The first time I saw CREAM was when I went to Berkeley with a friend. The line was out the door and all the way down the sidewalk.

“No,” I said when I saw the wait. “There is no way it can be that good.”

Despite her urging, I decided not to try it that day.

I wound up in Berkeley last night on a last-minute road trip and decided to give CREAM a try. After all, the last time I went was on a Saturday, so of COURSE it was busy then. Yesterday was a Monday; surely the line wouldn’t be as long?

Wrong. The line stretched down the sidewalk yet again. But this time, I had not one, but TWO friends with me who really wanted to try it.

I stood in line begrudgingly, mumbling about how an ice cream sandwich cannot be worth 30 minutes of my life waiting in line.

As I was grumbling, I looked around at the people in line with me. They were all girls. Seriously. Not one guy stood in line. The only guy in sight was the one male employee behind the counter. Interesting.

The line ended up moving quickly, and within 15 minutes, I was in the door, accosted by overwhelmingly sweet smells and dozens of cookie and ice cream flavors to choose from.

Dazed by so much deliciousness in one place, I sought help from the stranger behind me.

“What should I get?” I asked her frantically.

“Mint chocolate chip ice cream inside a chocolate chip cookie.”

She seemed to know what she was talking about, so I ordered that. And oh my gosh…yes.

I consider myself somewhat of a cookie connoisseur, and these cookies were perfect: warm, gooey, chewy. The ice cream was thick and creamy, and its coldness against the warmth of the cookie was the perfect juxtaposition. I quit my grumbling and devoured the ice cream sandwich while walking down the sidewalk of downtown Berkeley, ice cream dribbling down my chin because, in my sugar euphoria, I completely forgot napkins existed.

So is it worth it? Yes! The line moves quickly, and you can have homemade, ooey-gooey deliciousness in your hand for just two bucks!

Oh, and one last little tip: If it’s your first time there, tell them. They do a dance and sing a song about you being a “CREAM virgin.” Hilarious.

And for goodness’ sake, get some napkins and wipe your sticky face. 

Tips to Know Before You Go

Address:

2399 Telegraph Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94704

Website: http://creamnation.com/

Hours:

Mon-Wed 12 pm – 12 am
Thu-Fri 12 pm – 2 am
Sat-Sun 11 am – 2 am

Parking: Street

Cost for a cookie sandwich: $2