Warning: photo heavy
There were a lot of Instagrammers did a lot of cool photo shoots here, either professionally or personally, so I got totally curious. Wouldn't you know, when I got to the website for some info, they were sold out of months. Luckily, they were going to extend the show, and release more tickets. Oh boy... I was so excited when the window opens (cyber-ly speaking, of course). When you get there, there was an hour wait at the 'window' via their virtue queue. Of course, my computer crashed, and luckily, they recognize the IP and I got back in line, but let me tell you, the stress to get the tickets....
As you enter the entrance you encounter this wall, where it makes you think, if Willy Wonka is a real person, and would let you tour the factory, he would make this wall.
The artist used gummy bear and rock candy for the small colors, there are coins, hoop earrings, and various deco food as decoration. Don't worry, they're all fake. Hopefully no one thought it was real.
Upon entering the museum, they immediately offer you 3 different kinds of Dove chocolate. It is to start your palette as you walk thru the doors. Which any doors they do have, shaped like... you guessed it, chocolate. (no, not ice cream, silly)
First room was the mirror room only took some personal photos. But the second room is the Venice Cream room. Today, we got Cookies n' Cream ice cream.
It's like a Pink Hollywood in here... the walk of fame stars, with familiar celebrity names changed to ice cream related theme. Such as: Cone-nan O'Brien
Pink Palm Tree with ice cream stacked street signs.
Venice Cream sky.
The MOIC sign.
Next is the Banana Swing and the Banana Split room. Haha, get it? Banana Split.
In the Mint Room, they gave you a sample of mochi ice cream. While majority of the display are fake, this is real mints. As a matter of fact, the fertilizers are cocoa bean shells.
Mint Life!
Next was the Rainbow floor and Pink Retro phones (not pictured). Then is the wall of whites, which has rows and rows of gummy bears. Yep, that's what they are there....
All the whites help cleanse the palette for more colorful stuff. It is the giant popsicles room. We were lucky because the staff monitoring the room just dropped the rope so we can wander about.
Then, it's the Gummy Bear Party room. It has dance music, disco ball, and of course Gummy Bear that are life size, and sample of gummy bear. My kid loved this corner.
Then it' the cone wall. It has ice cream cone all over the wall and ...
... on the statue's face. Take that! Well, actually, we got this weird combo of licorice, black cherry chocolate, and chocolate sixlet. Per the recommendation of the staff, you eat them all together. Personally, I'm not a fan of the licorice or the black cherry. Amazingly, it's like a pop rock combo but chocolate in my mouth. That was interesting.
Then, it's the famous Sprinkle Pool. (love the neon!)
Even the wall decor to match.
Couldn't get a good shot of the pool itself with the diving platform, but here's what it looks like. As my friend Julia was worried, if they are real sprinkles, because that'll be gross. Totally agree, and luckily, they are not real, just plastic. That said, if you dive in there, sit there, or anything there, they have a way to follow you. For the next day, we would find little sprinkles in jacket pockets, or in my kid's underwear. No telling on that. But super fun!
At the very end, you get another sample of ice cream. Even though that's pink, it's just vanilla. The last room has a giant ice cream sandwich swing, a wall for you to take pictures on, and seating for enjoying your ice cream.
On your way out, as do all the exhibits, has a gift shop. Alot of their stuff are over priced, a bottled water is $3. But a lot of info of the artists that has their work displayed there. On your way out, you have these wise words: "Museum of Ice Cream is a place where flavors are mysteries, toppings are toys and sprinkles make the world a better place." I couldn't agree more.
I did some reading on the place prior to coming. As a lot of folks said, this place would not have survived and extended dates had it not been for social media. They felt that you call yourself a museum, yet there's no educational value. To me, you basically have to treat it as a contemporary art exhibit for what it is. Just so happened that they're all very super colorful and tied together with the ice cream theme and have samples along the way. By no mean were they trying to teach you the history, the revolution, or the making of ice cream. That said, the ticket price was $29 per person, and while it is pricy, it is not something you'll experience anywhere else. To me, that's worth it. The price my varies in different location, but children 3 and under do not need tickets.
If you arrived early, they had a playground in the next lot with Connect Fours, hula hoops, giant Jenga and other games to keep you busy. It is located in the heart of the art district in the downtown area. I highly encourage valet for $6, it's good for 2 hours. While you won't need 2 hours, but if you get there early, it's good to know and not have to stress about finding street parking, especially when we're not familiar with the area.
The Los Angeles location is sold out and will be closing, unless they decided to extend again. Meanwhile, you can visit them in San Francisco and Miami. If either of those locations aren't convenient for you, you can go to the
Happy Place. Similar pricing, similar concept, but different theme and very Instagrammable.
Museum of Ice Cream
https://www.museumoficecream.com
