You’re invited to step into a time machine, right back to those carefree days of your childhood. A time where every day is a playdate and making friends is as easy as sharing a scoop of your favorite flavor.

Think about the times you couldn’t stop laughing. A time when every game you played felt like a big adventure. As kids we used to laugh around 300 times a day and played outside until the sun went down, using our imagination with the world around us. Get ready to step into a place where you can play like a kid and every moment is a chance to make a new friend!

What does it mean to reconnect with your inner child?

Reconnecting with your inner child is scooping up the joy and wonder that can sometimes melt away as you grow older. When you reconnect with your inner child, you let yourself be spontaneous, laugh a lot and enjoy the little things in everyday life. Museum of Ice Cream was crafted to help you start on this journey. At MOIC have fun in an environment that encourages everyone to let go and rediscover their playful, child-like spirit.

A scoop of cone-stalgia and a dash of play 

Ice cream is a time machine in a cone. It takes us back to the days when our biggest worry was whether we could eat ice cream for breakfast (spoiler alert: you totally can!). And with our interactive installations, you’ll be able to play in jungle gyms, enjoy interactive games around every corner and jump into a pool of sprinkles. You’ll be a kid again – connecting with those around you with every experience. 

Making new friends, one scoop at a time!

When we were kids, making friends was simple. At MOIC, we think anyone you meet could be a friend. Just be curious and chat a bit! Why wait? Dive into the Sprinkle Pool and talk to someone who you already have something in common with: they love ice cream as much as you do!

Whether you’re a seasoned MOIC guest or a first-timer, every visit is an opportunity to reconnect with your inner child and connect with others. It’s a place where the world outside melts away, leaving you in a wonderland of joy, play and togetherness.

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At the core of playtime is the opportunity to have fun, and research shows that having fun is essential for our health. When we engage in play, our brains release hormones that have tangible benefits for our overall well-being. For example:

• Dopamine, which is associated with pleasure and reward, is released when we experience something enjoyable, like play. This creates a healthy sense of satisfaction and gratitude.
• Cortisol, while often associated with stress, actually helps to regulate stress and improve cognitive function at moderate levels.
• Oxytocin and endorphins, both of which are associated with social bonding, trust and pain reduction, are also released during play.

Apart from these chemical benefits, playtime is absolutely critical for our cognitive, social and physical development. In kids, playtime helps develop problem-solving skills, empathy and resilience – all of which are essential for healthy social and emotional development. For adults and the elderly, engaging in physical activities like sports, tai chi or dancing can help maintain motor skills and reduce the risk of age-related decline.

In today’s busy world, it can be difficult to make time for play. But the benefits of playtime are too important to ignore. That’s why we created the Museum of Ice Cream – a place where you can let loose, have fun and recharge your batteries. Our experiences are designed to help you tap into your playful side, and with our flexible booking policies, you can easily schedule a time that works for you. Try coming down to relive the fun of recess with us – you might just need it!

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SURVIVAL OF THE GENEROUS

Anthropologists know that humans have been sharing resources for hundreds of thousands of years – in fact, it’s what led to the incredible population growth that made humans an endemic species! We increasingly realized that dividing resources such as food and mating opportunities helped the largest number of individuals and their offspring thrive, and those that carried the tendency to cooperate thrived and grew. Over the millennia, our brains naturally developed to instinctively recognize the benefits of sharing, which helped us evolve into the social creatures we are today.

COMMUNITY-BUILDING

This tactical advantage wasn’t solely for basic survival – sharing with others has also been crucial for building strong social bonds within a group. When we share with others, we create a sense of trust and belonging that leads to greater cooperation and a stronger sense of community. Getting along and working together was crucial for the survival of early societies, which led to cooperative initiatives like agriculture and the construction of cities.

EMPATHY

While we traveled down this evolutionary path, we unintentionally developed something curious; empathy. Our ability to experience empathy and choose to be kind or generous is universal, which leads most anthropologists to believe that it develops independently of culture – it’s innate.

While evolutionary principles generally focus on survival of the self, being nudged to actively value the lives of others seems to be in our best interests as well – the brain even releases ‘happy’ hormones such as serotonin when we engage with people we empathize with and care about to encourage sharing behavior!

While there’s a fair chance that sharing has roots in our neurology, we’ll always continue showing our loved ones how much we care. Come to think about it, the best way to do it might just be a day to celebrate those bonds with unlimited ice cream and connection activities in Museum of Ice Cream!

We’re scooping some delicious deals and limited edition treats this Love Month, so check out our ticketing page if you’re still looking for a sweet celebration of the love that makes us human.

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The annual question has rolled around yet again; what are you planning for Valentine’s Day? Sure, there’s a plethora of love-filled packages at your favorite restaurants and activities, but with so many options it can get a lil overwhelming figuring out special things to do this February that are within your budget! If you’re still stressing out, take a peek at our sure-fire plan for a soulful Valentine’s Day that won’t break the bank. BREAKFAST BONDING Sharing a meal has always been an intimate gesture – just think of all the significant holidays with a family feast as the centerpiece of the party! Eating together is a chance to connect with someone, and humans have bonded over the common joys of food for millennia across global cultures and traditions. ‍ Breakfast is one of our favorite meals because it sets the tone for a day of connection and affection. The most wallet-friendly option is to prepare it yourself, but for something extra special, try stepping out of the avo toast and scrambled eggs sphere and into something more un-cone-ventional; like a dessert breakfast! National Ice Cream for Breakfast Day 2023 is actually falling on February 4th, and it’s the perfect way to kickstart a month of sharing the love! Museum of Ice Cream is opening its doors across all locations for any early birds looking for early (gummy) worms and serving up adorable Sprinkle Sundaes with a healthy topping of cereal – the perfectly balanced way to start a special day! We’ve partnered with the game-changing Three Wishes Cereal in New York, Austin and Chicago, as well as Nestle’s ice-conic Trix cereal in Singapore to get that perfect cream-to-crunch ratio, so don’t forget to add on this super special Sprinkle Sundae at checkout to grab your creamy-crunchy breakfast when you arrive. ‍ SHARE A ‘DIFFERENT’ GIFT Exchanging gifts is one of the best ways to show someone love, especially when it’s from the heart! Deciding on a ‘special’ gift can be difficult – should you go for something functional or something symbolic? Something that they need or something that they want? We find that magical memories and exciting experiences are by far the most impactful gifts, because they straddle the line between a tangible and intangible present. If you know any sweet-toothed scoops, sharing joy with a gift card from Museum of Ice Cream just might be the perfect present – imagine giving someone special the opportunity to escape the everyday mundanity and rediscover their childlike joy through bottomless desserts and uninhibited play! MOIC e-gift cards are exclusively available on our ticketing site, with the affordable convenience of choosing the exact amount you’d like to put in the card and the option to include a cute personalized message. ‍ CELEBRATE CONNECTIONS At its core, Love Month is about celebrating the bonds that light up our lives, and the best way to do that is to spend a full day out with those special scoops! While this may seem like a lot, you can fill a day with 3 key activities that encourages connection and helps you organize your budget:

1. Something participatory
2. Munchie some lunchie
3. Something creative

It’s great to set the tone of the day with an activity that’s more lean-in rather than lean-back; for example, movie dates are great, but there’s only so much connection to be had sitting in silence. Think along the lines of putt-putt golf, karaoke or going to a carnival, where you’d be solely responsible for the energy levels of the activity! Engaging in a creative activity is so much more than just that  – don’t forget that being creative allows us to express ourselves in extraordinary non-verbal ways, which affords us a deeper understanding of each other! Excellent examples would be a pottery class, art jam sessions (those with alcohol packages are well worth checking out) or tufting workshops. ‍ Museum of Ice Cream actually covers a number of these activities (yes, we have an indoor carnival in New York, Chicago and Singapore!), and it might just be the perfect place to hit all 3 bases in a single location! Our premium ice cream experium offers over 12 immersive installations that cover a range of play spaces for all ages, activities like origami or ice cream making and a smorgasbord of free-flow ice cream that’ll have any scoop screaming for a second stomach! Be sure to book your tickets ahead of time to minimize any hassle, and check out our expansive menu of add-on goodies for the cherry on top of your special day out!

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PLANT-BASED DAIRY

Plant-based dairy is now an unstoppable force on the culinary scene, from savory to sweet! No longer does dairy-free only apply to sorbets – you can easily find creamy scoops that incorporate a wide variety of plant-based products.

Ice cream with the lushest mouth-feel often relies on fat molecules to create a velvety sensation, which means that you should look out for frosty desserts that use high-fat content vegan alternatives. The best examples would be coconut, almond or cashew milk, especially because these particular vegan milks don’t develop a greasy residue and add a subtly refreshing tang to flavors like chocolate or cookies and cream!

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Museum of Ice Cream Singapore is scooping plenty of plant-based treats that include coconut milk, which is a pretty cool callback to their South-East Asian roots! Many traditional Singaporean desserts incorporate coconut cream to create indulgent desserts like pulut hitam (a black sticky rice pudding with coconut milk for an extra indulgent kick), which we’ve turned into a refreshing potong popsicle!

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UN-CONE-VENTIONAL SCOOPS

Classic flavors will always hold a special place in our hearts, but life needs a lil bit of adventure every now and again! 2022 saw the celebration of completely new flavors that step out of the staple Neapolitan favorites, with exciting twists like savory ice cream, exotic combinations and novel modes of consumption.

We’re actually serving up an incredible example at Museum of Ice Cream Chicago. Our team has ice cream-ified one of the Windy City’s signature staples and created a frosty treat with the best kind of cognitive dissonance; hot dog-flavored ice cream nestled between fluffy buns and a crunchy cornichon! Dare you take a bite?

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PROBIOTICS

Functional food is quickly becoming the next frontier in culinary innovation, especially when it comes to new dessert concepts! While eating healthy is pretty familiar, functional desserts can go a lot farther than keeping to the food pyramid, and one of the newest ice cream inventions to hit the market is probiotic ice cream.

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Probiotic ingredients refer to components that help to foster a balanced community of microorganisms in your digestive system (just a lil clarification – your gut is already home to a host of microorganisms that have a symbiotic relationship with you and helps cultivate ideal gut health!). In ice cream production, the most common probiotic ingredient would be kefir yogurt, which comes from fermenting milk in a controlled environment along with live cultures introduced in the mix. Think of it like frozen yogurt full of teeny tiny helpers!

Museum of Ice Cream is always trying to be one step ahead of the curve, and we’re inviting you to be at the forefront of ice cream innovation along with us! Fill your day with unlimited ice cream in the coolest flavors and forms of 2023, but don’t forget to bring along your sweetest cone-panions to share in the joy of discovering something new!

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There are some things that immediately herald the end of year – the scent of pine, steaming hot cocoa, the jingle of carols – it’s a season that assails the senses in the best way possible. It’s the sweet treats, though, that really completes our holiday spirit, so here are some things you might not know about your favorite Christmas treats like apple cider, gingerbread and eggnog! APPLE CIDER Apple cider has long been produced in the fall season in Europe and North America, which meant that it became a traditional autumn and winter beverage – naturally, mulled apple became a staple at Christmas dinners and winter fairs! By the late 1700s, apple cider was so ubiquitous in North America that one in ten family-run farms owned cider presses to make the drink. It wasn’t just for drinking either – clean water wasn’t as easy to come by during this period in time, so many baptisms in early Christian communities were allegedly performed with cider rather than water! Oh, and have you ever heard the Christmas carol that  goes, “Here we come a-wassailing…” and wondered what that meant? Wassailing refers to an ancient English custom that involved gathering in apple orchards with votive offerings for nature spirits and singing to the trees in order to ensure a successful harvest for the cider-making season. Apart from showing how much the season revolved around apples, this custom evolved into the caroling tradition that we still love today! ‍ EGGNOG While this traditional Christmas treat often contains a zesty splash of alcohol, eggnog has always been a popular beverage that all can find comfort in! This creamy concoction is believed to have originated in medieval Europe, with records of monks crafting early iterations of it called ‘posset’ as far back as the 13th century. By the 17th century, the most common eggnog recipes in Europe involved a base of sherry, eggs, sugar and milk, which were pretty expensive goods at the time! Naturally, it was an uncommon treat that was saved for special celebrations like Christmas, especially when it included super rare spices like nutmeg and cinnamon. It’s a commonly held belief that George Washington popularized eggnog in the United States, with local legends detailing how he served super boozy mixes for guests at Mount Vernon. The estate’s current historian, Mary Thomson, finds herself having to repeat every year that eggnog was not, in fact, included in any culinary records from his time there! Like many traditional recipes, it’s hard to say what the most faithful version of this beautiful beverage would be! We’ve also decided to throw our hat into the ring with a recipe of our own, so why not come down to Museum of Ice Cream Singapore for an eggless eggnog that’s just as creamy and indulgent? ‍ GINGERBREAD The history of gingerbread goes back A LOT further than you’d expect and was enjoyed across more than one continent in different variations! The first mention of baked food resembling gingerbread came from a 2400 BC recipe found in Greece, although the ginger root itself was first cultivated in ancient China for medicinal purposes. Gingerbread’s popularity peaked in 992 AD when an Armenian monk named Gregory of Nicopolis brought gingerbread to Western Europe, where its popularity quickly grew as a warm treat, as well as a cure for indigestion! Over the centuries, this treat has largely been baked as either a soft cake loaf or a crisp biscuit, with its use in elaborate confectionary decorations starting during the first Elizabethian era in England. By the time the 1600s rolled around, bakeries in Germany were displaying artistic renditions of gingerbread houses to entice their clientele, and this quintessentially Christmas display continues today! In fact, the record for the largest gingerbread house is currently held by Mall of America, which spanned about 40000 square feet and used 4000 gingerbread bricks. It was so big that it even required a building permit to construct! Gingerbread goes incredibly well with full flavors like vanilla – we’ve actually created our own blend of this with a signature gingerbread milkshake available at all MOIC Speakeasys! ‍ We’re still sleighing the holiday season at Museum of Ice Cream with the pinkest winter wonderland you could stroll through! Grab the sweetest peeps in your life to complete the perfect year-end holiday with unlimited desserts, interactive installations and gorgeous Pinkmas play spaces.

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