From windmills to an old gas station: A taste of Manitoba’s many beloved ice cream shops

A cold, rapidly melting ice cream cone on a hot summer’s day is a rite of passage for a reason.

No other treat seems to complement the season quite so sweetly, adding the proverbial cherry, nuts or sprinkles on top of those listless, blissful days.

This feels particularly true in Manitoba, home to a uniquely hardy bunch bred to endure months of bone-chilling temperatures in order to arrive at those short, but oh so savoured summer months.

Perhaps because this winter felt particularly punishing, the CTV News digital team decided to get the scoop on our province’s beloved ice cream shops, stops and secret treasures, straight from the owners themselves.

Bridge Drive-In

Some see it as a sure sign of spring — the return of the stretching, snaking lines outside Winnipeg’s iconic Bridge Drive-In.

Still, the BDI faithful see the queue as part of the experience, along with the walk over the steel truss bridge with your hard-earned treat in hand.

It’s a tradition forged over decades.

Since 1957, BDI has been serving up soft serve, sundaes, sodas and shakes under its striped red and white awning at the foot of the historic Elm Park Bridge.

The business opened a second storefront on Main Street in 2024, serving the same BDI favourites, plus a rotating selection of house-made hard ice cream.

Here’s what owners Justin and Jessica Jacob had to say about the beloved local business.

How would you describe your business? What’s the vibe?

BDI has a classic, nostalgic Winnipeg summer energy — with a modern, slightly chaotic lineup buzz. It feels like you’ve been coming here since you were a kid — because you have! We’re not trendy, we’re timeless.

Most popular menu item?

Still the Goog Special, which (we think) has been on the menu for at least 50 years. We sell over 10,000 Googs every season!

In a close second is the Saltzberg, which we introduced on the menu in 2015.

Most unique menu item?

Probably the Sleeping Beauty, which is a carved-out half pineapple, with cherry and strawberry sundaes, diced pineapples, sliced banana, peanuts, whipped cream and a cherry. (It’s usually shared by two or more people, but we don’t judge.)

Any new menu items for this year?

We introduced our new (mostly Winnipeg-themed) Dirty Soda menu this season!

How busy do you get during high season?

During the summer, we serve roughly between 1,100 to 1,500 items per day. On peak days when the weather is nice, (Sundays and statutory holidays), this number can climb much higher!

Pro tips for getting through the busy summer season?

Honestly, it all starts with taking care of our staff.

Summer gets hectic, and we’ve learned that the easiest way to get through it is with a strong team. Serving ice cream is often viewed as a seasonal, minimum wage/first job - but we’ve never treated it like one. We feel that the experience starts with our team, so we make a point of paying well above minimum wage and continuously looking for ways to support our staff.

Sargent Sundae

Across another Winnipeg bridge, this one traversed on foot connecting Assiniboine Park and Portage Avenue, sits an equally beloved local ice cream haunt.

Sargent Sundae first started scooping and swirling out hard and soft ice cream in 1984 at its former home at the corner of Sargent and Sherbrooke streets — hence the name.

The second shop, which is now Sargent Sundae’s sole location, opened on Portage Avenue in 1988.

Decades later, it remains a Winnipeg summer staple. For many, the season isn’t complete until they’ve devoured a sparkler, chocolate malt or banana split, selected from the shop’s delightfully retro yellow and red menus fastened to the wall.

Owners Lynn and John Dusessoy share what makes their shop a stone cold classic.

Most popular menu item?

Flurries, which is soft ice cream blended with your choice of topping and candy, are a favourite, but the old school banana split and sundaes are still a hit.

What is your most unique menu item?

We offer the traditional banana split, brownie supreme and an item we call a sidewalk sundae, which is two scoops of hard ice cream, (your choice), with two toppings, whipped cream, peanuts and a cherry.

How busy do you get during high season?

We are extremely busy in the high season, with line ups a half-block long constantly, but we move the line rapidly with wait times averaging 20 to 30 minutes.

Pro tips for getting through the busy summer season?

We are very fortunate to have a wonderful staff of around 40 who come back year-after-year.

What’s the best part about owning an ice cream shop?

Honestly it is amazing how we become so involved with people’s lives. We have been involved from engagements taking place at the store to wedding pictures. We see families meeting on our patio and visiting with friends. We have done ice cream for weddings and funerals of long-time customers. They tell us stories when they come in and how we have become part of their lives.

Do you ever get sick of eating ice cream?

Never. I have a taste every chance I get.

The Velvet Dip

For over 60 years, Brandonites with a sweet tooth have depended on the Velvet Dip to feed their cravings.

The Victoria Avenue mainstay specializes in sweet nostalgia, with its original neon sign, a walk-up window and plenty of classic treats.

Hungry for more, a second Velvet Dip location opened in Riding Mountain National Park in 2021, serving up their beloved sundaes and ice cream sandwiches lakeside.

Jackie Kamann-Oke and her husband Sam Oke have run the place for 21 years. Kamann-Oke’s parents ran it for over two decades before that. From ice cream to nuts, they share why the Velvet Dip is a throwback with staying power.

How would you describe your shop? What’s the vibe?

As the Velvet Dip opened in the retro era of the ‘60s and has been part of the community for 61 years, over that time, it has become far more than an ice cream shop. It’s a huge tradition.

There’s a real sense of nostalgia here -the original building, original neon signs, the ONLY revolving sign left in Brandon, and walk-up window service, with the classic treats still available.

Most popular item?

Our famous, creamy dreamy vanilla soft serve and the vanilla/chocolate swirl.

Most unique item?

We have so many!

There’s the Fluffy Bunny, which is great for kids. It’s vanilla soft serve, cotton candy dip, cotton candy, bubble gum, whipped cream, sprinkles, and a cherry on top.

For our 60th, we created the True North Big 60, which is three vanilla peaks in a banana boat with chunks of Nanaimo bar, red velvet cake, whipped cream, and drizzled with chocolate, red velvet and white chocolate dip.

Any new items this year?

Still thinking!

We will likely do a Dip n’ Roll - roll a cone in your favourite candy, like Oreo or Skor etc., then dip it in white chocolate or whatever dip, out of 10 choices, you prefer.

Also, what may be called a Pipeline - injecting any cone with an extra shot of hot fudge or caramel so it runs all the way through the cone.

How busy do we get in summer?

We quite often have lineups down the sidewalk at both locations. We are grateful for that loyal clientele!

What are your pro tips for getting through the busy season?

Treat your staff well, and retain them. Make it a great place to work!

Don’t run out of product!

Keep the machines well-maintained and producing the BEST quality product.

Keep smiling, remind the staff to take a breath, (when there’s a lineup), don’t panic. People are happy and will wait.

Do you get sick of eating ice cream?

No we don’t, but we don’t often bring it home!

What’s the Scoop

Portage la Prairie’s small but mighty What’s the Scoop has an extensive menu with dozens of flavours of hard ice cream, soft serve, slushies, milkshakes and many more house-made treats.

Owner Rhonda Lodwick first opened up shop 11 years ago, catering to families and friends out of her charming den of deliciousness.

Here’s how she keeps churning out soft serve and smiles year-after-year.

How would you describe your shop? What’s the vibe?

Fun, family oriented ice cream shop with an extensive menu where everyone is sure to find something they’ll love.

Most popular menu item?

Our 30 flavors of hard ice cream and our milkshakes.

Any new menu items for this year?

We have a couple things in the works for the 2026 season, but you’ll have to watch our social media to find out what they are!

How busy do you get during high season?

We have the best customers at our little shop and have a line-up out the door regularly!

Pro tips for getting through the busy summer season?

Embrace the chaos, smile and have fun! We have the privilege to serve ice cream to people and make them smile. There is nothing better!

Do you ever get sick of eating ice cream?

No! Who would get sick of ice cream? So many options, so many flavours, so much deliciousness.

CBC Garage

Repeat visitors to the CBC Garage in West Hawk Lake know ordering even a small cone becomes a race against the clock and your soft serve’s changing state of matter.

The portions, you see, are famously generous and often served in Manitoba’s often sweltering temperatures.

The towering serving sizes are just one of the sweet selling points of CBC Garage, which is, quite literally, housed in a garage at the Crescent Beach Cottages resort.

The shop has been in business since 2019. However, the building has undergone several transformations that pre-date the hot fudge and sprinkles, be it a chip and shake stand in the ‘70s, a full-service gas station in the mid-‘80s or a craft store in the 2000s.

The grandkids of the original owners decided its next iteration should be a return to its tasty roots.

Owners Shaun and Jeanette Harbottle shared how they keep pumping out the frozen fuel to hungry cottagers.

How would you describe your shop? What’s the vibe?

The building we are in is an old garage, so many of our themes try to include that theme in our names. We are across from the beach, a very relaxed, fun atmosphere with music going. We have many large families that come as an after-dinner treat. We also host an ice cream-eating contest during the local festival.

Make sure to add a squeeze of grease for any menu item, (chocolate sauce).

Most popular menu item?

We have a few. The Expresso Milkshake and Real Banana Milkshake are very popular, and the large soft serve cone is known for being extremely large – (we say it’s dinner at the garage.)

For hard scoop this past summer, it was Salty Carmelle, Pressure Gauge Twister was Skor.

Most unique menu item?

Our Garage Nachos with Ice Cream, Mini Donut Twister and Garage Ice Cream Cakes.

Any new menu items for this year?

We have a few experiments we are working on, but you will have to come out to check us out this spring or follow us on social media.

How busy do you get during high season?

The summer season is very busy, especially the after-dinner hours where lineups can grow. We pride ourselves on being able to get our product out very quickly, so everyone can enjoy chatting and seeing old friends.

Pro tips for getting through the busy summer season?

It’s a love of what you are doing and having fun while doing it with staff and customers. Seeing new customers and connecting with all of our past customers and catching up on how they are doing and how the winter was.

Some of the greatest moments are when we see kids coming who were only toddlers a few years ago. Lots of freezers and keep the ice cream moving!

The Barefoot Café

Tucked away in St. Malo Provincial Park, amid the minigolf course and beaches, sits a shiny, red trolley dolling out ice cream from a walk-up window.

It’s called the Barefoot Café.

There’s an old but still kicking kitchen outpost where staff grill burgers and deep fry chips. That building has been there since the park opened in 1966, keeping visitors fed between swims.

In 2017, Kerri Kosawa and her husband bought the business and soon after, rolled in an old trolley they found at a used car lot in the States.

While it’s currently used to serve their burgers, fries, shakes and frozen treats, Kosawa hopes to turn it into a camper upon retirement.

Until then, she shared what keeps the shop chugging along summer after summer.

How would you describe the Barefoot Café? What’s the vibe?

The place has character! The kitchen is an old but resilient building, very much ‘a shack.’

And the trolley still drives! We bring it home after each season. I have a feeling that the bus is very happy being surrounded by park-goers and sugar-high children all day. It seems to fit in there.

Most popular menu item?

Our top item is hard ice cream. We have about 14 to16 flavours on any given day.

Most unique menu item?

One of the more special items is a type of Affogato. We do ours with a double espresso over vanilla soft ice cream.

How busy do you get during high season?

Any hot day in July, and we are running as fast as we can all day. We put as many staff in that bus as can fit, but still need to work hard to keep up.

Pro tips for getting through the busy summer season?

Drinking lots of water and eating eggs! We need to be moving as quickly as we can all day long, often in really hot weather. Scooping that much hard ice cream needs muscle and carrying the tubs to restock the freezer does too, so we power up on the protein in the daytime and enjoy our own ice cream at the end of day before we hit the showers.

I Scream Shack

The I Scream Shack in Thompson, Man. also has roots on wheels.

It began as a mobile truck in 2003, parking at a new location every day, plus special events, pedaling ice cream delights to those who visited.

In 2008, owner Gerry Rose found a brick-and-mortar shack for the business to call home – a delightfully weather-worn A-frame on Berens Road.

Rose spilled to CTV News what makes the ice cream business such a scream even 20-plus years later.

How would you describe the I Scream Shack? What’s the vibe?

The Shack, as locals call it, is a sign of spring with summer just around the corner. It is a hopping place with lineups often out the door. It is a place where people meet friends and a must see place for people to take in while visiting Thompson for the first time or returning to visit family and friends.

Most popular menu item?

The very most popular is the standard hard cream by the scoop in a cone, waffle cone or cup, followed very closely are our Twisters.

Most unique menu item?

The SHACK ATTACK. Just as its name implies, this is a nine-scoop sundae in a big bowl - three scoops of three different kinds of ice cream with lots of toppings and as many spoons an necessary to be shared. (Often only one spoon is required).

The biggest, and in my estimation the best, is the Gone Bananas Shack Attack. This includes three full bananas, quartered and placed around the outside edge, plus three different ice creams, three different toppings, whipped cream, cherries and sprinkles. Plus, the bowl is yours to keep as a souvenir.

Any new menu items for 2026?

We usually try to have one or two new items each year but introduce them in May after we have a chance to make sure that everything is running well and we’ve had time to train new staff on the basics.