ottawa foodies

I have to say this place isn't my favourite. I've tried a number of flavours and the maple, for instance doesn't compare to the one in Wakefield (I forget the name...). The one at La Cigale I find tastes more "fake". I find the same goes with their Chai/Cookie flavour.

I went last night and had the hazelnut chocolate and the peanut butter chocolate and they were both delicious, but moreso the latter.

If you're in Chelsea and hankering for a sweet treat, definitely check it out, but it I can't say that it is a must-eat.

I have to admit I'm hooked to Cassis in Aylmer... Can I say that in a review?

We stopped here with the family on a trip up to Lac Phillipe. The ice cream is great, and the garden was fantastic. Definitely add it to your stop list if you are the QC side of the river.

The best ice cream I've had in the city/surrounding area, and I think I've sampled my fair share. Absolutely worth the drive over the bridge on its own.
Partner sticks to the ginger snap + chai every time, while I've sampled 3 or 4 different flavours. Most recently I had the strawberries & sour cream, and it's so right.

All that and a cute building/set-up to boot, with a nice yard to have a seat and cone in after a walk in the Gatineaus.

Holy snappin' crickets (see what I did there?)! Their Lemon Cassis Cheesecake flavour is the best ice cream I have ever eaten. EVER. Think new york cherry cheesecake base with the addition of lemon zest and whatever the heck a cassis berry is. In-frackin-credible. Will be making the trip here more than once this summer.

I had the strawberry and sour cream ice cream in a waffle cone (a must!) It was very good, strong flavor but not overwhelming. THe waffle cone was fresh and crisp.
My husband had the almond mocha ice cream. It was very extreme on the mocha. Like VERY! also the almond chunks were a little on the large side - but he would get the same flavor again.

We took a drive to La Cigale in Chelsea on Saturday as we had heard so many good things about their new place and about their great ice cream. It is now located at 14 Chemin Scott. It is an easy drive from downtown Ottawa. The sun was high in the sky and La Cigale was an easy prescription to beat the heat.

I ordered a small ice cream in a homemade waffle cone. With two scoops I picked chocolate and pralines for the bottom and then raspberry and white chocolate for the top. It was delicious. Perfect ice cream.

They have a number of unique flavours and probably about two dozen in total which also include some choice sorbets. You can also choose to get your ice cream in a cup. They have a kiddy size as well as a large. There is a selection of drinks in the cooler.

We went to the side yard and sat on the adirondack chairs, of which there were many. They have put in a beautiful new garden the length of the yard. This yard/garden area is a gem of an idea and part of the charm of La Cigale.

We will be back! Great ice cream, easy drive and a wonderful setting. The perfect recipe for success.

I love their new location; it has more seating and fewer insects. The prices are comparable to Baskin Robbins and the waffle cones are made in house.

Hands down, this is one of my favourite parts of summer.

They just moved to Scott st. Bigger location just across from the visitor center at Gatineau Park.

Good on them for their continued success and expansion.

The ice cream there is fantastic although somewhat pricey.

After a nice day at Meech Lake, dive into a nice rich ice cream cone.

Hmmmmmm ice cream :-)

Yay for a new pizza joint that could be delicious and a precursor to ice cream.

Boo to the loss of the wonderful tiny shop.

We had a bit of a scare today ... We were passing through Chelsea, commenting on how we were looking forward to when La Cigale should open for the season (not soon enough...) when we saw to our horror that the sign was down and the place is going to be turned into a (small) pizza joint.

Fortunately we turned the corner (onto Chemin Scott) and saw the familiar sign in a new location - close to the Gatineau visitors center. I think it used to be a restaurant so they should have a bit more space (more room to display even more delicious flavours of ice cream I hope) and the parking should be easier.

I can't help thinking that I'll miss the ambiance of the old tiny shop though. I've spent many a summer (& spring & fall, to be honest) evening queuing out the door into the garden.

Oh well, just a few more weeks and we'll see how the new location turns out.

Every time I come here, I have a new favourite. Pictured is a scoop of the honey almond on top of the gingersnaps and chai in a sugar cone. This is the regular size (2 scoops). The kiddie size is 1 scoop.

I was really looking forward to trying the honey almond but thought it was just ok. It was too sweet but then it is honey! I was really satisfied with the gingersnaps and chai. I could taste the fresh gingersnap crumbs. They used fresh gingersnaps made in-house. Same with their other pastry based ice creams. I will have some come back and those too! I think they also sell the pastries on the week-end at $2.50 a piece.

This salted caramel mocha flavour is only available on an ad hoc basis. I believed it is new this season and there has only been a couple of batches of it. It is among my favourite flavour combos, if not my favourite, even though I am partial to nuts in ice cream so maple walnut is a close second. The reason this is possibly my favourite La Cigale ice cream flavour is because the combination of sweet and salt with small pockets of mocha makes every bite complex. It is also just the right amount of creaminess.

Really loved the Blood Orange sorbet but found the Coconut Cashew ice cream to be just okay. The former was wonderfully flavourful and refreshing while the latter was not coconutty enough and the cashews were (of course) a little soggy.

I've been wanting to try this ice cream for a long time. Let me just say that it's worth the drive and I'm definitely taking my kids here ASAP!

Technically, I don't think the product is quite as perfect as that from Pascale's All Natural Ice Cream (which I sampled to refresh my memory after getting home). There were some uneven ice crystals and the ingredients didn't seem quite as flavourful. However, it is a little sweeter, which might appeal to a wider audience.

Also, I only tried three flavours: Apple Pie (taster), Gingersnap-Chai (quite wonderful, with chunks of real gingersnap cookies), and Dulce de Leche (so mild it could have been vanilla). The latter two are in the cup pictured here. They were sold out of the one I wanted: the Lemon Cassis Cheesecake. Next time!

Regarding sizes. I ordered a Small ($4.30 inc. tax) and it really wasn't very big compared to the gelato places in town. It's two scoops, but they are not big scoops. Mind you, this is ice cream, meaning less is more!

The big draw for La Cigale is the beautiful garden and the perfect experience of a roadside dairy bar. Save yourself a trip to the New England coast -- go to Old Chelsea instead! :-)

Note: the door is unmarked, but it's the sort of obvious one at the end of the path in from the parking lot. Also, ignore the arrow on the big La Cigale sign, lest it confuse you like it did me. :]

Why should they have to list that? When I go to a restaurant and I order a salad, I want to know how big it is. So, I ask.

The only ice cream shop that I know of that lists the number of scoops in their sizes is Laura Secord.

My other favourite ice cream shop in Ottawa has the same number of scoops in its sizing as La Cigale (1 - kid; 2 -small; 3 - large) and they don't like the number of scoops with their prices.

The prices and size options are clearly posted. If you need to know if a kiddy cone is too big or too small for what you want, you can ask.

There is no question that the icecream is delicious, the new location is improved and the ambience in the yard lovely.

I would like to see the sizes and prices of the products more clearly posted.

A small ice cream should not have 2 generous scoops; it should have 1 scoop. I ordered a "kiddy cone". It was big. Big enough for an adult. Perhaps too big for a "kiddy".

A kiddy cone should be PETIT. A small cone should be 1 scoop. In fact La Cigale could price their icecream according to the number of scoops.

Here is another picture of Winter doughnuts

I meant WINTER!

"They now sell doughnuts in the summer. "

I'm so confused.

They now sell doughnuts in the summer. The same baker who makes the ginger snaps to go in the ginger snap ice cream, the brownie that goes in the brownie and cream ice cream, the Nanaimo bars, etc., makes doughnuts, Nanaimo bars and brownies in the summer.

I was very restrained and only bought 3 flavours today: cinnamon and sugar, raspberry and custard, and chocolate glaze. They had so many other ones. They all looked good!