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Category: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt [Edit]
Neighborhood: Bella Vista
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Wowza. This place is for real - REAL water ice, that is. Sure, you're not going to have a ton of different flavor choices, but the traditional water ice flavors persist here in their all natural glory, along with a handful of Daily Flavor selections. Their ice cream is also REAL ice cream - creamy and full of flavor.
My friends and I wanted to take a New York friend to try water ice for the first time, and our waiter at Supper overheard us and recommended John's Water Ice. His directions were pretty vague, but we managed to locate it easily enough. I got their strawberry water ice, which was in-freaking-credible and made from real strawberries - I kept getting those little seeds stuck in my teeth. We convinced our New York friend to try a gelati, and for some reason she got their peanut butter ice cream (vanilla base with peanut butter swirled in it) with their cherry water ice. We warned her about the weird combo, but she still enjoyed herself thoroughly (probs by not mixing it together, which seems to go against the whole gelati concept to me). Another friend got a cherry water ice and vanilla ice cream and declared it the best gelati she'd ever had. We all gobbled up our various treats pretty quickly, which left the gelati girls with stomach aches (small my ass - those cups are BIG, and if I continue to go back so will my ass). But damn is this place good!
Ok, my tastebuds must be effed up or I always get the bottom of the barrel. I have never in a small sample size of a handful or two had an enjoyable wooder ice from John's. I'm a strict lemon kind a guy and it always tastes like the lemon flavor was sucked out through reverse osmosis and you are left with the ice and a few lemon chunks that were not osmosis-ized.
I agree Rita's is too sugary and enjoyed the fresh flavor of John's but think if I stuck a lemon and some H2O in a blender and froze I could have done just as well.
Bf gets all the credit for introducing me to this place. He was kind enough to share his chocolate water ice with me (or wooder ice, in true philly fashion), and it is crazy delicious.
Creamy, chocolaty, and served in massive paper cup - no spoon. At first I questioned it, but once you try it you'll never go back to anything else. The only thing I'd change is that I wish we would've gotten two instead of one to share.
This place is dangerous. You can get a HUGE ice cream in a waffle cone for only $2.25. I've been known to skip dinner and head right to dessert that John's. In fact if you don't want to have water ice or ice cream as your meal replacement, I would suggest you go with the kiddie cone. No really, it is still a pretty big serving.
Remember to look inside at their specials board before selecting your flavor. They usually have additonal flavors like peanut butter or birthday cake.
Yes it is werid that these guys service my oil burner and sever me frozen dessert treats, but hey I've seen even more bizzare business models that that.
Love it. Nothing better than a lemon ice on a hot day. It's homemade, it's quick, and it's no-nonsense. And they give you more than Rita's. They also offer gelatis with hand-dipped ice cream (ice cream is far superior to custard).
I have a lot of good childhood memories with John's (I took one of my first dates there when I was thirteen or something). To me, it's a landmark (an indicator to "almost home!"), an institution, and authentically Philly. Beat it, Rita's.
Awesome awesome awesome. Cheap, delicious & simple. I got a strawberry waffle cone for $2.50 and it was such a large amount of ice cream that I couldn't even finish it. They only offer the standard 3 flavors of ice cream: strawberry, chocolate, & vanilla. I've heard great things about the water ice but have yet to venture towards it.
I finally got my water ice fix this weekend. Well actually, I kind of went twice, ssshh. The chocolate-cherry gelati was seriously orgasmic. Why did it take me until August to finally make it down there??! I will definitely be back a few more times while they are still open for the season. And if you haven't been, GO! I corrupted not one, but two Rita's fans this weekend.
For the past week, I have seriously been craving a gelati from John's. And while yes, I could really… Read more »
This is Italian Ice like I remember it growing up. Why it's still called "water ice" I am not sure. That is definitely a mid to southern Jersey and Philly thing. Everywhere else I have been it's Italian ice. But whatever you want to call it, this is it. Rita's doesn't hold anything against this stuff with it's mass produced (Quaker oats owns them now, right?) artificially colored schlock.
In Staten Island, there is Ralph's Italian Ice and people from the boroughs used to love the stuff and used to drive an hour sometimes to get it. This stuff reminds me of Ralphs. This is the real deal. Texture could be a little smoother, but that is just subjective and everyone has a different liking of various mouth feels. But the flavor, you can't knock it. worth the trip.
Simply the best water ice ever. But it doesn't keep in the freezer like Rita's. Maybe it is the lack of chemicals and corn syrup. It must be eaten fresh.
Ok. They still rock. But I finally had the chance to partake in some water ice. It's a lot better than Rita's. Subtle and refreshing...not like Rita's cup of semi-frozen sugar. And if you decide to stray and get ice cream, they give you a monster cone for super cheap. Seriously, it's so cheap compared to other ice cream places in the city.
I'm going to yelp this place even though I've never had their water ice. The reason is that these… Read more »
In order to prepare myself for the upcoming heat wave I concluded that I was going to need some water ice post haste (A margarita too but I doing the teetotal today so opted for a smoothie at Cafe Grindstone instead). I went to South Philly to give the real deal a try and it was definitely worth it.
It didn't have all the flavors of Rita's but it doesn't matter since the flavors are au natural. and even if there was just 5 water ice choices to go through choosing what one was still pretty tricky. But I needed to finally try a Gelati and I was on a chocolate crave. So I doubled up and went with chocolate water ice on chocolate ice cream. It's as decadent as it sounds, and it gave me killer brain freeze, but damn was it worth it. Bring on the heat wave cause I'm ready.
I love Rita's but choosing from a Baskin Robbins-sized menu of water ice flavors--not to mention gelati, Blendinis and other concoctions that you could probably make yourself if you did some aggressive stirring--is just damn confusing. John's offers four flavors that never change and has the most ridiculously good cookies-and-cream ice cream that I've ever tasted. Not the powdered-down kind like you know who (ahem, Rita's) but chunks of Oreo-like cookie goodness. Stop by on a hot summer night, when people are balancing on sidewalks and fences to eat, and it reminds you of what's good about living in this 'hood.
Okay...yes it's simple...no they don't have 100 flavors...but they make Water Ice the way it is supposed to be!
I love it...I love the price the flavor the pineapple is my favorite. It's just simple the way it should be. And the texture cannot be matched. Johns is real Italian water ice.
i am so glad that john's is reveiwed already! this was one of the first places that i was allowed to walk to as a kid (with mom-mom and her best friend following behind, ostensibly staring up at the sky and looking at....???? mmm-hmmm....). john's lemon is the best ever, and whomever said that it was too sweet must have caught it on an off day, it is not too sweet and has lemon bits in it. their cherry stains, but it is delicious, as is the chocolate and the pineapple. they had an awful foray into the flavor wars over ten years ago, i can't remember what they added but it was the pits! and they had 'gelato' for a while (that bizarre mix of vanilla soft serve and water ice that some people actually thought was gelato, BOO!), but they are back to doing what they always did. and how could they stay open all year round? they have the best gig ever, water ice in the summer, heating oil in the winter. perfect merging of two necessary resources into one organization. :)
and you should try a pretzel rod with yours.....i don't see many people doing this anymore, but you should try it!
Sure I like Rita's, but John's is sooooooo much better. They have a small selection and their water ice is made on the premises (you can see the machines behind the people working the counter).
It's delicious and refreshing! I've been known to eat it twice in one day!
On my first visit to the City of Brotherly Love, we happened to pass this corner shop. I'm from the west coast, and never heard of water ice, but I'm all for the motto "When in Rome..."
Didn't matter that I was still full from the massive cheese steak I inhaled just a couple of hours before. The water ice was a perfect dessert - light, refreshing, and so simple, yet so satisfying. I tried the lemon and chocolate (ok, not the best combination). I would opt for the ice cream and lemon ice combination next time.
Hands down, best homemade water ice in the city. I might even be so liberal to say... EVER! Whether it's a gelati or just one of their 4 basic water ice flavors, John's is pushing all the right buttons on a hot summer evening. John's homemade water ice and ice cream makes Pop's and all other imitators in Philly look like total rubbish. There's only one John's and as far as I'm concerned, the only place to get water ice in the city.
I'm not sure I understand the love affair with this place. When I ordered a cup of the lemon water ice, I felt like my teeth were going to fall out upon eating it. It tasted more of sugar than lemon. In that regard, it didn't taste any better than Rita's to me. Give me Philly Flavors, Italiano's, or Sundae's over in Jersey anyday.
I was referred to John's by a friend who said the Rita's wasn't a true representation of good water ice and that I should go to John's.
Yes, John's is a lot simpler with only 5 flavors (cherry, chocolate, peach, pineapple and one other). It DOES taste a lot healthier and like it has less sugar. But the peach ice that i had was nothing out of the ordinary. Not much flavor at all. I'll stick with Rita's.
I have nothing to compare it to because I'm from the Midwest and we don't have water ice, but I really enjoyed our cherry and chocolate ices a lot. I was skeptical that they would satisfy, but they did. I was also skeptical that chocolate ice would taste good, but it really did. Its also in a neat neighborhood. I recommend that visitors to Philadelphia from places that don't have water ice go to John's and check it out.
I may be from Philly, but I'm not sure I can discern between good and bad water ice. Is there even really a difference? Regardless, Johns is tasty, its close to where I live, and its a cool scene (really seems like the whole neighborhood is there some nights). They don't have many flavors, but the no-frill atmosphere is part of the appeal. If you're in the hood on a hot day, worth a stop fo sho.
I wish this place was open all year long! The water ice is very flavorful - i've had cherry, lemon, and once, cantelope(sp) which was delicious. I haven't had the ice cream, but based on the reviews here, I want to try it. I think John's beats Rita's any day - in taste and price.
The grammarian in me hates the somewhat redundant term "water ice," but that doesn't stop me from gulping down buckets of the stuff when the mercury starts to rise. As the purveyor of this icy treat closest to my home, John's is a regular stop for me during the summer months. I love their pineapple water ice like a fat kid loves... well, you know. Sure, Rita's has more flavors and I do go there when I'm in the mood for passionfruit or mango water ice. But John's is still my nearest and dearest.
If you are from South Philly or respect real Italian water ice, you are not suppose to eat at Rita's.
Because of this I gave John's a chance one lovely summer evening. I was disappointed because there were only three flavors. I guess when you are suppose to be classic you can't get too crazy, but maybe it's just me - when I want water ice and have a choice between lemon or chocolate chip, I'll pick the later. But then again I am Generation Next and I've never walked 5 miles in the snow to get to a black and white TV.
I think John's is classic water ice Coney Island style. For modern day ice, I like Rita's (please don't hurt me).
i dont know what they do it it.
i dont know why it's so delicious.
i dont know why it's named water ice.
i only know i was told to have it here, and that john's water ice is the best in south philly. and since it was the ONLY water ice i had in south philly, well.. it easily fell into the "best" place.
so there it is, told to you by the chick from california.
John's Water Ice is the best water ice i've ever had.
Delicious waterice but i'll still stick with my Italianos.
Figures I only retapped into this neighborhood gem over a weekend that heralded the first blast of fall. For the most part, water ice is water ice, but John's has two things going for it - the homegrown, South Philly attitude (epitomized by the new Godfatheresque t-shirts worn by their nubile crew demanding you "Get Iced") and the Hershey's ice cream, scooped - make that heaped - into a waffle cone for an unheard of $2. Suck it, Dairy Queen.
Whenever I visit my friend is S. Phila I go here. I always go for the Lemon. Then I leave my friends house and go back for seconds.
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