McConnell’s Ice Creams and Yogurt on Mission

I’m so happy that I found this ice cream shop by our condo! It so welcoming as soon as you walk in. I believe it’s a family owned business, so you know it’s some good quality ice cream you’re getting!
I love anything dark chocolate, so I tried their dark chocolate ice cream, and let me tell you, it was amazing! Seriously the best ice cream that I have ever had! It was so rich in flavor, but it was not over powering. I had to get a size small, or else, I would of probably devoured the whole thing!
I tired samples of their ice cream, but the dark chocolate was the one that got a hold of my taste buds.
The parking isn’t too much of a hassle, although the location of this place is at a corner of an intersection.
If I am ever back in Santa Barbara, I will definitely go out of my way to stop by this ice cream shop!

Unilocal says I’ve only checked in twice, but clearly I’m too euphoric every time I go here to have my wits about me long enough to check in.
McConnell’s is a must-​go for me in Santa Barbara. Sure, they have pints available for sale at Vons down in SD and elsewhere, but the best thing is getting fresh ice cream in a fresh cone. Toasted Coconut Almond Chip and the Churros Con Leche are my go-​tos, but they are always coming up with new stuff to drool over. A newer flavor (to me, at least) is Sea Salt Cookies & Cream, which is a perfect balance of salty and sweet. The BF is a huge fan of another newer flavor, Whiskey & Pecan Praline — also very good, but I like the others too much to stray. The staff is friendly, and the shop itself is tiny and crammed (it is the original, after all!) but it’s nice to take a walk after grabbing the ice cream, or sitting in the enclosed area outside.
I don’t think I’ve ever even sampled the yogurt. The ice cream is just too good!

As soon as you enter, you are welcomed with the smell of fresh waffle cone being prepared. The wait wasn’t too bad for a Monday/​Memorial Day.
Our server was polite. I liked the fact that she washed her hands in between taking our orders explaining that she had stuff on it and wanted to make sure it was off. I like when an establishment prioritizes cleanliness like that. I also like that the servings on the scoop sizes were pretty generous in comparison to other gourmet type of ice creameries.
I ordered the single scoop with boysenberry rose milk and early grey & biscuits. Both were really creamy and tasty. The chunks of biscuits in the earl grey gave it a good crunch. The boysenberry was light and just the type of fruity flavor I needed. I got it served in the waffle cone. The waffle cone was so fresh it was still warm when served to me. I enjoyed that waffle cone for how fresh it was.
Overall great experience.

If you have ever wondered what heaven might be like, try a McConnell’s Ice cream.
I’m pretty sure they have a bowl of McConnell’s every night before bed up above.
Good doesn’t even begin to describe this heavenly treat.
Tasty

Always a fun stop after any meal… You can try all the ice cream but you better share… So many to choose from and you want to have a bite of all the flavors… Personal favorite is the sea salt caramel…
Staff is friendly, but the parking is sparse… The place is definitely quaint… and we will always come back when we are in town.

The hubs is a Gaucho but shamefully admitted that he has never tried McConnell’s!
So of course… during alumni weekend, we just HAD to try it out. The parking is terrible (small tiny lot), so try to find street parking if you can.
This place serves both ice cream and yogurt! Decided it was an ice cream type of day. A single scoop was about $ 4.50. You can get two flavors for one scoop. Sampled some of their flavors, but my favorite was definitely the boysenberry rose milk jam ice cream! So creamy and delicious! The other flavors (salted caramel, cookies & cream, etc), I thought were okay. It would have also been nice to have other flavors available like Earl Grey, Honey Lavender, Green Tea… etc.
The yogurts looked so light and airy (I was mad staring at other people’s yogurt– haha)!! Its on my list of things to try next time I’m in the area.

Loooove McConnells! back when I was a student living in SB I would come here for breaks all the time. Generous portions for the price. They even give you the option of half scoops since the portions are so big. During my most recent visit I had the seasonal boysenberry flavor. Very light, creamy and not too sweet. If you come to SB you have to make a trip out here! parking is limited and it draws a huuuuge crowd in the evening so don’t miss out!

Not a corporate-​owned location. This one was the original from 1949, but now a licensed and independently owned. The State Street location may have more flavors or newer ones.

We love visiting their little ice cream stand in downtown LA’s Grand Central Market so when we were cruising through Santa Barbara, we made it a point to stop by the original McConnell’s brick and mortar. There are SO many flavors, including new flavors of the month, PLUS fro-​yo. My fiancé and I prefer ice cream but quite a few people were ordering the fro-​yo. I ordered a scoop of the whiskey pecan praline and it was absolutely divine. The ice cream was a soft consistency and rich with caramel swirls and candied pecans. I really enjoyed the pockets of sweet and salty.
McConnell’s is also available in the freezer section at Whole Foods. Yum!

Ordinarily I don’t get emotional about ice cream — mostly because until last week — I only half cared about the stuff.
McConnell’s was my baptism into a whole new universe of frozen desserts and a reminder of a misspent youth where ice cream meant the Good Humor man or creamsicles.
McC’s ice creams are so deliciously decadent — we had them as an apéritif before dinner every night — and again for dessert. The flavors and textures are genius! The waffle cones are the perfect delivery system — and two scoops of impossibly opposite combinations are mandatory.
The choices were like something you dream up on magic mushrooms (
) — eureka lemon and marionberries (my favorite) or whiskey and pecan pralines (my also ran) — better still — have them together. The texture is like foie gras — only sweet and cold and amazingly refreshing with subtle flavors that linger long after the cream has melted.
McConnell’s has been churning ice cream here for 67 years and that longevity counts for something more than nostalgia.
If your mouth could have an orgasm, this ice cream would get it there — again and again and again … Don’t miss this treat when in Santa Barbara.

How do I begin talking about McConnell’s? Basically it is my favorite frozen yogurt place. About once a week my roommates and i come here and we are never disappointed. I used to only go for the ice cream (at the state street location), but once I discovered the fro yo I haven’t been able to switch back.
Every time I go I get the sweet honey Greek yogurt with rainbow sprinkles. It literally melts in your mouth!
If you appreciate good ice cream and frozen yogurt, this is the best place in Santa Barbara — no questions asked!

First time hearing about McConnell’s Ice Cream was at Whole Foods Oxnard. There I ordered the «Salted Caramel» ice cream. Ever since, I was sold! Went back to Santa Barbara and went straight to source to have another. This place was still cracking around 9PM. It’s obvious it is a local favorite. It’s a must try!

Best ice cream ever? Yep!
I’d heard so much about this place so when I was in Santa Barbara I knew I had to stop by! The ice cream is creamy without being too creamy, and there’s a perfect blend of new flavors mixed with the old classics. You can get mint chip, chocolate, or peanut butter, and they’re every bit as good as the new funky flavors people dream up these days. The interior is the same way: it feels like the classic ice cream shops you grew up but with today’s standards of quality and variation. A «single scoop» can be split with two flavors, and it’s the size of two or three scoops at any other ice cream shop. I had the mint chip and peanut butter chip, and after just one bite of each I was looking up which groceries stores carry pints of McConnell’s back near my home!
You’ve probably heard the hype, and I can tell you it’s totally true. I’ve become a bit of an ice cream fiend lately, and McConnell’s is BY FAR my favorite of all the trendy SoCal ice cream shops I’ve tried. Stop by and you won’t be disappointed.

Absolutely amazing ice cream. Really smooth and not too overly sweet and awesome flavor; I am definitely a fan now! This location has limited parking space (3 and 1 disability space) so feel free to find street parking when you turn the corner. When you walk in, you’ll see the crowd already gathering at the door way trying to get their ice cream fix. Head over to the end of the line (near the water fountain where you can grab a styrofoam cup to get some water to cleanse your palette afterwards) and ask for those samples when it’s your turn. With plenty of new and classic flavors, there’s bound to be something that makes your tongue giggle with joy. After you select your flavors, choose your cup or waffle options and then pay at the register. With limited indoor seating but plenty of outdoor seating, you’ll able to find someplace to enjoy your ice cream in peace.
I had the Sea Salt Cream & Cookie & English Coffee Crunch: absolutely delish and perfect for those that like a sweet and salty combo. The single scoop of up to two flavors ($ 4.50) is perfect for those that want 1 or 2 flavors — and is very filling at the same time.
There are two locations in Santa Barbara so find the closest one to you and head over there NOW!

Awesome! Lots of choices. My daughter got mint chip and cookie dough single with a waffle cone. I had a bananas and salted Carmel with a milk chocolate.
All four were excellent. I love the history of this place and I’m so glad I stopped. It was perfect for a hot day.
Parking can be a challenge here and there is no bathroom. You have to walk a half block down the street.

When I told my friend that I was going to Santa Barbara for a day trip, she told me I had to come to this ice cream place.
Setting/​Parking: McConnell’s is located at the corner of West Mission Street and De La Vine Street. They have a very small parking lot and street parking is available. There are outdoor and indoor seating and the shop itself is pretty tiny. When you enter, along the walls are photographs of all the famous people that have been to McConnell’s. Pretty cool, pretty cool.
Ice Cream: Now of course the star of show is their ice cream. They serve single scoop (up to two flavors) and double scoops (up to 4 flavors), various cones to put your ice cream in, shakes, malts, pints, floats, sundaes, banana splits, ice cream pie and ice cream sandwich. Here are a list of their awesome delicious flavors: blueberries & cream, black coffee chip, boysenberry rose milk jam, brazilian coffee, chocolate cappuccino, chocolate chip, chocolate covered strawberries, cookie & dough, chocolate almond brittle, churros con leche, double peanut butter chip, dutchman’s chocolate, english toffee crunch, eureka lemon & marionberries, golden state vanilla, island coconut, macadamia nut, mango sorbet, mint chip, raspberry sorbet, rocky road, santa barbara strawberry, salted caramel chip, sea salt cream & cookies, sweet cream, toasted coocnut almond chip, turkish coffee, vanilla bean. They have seasonal flavors such as peppermint stick and blackberry lime sorbet. They all sound sooooo good! I’m a sucker for mint chip since that’s my all time favorite flavor of ice cream and anything that’s creamy and has chips in it. I tried some of the flavors and some of my favorites were their mint chip (duh), sea salt cream & cookies, salted caramel chip, and chocolate covered strawberries.
Prices: I was a bit taken back on the prices since I thought they were definitely on the more expensive side. But I guess you get what you pay for since these are special, high quality ice cream made with love.
single scoop: $ 4.25
double scoop: $ 7.25
single waffle cone: $ 4.65
double waffle cone: $ 7.75
single chocolate waffle cone: $ 5.75
double chocolate waffle cone: $ 8.25
single chocolate waffle bowl:$ 5.75
double chocolate waffle bowl: $ 8.25
extra thick shakes: $ 7.95
extra thick malts: $ 8.25
pints: $ 9
floats: $ 8.25
single scoop sundae: $ 6.95
double scoop sundae: $ 9.50
banana splits: $ 11.95
ice cream pie: $ 37.95
ice cream sandwich: $ 6.75
In the end, I had a single scoop with mint chip and sea salt cream & cookies. ugh so good!
Service: I was partially helped by this lady who did not seem welcoming at all. She didn’t say hi or talked to us at all. When we would try certain flavors, the expression on her face was dull and she seemed soooo annoyed. I felt bad asking to try the flavors but at the same time I didn’t really care what she thought and kept asking to try the flavors. In the end, she shifted her focus on my friends more and literally only said «what size? in a cup or cone?» and that was all. No «thank yous» or anything. While the lady was at the register, a nice old man came to help me and he was a lot more chipper and welcoming. He didn’t made me feel bad for trying flavors and would converse with me and SMILE. A smile can go a long way. After I paid, he said «thank you for coming and have a great day! hope you come back again!» Now he definitely made up for the experience I had with the lady. Maybe she was having a bad day… who knows.
Overall, it was a great experience besides the lady that partially helped me. The ice cream is reallyyy good and I’ll definitely come back whenever I’m in the area again.

I love the bejesus out of McConnells ice cream, but I had to lower my previous 5-​star review to a lowly 1-​star after a poor experience last week. On Wednesday, 2÷24÷16 around 2:30PM I purchased a milk chocolate-​chip milkshake and a hand-​packed pint of cookies ‘n cream ice-​cream. My total charge was $ 18.31 on my Visa. I signed the receipt at the bottom, and did not include a tip.
Imagine my surprise when I look at my Visa charges today, Monday 2÷29÷16 (I keep a vigilant eye on my credit card due to theft last year), and saw that I was charged $ 20.00 from McConnell’s. How can that be? I called back today to double-​check the price for those items. The gal who I spoke to confirmed that the cost of 1 milkshake and a hand-​packed pint is indeed $ 18.31 including tax.
My hunch is that an employee decided to hand-​write in their own tip. I have never had this happen, and am very upset. I called my credit card company and have opened a dispute. This may seem like a pain in the butt for a measly $ 1.69, but no business or employee should get away with altering a receipt. For all my local Santa Barbara and Goletan’s– be very careful with using your credit card at this location.

5 STARS for the Yogurt!!!
OMG! A friend of mine who goes by something like Randy B. :) Told us we must try the yogurt.
I’d been doing this all wrong and ordering the ice-​cream. Do not order the ice-​cream, order the yogurt!!! Trust me. Trust Randy and his girlfriend.
The yogurt is the best yogurt I’ve ever had!
The Sweet Honey Greek yogurt is the most perfect texture. There really aren’t words for it. I wish I could describe it with accuracy… think marshmallow fluff, but a tad bit denser and creamy but not too creamy. It is just phenomenal.
The graham crackers in milk flavor is also very good but comes in right under the Sweet Honey Greek.
I did a mix of the two and added snow tops. Really, you don’t need a topping on the Sweet Honey Greek.
I am over the moon for it, and will surely return when in the area.
Order the Sweet Honey Greek yogurt. It’s amazing! And HUGE!!! I may tell them they do not need to fill my cup up next time. It’s a lot! A lot, of yummy delish goodness!!!

McConnell’s lives up to the hype.
I from the school where is no such thing as bad ice cream. But McConnell’s is one of the best.
They have great flavors and serve one of the biggest scoop you will ever see. A one scoop is so big you could actually get two different flavors for one scoop.
There ice cream has very rich and has a different consistency then most ice creams.
It’s good in the supermarket but is allot better getting at there store.
It’s not cheap, but most good things in life are not. It’s worth every penny.
It is one of my favorite ice cream store there is.
If you go there one time they will hook you.

We’ve been a fan of McConnell’s since we first tried their pre packed pint flavors sold at our local Von’s several months ago. An opportunity came up and we decided to visit the motherland. It was very cold that night and even then the store was packed!
We ended up with santa barbara strawberry, brazilian coffee, sea salt cream and cookies, double peanut butter chip and they were all solid! The girl that was helping us pick out the flavors was very nice and even recommended some that we ended up getting. It was $ 7 for four huge scoops — so make sure to bring someone to share it with.
Definitely check this place out if you’re in the area! You won’t be disappointed :)

L’une des meilleures adresses de SB pour les glaces et yaourts glacés. Il y a souvent beaucoup de monde, d’ailleurs. C’est pas très pratique pour y aller car c’est pas proche du centre ville piéton, mais ça vaut le coup si vous voulez vous rafraîchir. Et les parts sont vraiment copieuses. J’ai pris une small avec un ami et on n’a pas réussi à la finir à 2. Faut dire qu’elle coutait $ 5.35 donc on en a eu pour notre argent.