Farrell’s

During the summer (well during the fair), this is my most favorite ice cream parlor in San Diego with the old fashioned items. Brings me back to when I was a little kid when we used to go all the time

We came here often when I was a kid, great ice cream. Wish they had this place out here in the mid west. I highly recommend them.

Walk in this place and you are taken back to childhood. I would have given this 5 stars but it was chaotic and not quite clean to be nice. I had to inform them that all the napkin holders were out. I get that it was all kids working but a little cleaning up would be nice.
With that said, their shakes are incredible. My son had an old fashion chocolate shake. They start with vanilla ice cream, add a ladle of chocolate fudge and splash in whole milk and whip it up until you get a perfect texture of an old fashion shake. He and his father polished that thing off in about 2 mins. They also sell those swirly rainbow lollipops. I wish this store was bigger and had all of the old candies I remember. We used to go in and get giant jawbreakers we eventually had to break with a hammer to enjoy. Just the outfits and the name are a nice throwback to the past. Only open during the fair and I believe track season.

Well, whaddya know — San Diego DOES have a Farrell’s. It’s just that it’s only open during the San Diego County Fair season. (The rest of the time, the building’s used for storage, according to this article from
:
) Open since 1969 as an actual franchise, this location is the reason that the chain can claim that it’s been serving ice cream for 50 years.
This particular Farrell’s is a mini version of the regular locations — while the limited décor is evocative of the chain, the menu is pared down. There’s only a handful of flavors offered (and with the exception of the Pig’s Trough, none of the large group-​sized sundaes), the restaurant offerings are just panini sandwiches and various hot dogs, and the classic candy selections are kinda on the sparse size. In other words, perfect for fair season.
I ordered a scoop of the Chocolate Malted Crunch in a cup for $ 5.95 — yes, it’s a bit on the pricy side (then again, what isn’t at the fair?), but it was actually pretty good. In fact, it was much better than the one sold at Rite Aid… and there was more to go around! I kinda am regretting that I didn’t get the Clown Sundae for a buck more; maybe next time.
If you want a dose of nostalgia at the San Diego County Fair, Farrell’s is the place to be.