Chocolate and passion fruit ice cream cones from Deda’s Fine Baked Goods. Photo Gallery
During this summer of “Fortnite,” my parental job (as Screen Time Police) has become increasingly difficult. However, wandering the Salmon Creek Greenway Trail and then grabbing a frozen at Tropical Sno or Deda’s Fine Baked Goods makes for a pleasant diversion.
During the summer, my main job is Screen Time Police — devising clever ways to keep my children separated from their electronic devices. This job has become increasingly difficult during this long summer of “Fortnite.” The typical diversion tactic usually includes some wholesome old-school family activity followed by a bribe (usually something sweet).
On a recent walk along the Salmon Creek Greenway Trail, I discovered a couple of great places for frozen treats. The closest purveyor of frozen goodies is Tropical Sno, located in a parking lot on Northeast 117th Street, just up the street from the parking lot for Salmon Creek Regional Park and Klineline Pond. Tropical Sno is owned by Claudia Ruffalo, her son, Brian, and his wife, Janae. This is their eighth summer in this spot.
Sno cones come in small ($3.85), medium ($4.45) and large ($5.05). The small size is generous enough for any child — little kid to teen. The plastic containers are a bit wobbly, so it’s good to tell kids to hold them tightly with two hands while transporting them to the car or a nearby picnic table.
You can choose from popular, nonalcoholic concoctions (strawberry margarita, mai tai, Creamsicle) or design your own flavors (up to three) with optional add-ons (banana cream, coconut cream, gummy worms, vanilla cream and caramel topping) for an extra 50 cents. My daughter chose blue raspberry and cotton candy. She liked the flavors and enjoyed displaying her blue tongue for the rest of the afternoon.
I tried the Pi?a Coladalada– pineapple, coconut and coconut cream. It was refreshingly tropical with just the right creaminess from the coconut cream. Co-owner Claudia Ruffalo’s favorite is Maui Wowie — strawberry, coconut and banana.
If you crave ice cream, Deda’s Fine Baked Goods, just up the road on Highway 99 (just past Chuck’s Produce and Street Market) serves a variety of house-made ice cream. The bakery is owned by Catherine and Chris Misener with help from their sons, Stephen and Brennen. When their son, Stephen, was a little boy, he couldn’t pronounce dad, so he called his father “Deda.”
Deda/Chris makes the ice cream bases every day. On my visit, there was a good variety of flavors ranging from traditional (chocolate, strawberry) to the unusual (cinnamon-y horchata, passion fruit and key lime). My daughter had the chocolate, her friend had the passion fruit and I had the key lime. We were all happy with our ice cream selections (one scoop is $4, two scoops are $6.50). My daughter didn’t finish hers (the scoops are generous) so I mixed her chocolate with my key lime. The rich chocolate and the refreshing key lime (with tiny bits of key lime zest and streams of graham cracker crust) was the perfect mix of creamy and refreshing.
Co-owner Catherine Misener told me that they are planning to add ice cream sandwiches, hand pies and ice cream cakes. They will also be opening an ice cream window near the street with expanded hours. Since ice cream is a new thing for the bakery, she told me that she is seeking customer feedback. My only feedback is that this ice cream is delicious — keep making it.
Rachel Pinsky can be emailed at couveeats@gmail.com. You can follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @couveeats.
Information
Tropical Sno, 2009 N.E. 117th St., Vancouver, 360-921-1393, TropicalSnoVancouver.com. Hours: Noon to 8 p.m. every day.
