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    Polar Bear Ice Cream

    4.5 (200 reviews)
    Closed 11:30 am - 8:30 pm

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    So many choices!
    Maria L.

    My husband and I stopped by here last Saturday to get ice cream as we still had room after lunch. They were quite busy. We grabbed a number on the right as we entered the shop, and the wait wasn't too bad. We're a little overwhelmed by their extensive selection, and had to google some of the mysterious flavors. We finally decided to share a double cup of island mocha and Irish coffee w/ chocolate chips as we both wanted something with coffee. Both flavors were pretty good. I enjoyed the island mocha more as I loved coconut and it had more chocolate chips than the other flavor. My husband enjoyed the Irish coffee one more as it had a stronger coffee taste. Service was efficient and friendly. Price was not bad for the serving size. Enough indoor seating. We left satisfied and would love to come back again to try other flavors.

    Waffle cone with single scoop of Oreo cookie non-dairy ice cream and double scoop in a cup of mud pie and chocolate chunks.
    Bobby M.

    Love that they have several non-dairy options all made with coconut milk base. A huge selection of regular ice cream and sorbets. Waffle cones, regular cones, cups, sundaes, shakes...option galore. Service was fast (it was a slower day and I've seen the place packed before) and staff were very polite. Great location for a quick sugar break right on the Esplanade. Cute little ice cream shop.

    Joyce L.

    Hmmmmm...I was definitely surprised by the high rating. I had several tastings including the ginger, hochata, and lavender and ended up with the classic coconut pineapple. The lavender tasted artifical, ginger was too mild, and the hochata tasted off. The coconut pineapple could use more pineapple chunks and more coconut flavor. I guess I shouldn't expect too much from a $5.50 scoop of ice cream.

    Triple ice cream
    Michelle C.

    After grabbing some pizza from Pizza My Heart, our family decided to grab some icecream! Polar Bear Ice Cream stood right where we were walking and the variety of icecream flavors offered caught our eye. You are able to sample the flavors to try. I noticed that the flavors are organized according to a particular theme so that helps with navigating the large menu. For a family of five we ordered a triple scoop since one of us is lactose intolerant and we were all quite full. The three flavors we have chosen were all chocolate-based *Heaven - peanut butter taken to another level, incredibly rich so it slowed us down to eat * Chubby cub chocolate - the chocolate was not too sweet which made it SO GOOD! best chocolate icecream *One mysterious flavor we forgot the name of but we've been told it's one of the most popular - it had some Carmel in it (the middle scoop of our picture) and if you love caramel this is a must We thank the staff for their service. The size of the scoops were kind too. God bless you all

    Menu as of 07/2025
    Krisstina C.

    A nice ice cream place right next to the beach! I love how they had a lot of flavors to choose from. They also had ice cream sandwiches and milkshakes. Prices were also perfect for the serving size. Parking can be difficult because there's a lot of stores and restaurants near it. However, I would come by again if I'm in the area.

    Stacy A.

    Nice little ice cream shop in Capitola right by the beach. My daughter went and got herself 2 scoops of delicious ice cream and I tried it and loved it! So I went and got myself one of their pre made ice cream sandwiches. I chose the one called dirty paws which had a caramel ice cream with oatmeal cookies on the outside and was dipped in chocolate. Kind of like a gourmet It's It. The chocolate was really nice quality. I will come back to try more things next time I'm in the area.

    Alvin F.

    We were walking around the little beach town of Capitola and got hot haha. And what do you know, at the end of the block, there happens to be an ice cream shop. Polar Bear Ice Cream to be exact. There were a few people in there sampling, but there were also a few workers, so that helped keep the line moving. They have such unique flavor names, that I constantly had to ask what is it haha. I felt bad, but if the flavor isn't straight forward, I'm going to ask questions... and ask for a sample haha. Overall this is a good spot for some ice cream.

    Alex A.

    Ice cream is amazing!!! Had the raspberry and chocolate/chocolate chip. Reasonably priced. Def returning when back in town.

    Dia N.

    This is a gem in Capitola! We were greeted with friendly smiles and positive attitudes from the moment we walked in. This ice cream shop is giving rock and roll with old school vibes. They have so many different flavors to choose from and on the board it's separated by fruity side and decadent side. There was a really cool one I've never heard of before called the Olalliberry + Honey and was really glad I got to sample it before buying it. I believe they explained it as like a raspberry blueberry mix with honey? Either way, it was so good so I got 1 scoop in a waffle cone. Let me tell y'all, that one scoop was huge! You definitely will get your money's worth here. I love that you can get the ice cream here and walk around towards the pier and enjoy it.

    Heaven in a cup
    Steffany I.

    Delicious ice cream with fun flavors and good portions. We walked around looking for ice cream and noticed the line. We lined up but didn't realize you need to pick a number instead of waiting in line. Some regulars pointed it out otherwise we would have been waiting outside forever. There were plenty of flavors to choose from. There were untraditional flavors like lavender and honey and Mexican hot chocolate. Some had unique names and couldn't find a description of the flavor, so it was hard to tell what the flavor actually was. We tried the snickerdoodle cookie dough and heaven. Both were perfect. The ice cream creamy and decadent. There were big pieces of the fillings inside the ice cream. Would definitely want to try other flavors when we come back.

    Carlie P.

    The gal who helped us was amazing! The quality and portion is amazing for their prices. I would recommend this place as it is iconic to this area.

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    6 months ago

    Words cannot describe how amazing the Ice cream is. So many great options. Staff is so friendly and so welcoming. Can't wait to return.

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    9 months ago

    Ice cream was so good!! Had the chocolate peanut butter chunk! Service was quick for a Saturday afternoon and efficient!! Cute little shop.

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    Page 1 of 5

    Ask the Community - Polar Bear Ice Cream

    Is Polar Bear a Marianne's?

    Yes

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    Yes

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    Marianne's Ice Cream - BURGUNDY CHERRY,VANILLA BEAN & BUTTER PECAN

    Marianne's Ice Cream

    4.5(2.6k reviews)
    3.9 mi
    $$

    Found Marianne's by accident. It reminded me of Bud's Ice Cream and Mitchell's Ice Cream in San…read moreFrancisco. Very crowded...packed parking lot...long line outside the door that moves very quickly. We grabbed a number and waited our turn...just a few minutes. Looked over the menu of flavors while we waited. So many flavors to choose from...the flavors we choose were very tasty. By the time we ordered, got, and paid for our ice cream, seats had opened up. Everything you want in an ice cream...rich, creamy, flavorful. We enjoyed every bit our scoops.

    Love Marianne's from the grocery store, an even better experience is visiting their brick & mortar…read moreshop. My visit took place on a warm and sunny afternoon, lots of guests waiting to taste delicious ice cream. Lines moved fairly quickly. Remember to grab a number upon entering. Shoutout to Sophia (in training according to her name tag). She provided the best service I've had in a long time as she patiently explained their vast menu selection and exchanged genuine interactions. The double junior was the perfect size with 2 different flavors. I opted for the pistachio cardimon and the Oregon blackberry. I had a few bites of caramel/mocha flavors, which were slightly too sweet for me. Regardless, I feel you can't go wrong with any of their flavors and they provide samples. The inside is pretty cute with its retro flooring and wall decor. Plenty of tables to sit and enjoy. Small parking lot, but ample street parking around the shop. Looking forward to visiting Marianne's again next time I'm in Santa Cruz. #12/2026

    Photos
    Marianne's Ice Cream - Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream with Hot Fudge

    Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream with Hot Fudge

    Marianne's Ice Cream - Coconut Pineapple

    Coconut Pineapple

    Marianne's Ice Cream - Two junior scoops: Lavender and Green Tea. Such a great combo!

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    Two junior scoops: Lavender and Green Tea. Such a great combo!

    Cruz Creamery - Half Honey Lavendar and Half Rose Ice Cream

    Cruz Creamery

    4.0(210 reviews)
    3.9 mi
    $$

    This one was difficult. It was really closer to a 2.5 for me, but with all of the other ice cream…read moreplaces around town, Cruz Creamery just really misses the spot. Ultimately, we came here because the other one that we wanted to go to down the street had a line into the parking lot. In hindsight, we probably should have just waited. The ice cream here just didn't stand out. It melted too quickly-almost like it wasn't really kept cold cold. The flavors meshed together and didn't really pop and you know something is odd when after going through 4 flavors, the lady up front say, "that's the best", or "that's one of my favorites" to each and every one of them. Getting your order mixed up was also a deduction. I wanted a brownie sundae and because she was out of hot fudge, asked if that could be replaced with caramel. I said yes, but ended up just getting a caramel sundae without the brownies?! Unfortunately I didn't notice until after I sat down with my sundae to which point, I just didn't care enough to get it fixed. The place seemed dingy and confused. With ice cream, but froyo, it could be a bit confusing. Overall, it just didn't seem genuine. There are too many ice cream shops around and to call this one a local and community focused ice cream shop seems like a bit of a stretch to me.

    Cool dessert shop offering lovely lounge seating, ample space, a froyo station with a variety of…read moretoppings in the yogurt bar, and plenty of ice cream flavors in the display case, including vegan and sorbet options. There were 4 types of chocolate available, but no dark chocolate. I opted for a double chocolate fudge brownie milkshake. They didn't have lowfat milk but the worker was friendly and offered to put less milk. Strangely, the shake ended up being on the watery side. It also wasn't quite filled to the top, and even got foamy at the surface. But it was delicious nonetheless.

    Photos
    Cruz Creamery - Inside.

    Inside.

    Cruz Creamery - Outside

    Outside

    Cruz Creamery - Inside

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    Inside

    Polar Bear Ice Cream - icecream - Updated May 2026

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