What is it about thrifty ice cream that’s so amazingly good? A single scoop will cost you just 99 cents in exchange for numerous delectable licks. The very fact that Thrifty was swallowed up by Rite Aid but still retained the branding for the ice cream product is a testament to the street cred of this dairy institution. The pharmacy setting adds to the overall ice cream eating experience. The ability to simultaneously hook up mach 3 blades, gatorade, and antibiotics while getting a cone in one singular destination is unbeatable. I mean, talk about economies of scales. I also love the fact there is nary an ice cream attendant behind the counter. At my local joint on CDM, I usually have to hail a worker named Doris who looks like she just puffed a virginia slim and slammed a tall boy in the back alley to scoop my chocolate chip. If Thrifty ice cream were a stock, Warren Buffet would be all over it…it’s cost effective, no frills and provides consistent value to its consumers. Next time you’re in a Rite Aid, probably to pick up Motrin, corona or perhaps an US weekly go ahead and treat yourself to a chocolate malted crunch…you won’t regret it.
The Arrested Development of Chuch 
Nobody is ever behind the counter, its like the worst task a thrifty worker has to endure; and it swings wide. I’ve even seen the manager have to scoop ice cream. Plus they pay coolie wages there i’m sure so serving bratty kids and adults ice cream cant be worth the 40 cents or whatever that time breaks down to in their hourly wage.
It’s great when you ask a disinterested worker to deal you some ice cream you ask in the same voice you might ask your boyfriend or girlfriend to massage your feet or , you know something dirtier. Its a plea, not a request.
At my boyhood Thrifty there was an old man who scooped those cyllinder shaped scoops with gusto and abandon. I think he wasn’t totally right mentally, but man he loved to scoop that ice cream.
Good point…the cylinder cone scoop is definitely a bonus point. I like when they have to pack a pint that pisses them off supremely.
i’ve been doing a lot of thinking about this today… not sure if i should thank you or stop reading your blog.
Another thing i’ve noticed is their antiquated ice cream cones. Getting a sugar or waffle cone (technically, a sugar cone is a waffle cone, a waffle cone is a large format sugar cone– modalities) in a thrifty doesnt happen very often. Gilding the lily. Instead its that cone in the picture. Always that cone.
The psychology behind that cone being popular is probably that it looks like it holds more ice cream and is contour to the shape and size of the cyllinder scoop. I think it’s an optical illusion though, I bet the sugar cone holds about the same amount of ice cream and doesn’t hold it as precariously as you might think. This will probably not be my last follow up comment.
I pointed someone to this blog and they wrote me back with this banal response: “I like coldstone’s, its good”.
Sweet feathery jesus, what kind of pedophiles eat at that place? I went there once and left because the sizes are like not small medium and large but these goofy proprietary names (All ice cream creations are offered in three sizes: “Like It” (5 oz), “Love It” (8 oz), and “Gotta Have It” (12 oz) ) and i refuse to add this crap to my mental hard drive. Just like at starbucks i order a small coffee, and they correct me and say their cute name, and then i say, right, the small one.
I agree Andy…coldstone is for nancies..I hate how they take out the different utensils, and spatulas of varying girth and size. They also have the pretentious marble slab to craft and whittle away at the ice cream…you’re not making a statue…you’re scooping ice cream. At thrifty I had over a buck, I get a cone with some tasty goodness. period.
First off, I concur with your sentiments. I don’t really consider coldstone ice cream – it’s more of a frozen dessert much like the ever popular fro-yo or something of the lemon ice persuasion. That said – there is one redeeming quality you can find at coldstone, as long as you aren’t employed there. Every time they receive a tip, they have to sing a little ditty. Although I hate that in theory, in practice it’s pretty fun to watch the 19 year old snot that begrudgingly spatula’d my fake ice cream sing… especially when he has to do it four times in a row.