for the state Special Olympics championship. My child who barely walked last time is now particpating in a sporting event and I need a place for lunch. I literally started looking on Yelp hoping to find something like that meal we had back in 2018. What do you know but Destihl is in Normal and we can go there. Went for lunch with a reservation on a Friday. They were very busy so I was happy I reserved. The service was awesome (Emil was our server). We ordered two apps (Snack plate / Pretzel) and all got lunches (Pickled Mac n Cheese, Fish tacos, Club). We didn't want to eat too much since we had a lot of walking in the sun coming for us. Everything was great. Here's the deal with Destihl and what I like about it: Lots of components to dishes and it works. Each component is well-thought out, very fresh and seasoned perfectly. I wanted to order everything on the menu. The first time wasn't a fluke (I was afraid it might be). I'm glad they are still creating great food and service. The restaurant is very roomy and comfortable. While we don't live close, we will make it back whenever we're around ISU.

So, I know the new kids in the block like this kind of thing to order from table and pay and…read morewaitress just plops food on table with all canned drinks no fountain drinks but honestly I didn't like that. I prefer more interaction with the people who are trying to earn a tip. But food was good 4 for food 1 for business profile So 3

Signature cafe is a Mediterranean restaurant serving (approximately) $16 bowls that are enormous,…read morefresh, and healthy. The interior is light, bright, and clean. The staff that assembled my bowl was helpful and clearly took pride in her work. I chose basmati rice with chicken, multiple veggie toppings, and an awesome jalapeño sauce. It was fresh, satisfying, full of protein, and lasted me two meals. We were so happy to find this place on our road trip, and will definitely remember it for next time!

I can't tell you how much I love Signature Café. It's just everything I need in a restaurant! I…read morehave a very strict medical diet right now (no nightshades, no olives, insulin-resistant friendly), and I need to hit high protein goals. Ordering a custom bowl here was the perfect solution today. I ordered a base of super greens and brown lentils, topped with grilled chicken and steak shawarma, purple cabbage, cool cucumber, and sumac onions, finished with the garlic sauce. The flavor profile was so rich, fresh, and savory without needing any spicy or nightshade-heavy sauces. The meats were cooked perfectly and the portion sizes are incredibly generous. If you are eating clean, managing blood sugar, or just want a high-quality, flavorful meal, this is the spot in Bloomington. Oh, and bonus, it's locally owned and not a chain. (I'm just sad I forgot to photograph my bowl.)

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.