Sundae School Ice Cream is a Cape Cod tradition where tourists have to compete with locals for seats! Parking is tight, but the attendants do a great job of moving traffic. The lines are long, but service is efficient and personal. The ice cream itself is premium stuff, and the fixings are fresh and prepared the old-fashioned way.
The atmosphere here is like a subdued party. After all, one must concentrate on the hot fudge cherry sundae! The vintage fountain is fascinating, and the player piano authentic, with old signs on the walls. Outside are vintage ice cream trucks.
There are now two other locations further out on the Cape that I haven't visited. This was a favorite when we lived in Dennis, and a treat to visit coming back from Korea.
Ice cream, and only ice cream!
Some history from the restaurant web site
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visit link)
Sundae School opened its doors on May 26, 1976. At the time we were looking for a way a school teacher, his wife and their year old son could spend summers on the Cape. From the very beginning we knew Sundae School would be something special because of the involvement of so many friends and relatives. Customers responded well to our high quality ice cream made right in front of them in a five gallon batch White Mountain freezer. Soon it became obvious we could not keep up with the demand and added a second ice cream machine. Even so there were many days when we would sell out of ice cream and have to close the doors early. The White Mountain freezers have long since been replaced, but we still make our ice cream daily in small batches.
We moved to the present location after renovating a historic barn in May, 1978. The property was owned by the Wixon family for many years who used the lot to dry the fishing nets and the barn to store them. Nathaniel Wixon was a well respected fisherman, active in community affairs after whom the Wixon Middle School was named. With the renovation we tried to recreate an old fashioned ice cream parlor that would bring back memories of the past and inspire the creation of new ones. The marble soda fountain is now about 100 years old and came from the Parkway Pharmacy on Blue Hill Parkway in Milton. During your visit we hope you will take the time to enjoy our collection of ice cream memorabilia.
Over the years as the business has grown so has our family. We now have five children, all of whom have worked or still work in the family business. They will be the faces in the annual pictures that are repeated most often. Our extended family has become those who have worked with us over the years. It has become a tradition that employees hired as high school students continue to work with us throughout their college years. We also have a large number of siblings who work together and once again the Sundae School takes on a family atmosphere. We watch with pride as “our” kids get accepted to great colleges, go on to successful careers and start their own families of little scoopers.
Over the years are store locations have also grown. The East Orleans store opened in May, 1984. The shop is a great place to stop at on your way to or from Nauset Beach, one of the best on the Cape. It is not very big and has only patio seating, but it has consistently been voted “best ice cream” on the Lower Cape by the readers of Cape Cod Life. A Harwich Port location was added in May, 1998 and serves the people who frequent that beautiful area and its beaches or is a convenient stop on the way to Chatham. All three locations offer the same “best ice cream” but each store has their own personality.
When we started one of our main goals was to make a high quality ice cream. We feel we have succeeded by using a fresh mixture of milk, cream and sugar with a high butterfat content. The price of ingredients continues to climb but we will not compromise on quality. For example, when it comes to flavorings we use only the best pure vanilla extract, real chocolate chips and fresh fruit in the banana, blueberry, strawberry, apricot and peach. If you like pistachio ice cream your taste buds are in for a treat as we use real pistachios.
Our ice cream and frozen yogurts are made on the premises in small batches using only the finest ingredients available. We also offer a selection of Sundae School light ice cream which has 1/3 less calories and 2/3 less fat. Sundae School takes pride in serving our famous hot fudge sundaes topped with real whipped cream and a fresh Bing cherry (in season). Our fresh fruit sundaes include strawberry, blueberry and raspberry when available. Over the years, our ice cream has been applauded in numerous publications such as, the Boston Globe, Cape Cod Life, The Boston Herald, The Cape Cod Times, and “The Very Best Ice Cream ; and Where to find It”, to name a few. We feel confident you will enjoy your visit and hope that you will return frequently to further your ice cream education at Sundae School.
The Endres Family
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Opening this year in Mid-April
We will be open weekends in the spring, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, until mid-May. Hours may vary so please call (508) 394-9122.
Summer hours are 11A.M. until 11 P.M.
After Labor Day we will be open weekends through Columbus Day weekend.
Call (508) 394-9122 for exact hours.