Taste Test: Cool World Ice Cream Shop

Lesley Randall

Feb 3, 2023 Updated Feb 5, 2023

“Nana’s Banana Puddin'” from Cool World Ice Cream Shop in Athens, GA. (Photo/ Lesley Randall)

When I walked into Cool World Ice Cream Shop, I was overwhelmed by the swirly blue and green floor, the striped window valance and the blue neon signs on the wall.  

As I made my way through the store, the decision on what to order became difficult. There is an abundance of gourmet ice cream flavors, specialty ice cream sandwiches, milkshakes and large ice cream sundaes to choose from on the menu. 

I chose a single scoop of their homemade “Nana’s Banana Puddin’” ice cream. 

The description noted that the ice cream was swirled with marshmallow cream with chunks of vanilla cookies. 

The mixture of the ice cream and marshmallow swirl created a perfect creamy and fluffy texture. I could eat an entire cup of the marshmallow swirl on its own.

The ice cream itself tasted like my mom’s banana pudding except in ice cream form. Hot take, but it was a little better than banana pudding itself. 

I was pleased with the amount of cookie chunks that were  in the ice cream. The chunks of vanilla sugar cookie were small and soft which I enjoyed because they did not overpower the ice cream.  

The ice cream was extremely sweet. While I know desserts are supposed to be sweet, this was so rich in sugary flavors that I couldn’t even finish one scoop. 

Overall, I rate “Nana’s Banana Puddin’” a 4.2 out of 5. I loved each bite, as it reminded me of my mom’s banana pudding, though the extreme richness was a little much after a couple of bites.