This is the Madison branch of the Connecticut ice-cream icon named after a performing dog. The ice-cream is identical to the other branches (New Haven, Hamden, Branford, Guilford), and, as others have yelped, is best in the area. Of all the branches, Madison offers the best outdoor seating. Among planted trees, there are benches and brick walls to sit on if it's a nice day. Inside there are about 10 tables and the Ashley's standard fan-artwork and Frisbee adorned walls. Whether this branch or one of the others, Ashley's is not to be missed. My suggested order: a simple cup or cone. Best to savor the ice-cream; toppings get in the way. read more

This is a family favorite and never disappoints. Many visits to Ashley's in the summer time. Many flavors to choose from and prices are comparable to other ice cream shops. read more

As i entered the store in Madison last Friday, I heard someone raising his voice to me to fix my mask, I was barely one step into the store, nose exposed. As I placed my order to this young man, my wife and I were attempting to have small talk, no response not even having eye contact from this little ice cream twerp. So rude, sorry Ashley's, your not the only ice cream in town. I'll take my business to someone without any attitude read more

Like all Ashley ice cream shops, great ice cream and yogurt . Also more flavors than most places which make it difficult to decide. However you could taste to your heart content. This shop is larger than the other Ashley shops that I have been to. read more

The whip cream at Ashley's is unmatched anywhere. Homemade, thick, and delicious it completes the sundae. Toppings are generous and the ice cream is yummy. I always detour to Ashleys when I'm driving through CT on this part of 95. read more

No question Ashleys ice cream tastes great but: You increased your prices and decreased your portions? NOT COOL, BAD BUSINESS SENSE & ICE CREAM IS A COMMODITY, We will just go elsewhere. read more

Our favorite late night ice cream spot :). Yummy icecream - always tasty. My only complaint it the bathrooms are sometimes stinky in the summer but that might have to do with how busy they are in the summer. The girls working there are usually really friendly, sometimes quiet but usually only when its late and you can tell they are tired. Highly recommend. My favorite is their nutella icecream. Yummo! read more

This has got to be one of the worst places for ice cream. I only give it 2 stars due to it's location. Dopey teenagers that rush to put your order together so they can go back to giggling w/ each other. Overpriced is putting it mildly. The place today had no whip cream, did not look clean, and the water pitchers were empty while 3 girls were working and I was the only one ordering....Madison needs another ice cream shop....bad. read more

Usually I love this place, but this evening I happened to be on my way in and saw the manager of the store yelling and swearing at this guy. The guy was really nice, She was completely out of line and should be fired. The service should be just as good as the product they sell. Otherwise, there are plenty of other places to get great ice cream without having to feel uncomfortable or frankly, appalled. read more

One would think that on a warm Memorial Day holiday business would be brisk and there would be ample staff on hand to deal with with ice cream hungry patrons. On this Memorial Day, you would only be half right. Although I have never found fault with the quality of the ice cream served, I did find fault with the staffing. There were two staffers during a busy mid-afternoon rush that looked like it had been going strong and showing no signs of stopping. One of the staffers seemed busy in the back doing what we weren't sure. But that left one, yes one staffer to deal with the crowd. My family and I waited just over 15 minutes to get to the counter. By the time we were leaving the store, patrons were actually waiting outside as there was little place to stand inside. The staff member was professional and did not seemed harried despite the situation. But why there was only one person serving is a mystery to me. I think next time I am in the mood for ice cream on a hot weekend day, I'll hit the grocery store and probably spend less time and money getting it. read more

If this is the best in the area, I will say the area is deprived. The Coffee Oreo tasted like it was brewed with too much water (weak like a 7-11 coffee). The Cookie Dough and the Chocolate Brownie my wife and child had were okay at best. If you are in the area, it will do and you might even like it. If you are making a special trip for really good ice cream try Walnut Beach in Milford, Rich Farm in Oxford, Sweet Ashley's in East Norwalk or Wells Hollow in Shelton. I'm sure there are others, but those top Ashley's in flavor & creaminess. But as I said, if you are in the area, it is OK. Just not the Best! As a positive, the staff was pleasant, the store clean (including the bathroom) and large enough for multiple groups. Price was fair. read more

Not a big fan. Very slow service. Extremely rude. Did not help with menu. Told us they don't do cones as we see customers walking out with cones. Also took wayyy to long to get a ice cream. And was very disrespectful read more

Very slow service, very rude, excluded serval people as they waited outside while others went through, overall upset

super good ice cream but the staff are kind of rude just because we wanted to look at the flavors.

Ice cream is amazing and the hot fudge is one of a kind. Setting is quaint. Great family outing!

I think Ashley's is great. It's a local store with a high quality product. And they make great ice cream cakes for celebrations. Birthdays without Ashley's wouldn't be fun. read more

Speedy service, great ice cream and open great summer AND winter hours.

We have been customers of Ashley's since they opened in Madison. Like other reviewers, we have noticed the creep in pricing while portion size is shrinking. It's good ice cream BUT not for the price! We were just charged over $4 for what was literally a scoop the size of a golf ball. This was not the first time we have experienced minuscule scoops at Ashley's but this was the LAST. read more

Don't get me wrong - I LOVE Ashley's ice cream. But my family has collectively noticed that the portions are getting smaller and smaller. The last time we were served at the Madison location it was almost laughable how little ice cream we were served for 2 people for almost $10. It didn't even come up to the edge of the cup. What is the deal? I've heard the same complaint from other customers, and some had decided to stop patronizing their stores. I think the management should stop this trend before it kills their business. read more

Friendly service! Just my milkshake was really, really, really thick and I didn't even order the extra think one!

you have to come here! the ice cream is so so so so good. it is soft, chewy, and they have the most awesome flavors!!!! please listen to this and come into town for some ashley's!! you won't regret it! read more

The ice cream is very, very good. There's a large selection of flavors and the portions are pretty generous. Definitely a good place to stop for ice cream if you're in the area. read more

Ashley's has solid ice cream with a decent selection. I don't rank it among the very best for homemade - but my standards are pretty high... needless to say, with easy on/off highway access, we like making a stop here on trips down to ny. Worth the visit. read more

Best ice cream on the shoreline, hands down. It's a staple in both Madison and Guilford, everybody loves it! The best part (aside from the ice cream & hot fudge) is the coloring. They have blank paper and crayons supplied, and people go all out in decorating signs declaring their love for Ashely's! Then at the end of the night, the Ashley's staff hangs them up on the walls. Love, love, LOVE. read more

Go there. Try it. Enjoy it. The best ice cream I've had in a quite a while. The coffee ice cream actually tastes like coffee--sweet, creamy coffee and the sweet cream just shows you "don't need no stinkin' vanilla." Only the service rivaled the flavor of the bittersweet hot fudge sauce. To paraphrase some general, we shall return. read more

Ashley's makes delicious, homemade ice cream. We go here about 1-2x a month. Always great service. The only reason for 4 stars is that it's pricey (expect to spend about $10 for 2 ice creams) and their flavors are really inconsistent. Sometimes they have several flavors if want to buy and other times I'm disappointed by their selection. Their standby flavors are kinda boring so it can be hit or miss. But probably the best quality ice cream around. read more

I think Ashley's is open later than anything else in Madison, and is perfect for late night ice cream cravings. Just like all the Ashley's the homemade ice cream is so good, and their custom cakes are awesome. read more

I would not consider this CT's best ice cream. I walked in to Ashley's on a Sunday night, not a soul was in the place. I walk up to the counter and ask for a 2 scoop Sunday and the girl just starts scooping mint chip ice cream into a cup. I look up at her and say "that's not what I ordered, I didn't tell you what flavor I wanted and she just stares at me angrily and says oh I thought you said mint chip. Then they proceed to screw my order up by not putting the right toppings on. They also neglected to ask Kevin my girlfriends son if he wanted toppings at all. The ice cream sucked. I'm quite confident I've had better ice cream at friendly's, if I had to guess this place is reselling Gifford's which you can get pretty much anywhere. Came here looking for "CT's Voted Best Ice Cream" and was rewarded with Gifford's ice cream... the least special ice cream ever. The icing on the cake was the spontaneous crowd of annoyingly pushy white stuck up CT folk who walked in behind me and couldn't wait 5 seconds so I could pick a flavor. If you're looking for true creamery grade ice cream, the kind that makes your mouth water and contains milk fat and flavor go literally anywhere else. The supermarket? The people who left this place good reviews shop at Walmart and don't have all their teeth. read more

Perfect ice cream from a little shop on the side of the road. Clearly a staple in the local area. Quality ingredients, excellent selection and very friendly service. If you know the area, come here and avoid Friendly's. read more

Going to disagree with many reviewers on here as Ashley's is ok and not great. And when compared to other ice cream shops it is definitely average. Unfortunately the Shoreline is not a hot bed of ice cream activity so, in essence, Ashley's is all we have. If expensive with small portions is what you crave then definitely stop by Ashley's. One scoop is nearly $5, like say what?! Took my kids there to get a banana split (about $9) and they had no bananas. So I went to a nearby market and bought a banana and returned to Ashley's. They used it to make the banana split and charged same amount of money, hmmmm, no banana discount! Just wish we had more options around here, and coming from New England where ice cream is a must have tradition... this place is disappointing. read more

Just spent $11 for very little ice cream. My husband ordered a large cup and it didn't have much in there. The amount wasn't a huge deal, it was the price. read more

Very poor management. My daughter's 7th birthday is coming up and she wanted an Ice Cream cake, as I try to "love my local" as much as possible, I ordered one from Ashley's Ice Cream in Madison. The woman who took my order was lovely, but a few hours later I got a voice mail from the "Manager" who said she had a few "concerns" about my cake order. I called back and was told that I could not pick up my order by 12noon on the day of the party because they were "too busy." also she could not make orange icing. During this conversation her manager became rude and unhelpful. I cancelled my order and called the Ashely's in Guilford who said "no problem" to having a cake on a Saturday. read more

Delicious homemade ice cream. I love ice cream and I support any company that makes their own. There are a lot of bad chemicals in mass produced ice cream and smaller shops such as Ashley's makes their own without. It was a cute shop and has a courtyard and nice benches to sit outside and eat your ice cream. This will be my ice cream shop from now on when I vacation in the area every summer. read more

I grew up eating this ice cream. Love the ice cream and the atmosphere. I used to love the coloring station when I was a kid. They would always put my drawing on the wall it made me feel awesome as a kid. Now that I'm older and have to buy my own ice cream, I do think Ashley's is very pricey. I don't think you can get any thing for less than $6. I always just get 1 scoop, which is plenty, but if I get a topping, I'm prepared for the bill to go towards $10. It's ok though for a nice treat every now and then. read more

I've reviewed the Guilford location with similar comments, so here it goes: The ice cream is amazing. The hot fudge and whipped cream are out of this world. However, I have a major problem with unsupervised high school employees. One was actually rolling her eyes at customers and was snippy with every word uttered. It literally was uncomfortable. Also, a single scoop cup in Madison was much smaller than Guilford. One scoop, a little hot fudge, and a tiny bit of whipped cream barely fit in this itty bitty cup and was falling over the sides. read more

We stopped here on the way home from the beach after reading the favorable reviews. Ice cream, service & indoor/outdoor seating were all AWESOME! We will def be back when we're in the area. read more