There is only one true remedy for rapidly rising temperatures in Arizona. The cold, creamy scoop of sugar and milk we know as ice cream is the most delicious way to fight off the extreme heat Arizona summers bring. As a resident of the city of Chandler, I found five of my favorite ice cream shops and ranked them on their atmosphere, X factor, and of course, their ice cream.
SomiSomi
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An Upside Down with a Cookies and Cream flavor, Nutella filling, and topped with sprinkles, Oreo crumbles, and a macaron, held in front of Somisomi on February 26, 2026.
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Neyarah Holmon, a Somisomi employee scoops Nutella into the fish cone at Somisomi on February 26, 2026.
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One Ah Boong, one cup, and three Upside Down soft serves topped with various sweets on February 26, 2026.
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The counter, adorned with decorative fish scales, is a nod to the taiyaki Somisomi serves. These fish shaped pastries are a delicious trademark of Somisomi. February 26, 2026.
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Neyarah Holmon serving an Upside Down to a customer in Somisomi on February 28, 2026.
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Chandler High School students raising their soft serve together in Somisomi on February 26, 2026.
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Neyarah Holmon puts filling into taiyaki for a customer at Somisomi on February 26, 2026.
Price: $6-$8 per item
Atmosphere: 3/5
X Factor: 5/5
Ice Cream: 3/5
SomiSomi is an ice cream chain with over 33 locations spread across the United States. Chandler boasts its own location on 1840 W Chandler Blvd that offers soft serve and taiyaki, the fish shaped pastries SomiSomi is famous for. The shop is affordable, offering ice cream at comparatively low prices. The interior of the shop is scarcely decorated and has a slightly odd smell, which loses it points for atmosphere. Neyarah Holmon, an employee at SomiSomi was extremely kind and welcoming, offering our party free additional ice cream. The X Factor of SomiSomi was their unique taiyaki fish-shaped pastries. These delicious pastries made for great ice cream cones and were also very cute. There were few ice cream flavors to choose from, but the ice cream they did have was delicious.
The Milkshake Factory
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The signature, Chocolate Cake Shake, held up in front of The Milk Shake Factory on February 28, 2026.
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A happy customer ordering their dessert in the Milkshake Factory on February 28, 2026.
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The Cholate Cake Shake, Chocolate milkshake, Raspberry milkshake, and Salted Caramel Pretzel milkshake presented on a table in the Milkshake Factory on February 28, 2026.
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Yash Narayan, and employee at the Milkshake factory, posing for the camera on February 28, 2026.
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The Chocolate Cake Shake, topped with a delicious house made chocolate cake pop, displayed in front of the shopfront on February 28, 2026.
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A variety of chocolate bark addorned with delicious decorations offered for sale in the Milkshake Factory on February 28, 2026.
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Employees construct intricate gourmet milkshakes on February 28, 2026.
Price: $8-$12 per item
Atmosphere: 3/5
X Factor: 3/5
Ice Cream: 4/5
The Milkshake Factory was delicious, and a perfect place to try a unique and flavorful milkshake. I got the Chocolate Cake Shake, a milkshake that according to the menu, had a “chocolate layer cake swirled with chocolate ganache frosting and creamy vanilla ice cream.” I also tasted the Salted Caramel Pretzel, a milkshake with “creamy caramel with crunchy, salted pretzel pieces.” While the milkshakes were a little bit expensive and the atmosphere wasn’t anything special, it was still a cute interior and a fun place altogether. The gourmet milkshakes were decorated well, and I enjoyed the cake pop placed on the Chocolate Cake Shake. There were many options for milkshakes and the ice cream was sweet and flavorful. Overall, I was very pleased with my experience.
Snowtime:
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The Cupid’s Cocoa snow dessert, topped with strawberries, whipped cream, and chocolate, held up in front of Snowtime on February 27, 2026.
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Julia Tran, a Snowtime employee, creating a taiyaki fish cone pasty in Snowtime on February 27, 2026.
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Six snows and one soft serve with a taiyaki fish cone ordered in Snowtime on February 27, 2026.
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Judah Knipmeyer, a senior at Chandler High School, diving in to his frozen treat in Snowtime on February 27, 2026.
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Connor Good, a freshmen at Chandler High School, ordering a snow at Snowtime from Julia Tran on February 27, 2026.
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Another angle depicting the frozen desserts ordered from Snowtime on February 27, 2026.
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Patrons converse as they eat in the decorated interior of Snowtime on February 27, 2026.
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Festive lights adorn the outside of Snowtime on February 27, 2026.
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Thomas Dayley, a freshmen, digs into his snow on at Snowtime on February 27, 2026.
Price: ~$9 per item
Atmosphere: 4/5
X Factor: 5/5
Ice Cream: 4/5
Snowtime is famous for their Korean snow, incredibly fluffy shaved ice that melts in your mouth. The atmosphere in Snowtime was incredible; decoration adorned the interior and paper snowflakes hung from the ceiling. Judah Knipmeyer, a senior at Chandler High School, believes “Snowtime has extravagant desserts with interesting flavor combinations.” He believes it hat “a fun atmosphere to enjoy a treat in.” The X factor of their Korean snow, topped with fresh fruit, was intriguing and flavorful. Snowtime also sold the taiyaki fish pastries that SomiSomi offered, as well as specialty drinks like matcha and boba tea. While I didn’t prefer the snow to traditional ice cream, it was refreshing and I thoroughly enjoyed trying it.
Jeremiah’s Italian Ice
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The Sugar Cookie, a Frog Squad Favorite created with Cake Batter Italian Ice, Cookie Butter Italian Ice, and Vanilla soft serve, held up in front of Jerimiah’s Ice on March 13, 2026.
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Patrons converse at tables in front of a large painted mural in the interior of Jerimiah’s Ice on March 13, 2026.
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The Sugar Cookie, the Grasshopper, and and an Orange Smash Italian Ice with a vanilla softer serve at Jerimiah’s Ice on March 13, 2026.
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The interior of Jerimiah’s Ice on March 13, 2026.
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The outside of Jerimiah’s Ice had signs displaying new ice cream flavors and deals at Jerimiah’s Ice on March 13, 2026.
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The Sugar Cookie held up in a similar fashion to an Italian Ice in the mural at Jerimiah’s Ice on March 13, 2026.
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An employee at Jerimiah’s Ice scoops ice cream into a cup as the screens above display the menu on March 13, 2026.
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Jerimiah’s Ice has a colorful exterior and large patio with green chairs and green and orange umbrellas on March 13, 2026.
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A birds-eye view of three frozen treats at Jerimiah’s Ice on March 13, 2026.
Price: $5-$9 per item
Atmosphere: 4/5
X Factor: 3/5
Ice Cream: 5/5
Jeremiah’s Italian Ice offers refreshing soft serve and Italian Ice at a reasonable and affordable price. The atmosphere at Jeremiah’s is charming and I love the intricate mural painted in the interior of the establishment. The X factor of Italian Ice isn’t extremely unique, but it is very delicious. The combination of soft serve ice cream and Italian Ice makes Jeremiah’s one of my all time favorite ice cream shops. The shop offers a variety of flavors to try, including preset Frog Squad Favorites. You can also build your own frozen treat, allowing you to customize your soft serve, Italian Ice, and toppings. The Italian Ice has the perfect texture, more fine and soft than shaved ice, as well as more delicious.
Bruster’s Real Ice Cream
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A cone of birthday cake and vanilla ice cream topped with caramel held up in front of Bruster’s Real Ice Cream on March 9, 2026.
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A vanilla and caramel ice cream cone, pistachio milkshake, and a dirt sundae with gummy worms on the patio of Bruster’s Real Ice Cream on March 9, 2026.
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The counter of Bruster’s Real Ice Cream where you pick up your order on March 9, 2026.
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An employee scoops ice cream in the interior of Bruster’s Real Ice Cream on March 9, 2026.
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A coupon for cheaper ice cream at Bruster’s Real Ice Cream on March 9, 2026. If you’re reading this, you can use it 🙂
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The exterior of Bruster’s Real Ice Cream on March 9, 2026.
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The beautiful outdoor patio at Bruster’s Real Ice Cream has red umbrellas and plenty of shade to enjoy on March 9, 2026.
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Another view of the caramel ice cream cone, milkshake, and dirt worm sundae on a table at Bruster’s Real Ice Cream on March 9, 2026.
Price: $8-$12 per item
Atmosphere: 5/5
X Factor: 1/5
Ice Cream: 5/5
The atmosphere at Bruster’s Real Ice Cream is truly incredible. My experience may be heavily influenced because I visited on such a beautiful day, but nevertheless, it is a wonderful shop with a large and comfortable outdoor patio. There is no X factor at Bruster’s Real Ice Cream, to make it stand out against competitors, other than the ice cream itself. The quality was superior and extremely high. I thoroughly enjoyed the flavors and there were many options to choose from. I would highly recommend Bruster’s Real Ice Cream if you want traditional ice cream at a very high quality.
While writing this article may just have been an excuse to eat more ice cream, I do strongly believe that all of these shops have exceptional frozen desserts. My rankings are completely my opinion and may be invalidated by the fact that I’ve only been to many of these place one time. If you really want my opinion, buy ice cream at the grocery store for a lower price, or simply avoid it altogether for your health. As for me, I will be doing the ladder as I have had enough ice cream to last me a while.
