Review Visit: September 14th, 2014…read more Where diabetic dreams come true. Every town has a few things: A Casey's gas station. A Subway Restaurant. A Dollar General store. Lastly, a locally-owned ice cream shack. Any small town will have a combination of these things, if not all. Bartonville is a smaller town that happens to have their own ice cream shack. I am not sure about the others but that isn't why we are here today. Today, we are here to talk about a place where diabetics dream about. A place that causes diabetes. A place that your sweet tooth (or teeth) dream of. The Dream Hut is like many ice cream shacks. It is nestled in a smaller standalone building that has a store front where you can walk up and place your order and then awkwardly mingle with everyone else that is standing around. The store front is wide enough to accommodate a place to order and a place to pick your food up. Their menu is plastered on the glass where you order and you can stand off to the side and gawk over it without standing entirely in the way of people who have dreamt here before. On a cold day, a few of us decided to take a trip to this hut to see if we could order something dreams are made of. Around this time in my life, I was hopelessly dreaming about Peanut Butter Malts or anything similar. In a confession, I have a terrible peanut butter addiction that continues to this day and for the rest of my life. Upon arriving, I knew I needed something peanut butter-y. Glancing over the menu, I was drawn to the Peanut Butter Cup Blitz and I knew that was the thing my dreams were made of. One sip... well, what can be had for a sip as slurping a thick Blitz through a straw is entirely nightmarish... I knew I hit something good. The Blitz had a nice chocolate/peanut butter blend that can only be described properly by scientists and clairvoyants. Absolutely delectable. My friend Matt ordered the same thing and he rather enjoyed his drink/meal, but not nearly on the level of mine. Devin ordered a simple ice cream cone but even that put a huge smile on her face. Despite the change of the season and that nightfall was quickly approaching, the Dream Hut was everything I could dream in a ice cream place and more. While I only had the one item from their menu on this one and only visit, I would assume the rest of their offerings are just as good. I would like to revisit and try other menu items in the future. Still to this day, I dream of that Peanut Butter Cup Blitz...

We live in Louisiana and anytime we come to visit family it's a must stop! We stopped multiple…read moretimes this last trip and it never disappoints!!!! Look forward to shakes and ice cream every time!!!

Wow! The hand dipped ice cream is amazing! Friendly and happy young woman took our order. The…read moreoutside is super cute!

Not enough servers. To long wait time. Ice cream is not as good as Culver's and just as pricey.read more

Review Visit: May 13th, 2015…read more This ice cream is '¡muy caliente!" I knew Mexican soda was a thing but Mexican ice cream? Not in the capacity to have it's own ice cream shack. Well, queue my surprise when I learned that there was a Mexican ice cream shop in Peoria. One that has a name that leads you to think that maybe... just maybe this place is delicious. Doing what I normally do (as avid readers of this blog will know), I gathered up one of my friends who likes to travel (Matt) and we headed over the Illinois River (not the Peoria River) to get some ice cream (and add more bracketed comments to this paragraph for no reason). The location of Las Delicias is a bit of an odd one. Actually, those whole road of shops is not a greatly planned out area. You have all these shops along Main St but the parking situation leaves a lot to be desired. You usually have to hunt for a place to park and sometimes walk a small distance to your destination. I just wanted to put this in here as a warning should you want to venture down Main St. Matt and I found a place to park and headed in. Upon entering, we were greeted by a friendly cashier and shop that was small and felt homely (in a good way). This place truly felt like it was a family-owned. Matt and I browsed the handful of offerings and I was surprised by the flavors. Granted, this was over 5 years ago, so I don't remember the specifics and I failed to take a photo of what was being offered at the time. I grabbed some kind of strawberry ice cream while Matt got himself some flavor that I never heard of before. We paid for our ice cream desserts and headed out. I think there were a few chairs inside to sit but due to the small-sized of the restaurant, we opted to eat outside as we walked back to my car. I am a sucker for strawberry (and peanut butter) flavored treats. At this point in my life, I had quite a few different strawberry-flavored items but this one is the only one that instantly blew me away. Something about the quality of this dessert was unreal. It was far and above beyond anything you would find in the store unless you option for the expensive stuff. This stuff tasted homemade and had love in every scoop. I can't properly describe how much I loved this ice cream cone and how sad I was when it was gone. If you find yourself in Peoria and are on a circuit of trying out all the ice cream places, this one needs to be at the top of your list. You won't regret it. If you do go and you do regret it, lo siento. That's what life is all about though, right? Trying new things and seeing what the world has to offer.

Great variety it options, traditional and non-traditional flavors and very consistent in quality! I…read morelove going here for the yogurt cups and horchata as well!

Wow! Just wow! This ice cream & yo-cream shoppe has it all. When you first walk in you get to…read morechoose between cups that are flat rate pay or per oz. pay. We chose the oz. Now, I don't like to brag, but we bought $37 worth of ice cream and yo-cream in there today and there are only two of use. We ate all of it, every little sprinkle, m&m, nut, brownie chunk, chocolate rock, Andes' mint and gummy worm, cherry, chocolate, pineapple, vanilla swirl! We like to have died happily ever after today. It looked like a pink piglet silo inside, which I appreciated, because I felt like a little pink pig eating all that. Afterwards, we rolled out the door and barely made it into our vehicle without using a crane. Best birthday ice-cream I ever had and I'm turning 47 this year. . . See you all summer long! Oink oink

a very cute shop with lovely outdoor seating. the froyo was really yummy and they had so many…read moreoptions for toppings!

Moved to town not to long ago and a new ice cream place opened up over the summer! It's in place of…read morethe Old Dairy Queen in case you didn't know! I've visited a couple times and I took a few pictures every time I went. The people that work here are super friendly, helpful and quick! I have discovered that the blueberry cheesecake creamer is my absolute favorite! The ice cream tastes so fresh and Light! They have a ton of seating surrounding the building and when I go I also see a lot of people hanging around, happy, and having fun! They usually get through the lines pretty quickly though. If you see a big crowd of people don't hesitate to stop, the wait won't be very long! Get over there and try a blueberry cheesecake creamer, you won't regret it!

Carius Creamery in Morton is a hometown gem--still under the same ownership as when it was Dairy…read moreQueen downtown for so many years. They've kept all the charm and quality you'd expect, with a fantastic ice cream selection that feels very familiar if you loved the classic DQ menu. The service is always quick and incredibly friendly--it's the kind of place where you feel welcome the moment you walk up. There's plenty of parking and outdoor seating, which makes it perfect for families or a relaxing treat. And with a park just across the street, it's a great stop when you're out with little ones. Delicious ice cream, great people, and a perfect location.

I used to love Theo's. But under the new ownership it's gone downhill. At least for the icebergs…read more They are more expensive now with less ingredients. I used to always get the banana cream pie iceberg but now it's terrible. Never mixed right- just plain ice cream halfway down. And hardly any ingredients. I tried getting a Oreo iceberg but it only had one crushed up Oreo in it.

Review Visit: June 17th, 2015…read more Theo's is The-o place to be for ice cream. Peoria seems to have a lot of ice cream places and Theo's was next on my list to visit. So, I gathered my good travel buddy Matt and my girlfriend at the time to drive there and check it out. I have actually tried to visit Theo's a few times prior to this but the location is just odd. It's kind of on the corner of a busy main street and a busy side street. Due to that, it's a pretty hopping place to go. On top of that, the parking arrangement is also strange. There is maybe room for a few cars in front of the building and a few spots on the side of the building but beyond that, you are relegated to using the curbs along the road. On our way there, we devised a Plan B as we have failed to try and get Theo's before. Luckily, we beat the crowd and were able to find a place to park. Memory is a bit foggy on this part but I believe Theo's is/was cash only. Don't quote me on that but do make sure you have some money on you as a precaution. I don't exactly remember what I ordered. I think it was an espresso-flavored ice cream while my girlfriend ordered a coffee-flavored one. We, of course, sampled what the other got. I have to be honest and say that while mine was great, her choice in flavors was 10x better. We actually came back by ourselves on another day and I got what she got and was happy. Matt ordered something unique off the menu. I don't remember what it was but he said it was delicious. I think it was a low-calorie ice cream treat. Since we ordered simple ice creams, we didn't have to wait too long for the cashier to yell out our order to pick them up. If you've never been to a proper ice cream shack, do know that if you order a lot of food it can take awhile to get it as they usually cook the food fresh and to-order. Theo's does offer a wide variety of options between ice cream and food. I have yet to try their non-ice cream offerings but I would imagine they are pretty good. At least the photos I've seen on Google/Yelp makes their food look good. If I do get to try their food, I will add my thoughts of it to this post.

Our grandparents live in town so we visit once or twice a year and this place is my new must stop…read moreeach visit! Fun carnival food and decor all year round and especially over the winter holiday! I can recommend this place for a casual lunch or even a kids bday party! The service was fantastic and gave us free cookies too! Great location. Just a fun spot!

Carnival food is wonderful!!! Funnel Cakes are just as good…read moreas the fairs. So many toppings. No need to wait. Support Small Business!

Review Visit: September 17th, 2014…read more Sugar. Spice. Everything nice. Like in a lot of smaller towns, you'll usually have or find a business that deals in candy. Sugary confections. Sweet treats. Candy from yesteryears. Soda (pop) in more varieties than you care for it to come in. Things you think you'd never see again and things you fall in love with. Holland's Mercantile fills that role for Washington, IL. My friend Matt and I decided to spend an afternoon exploring the Washington Square to see what the town and it's folk offered. The words on the front of the store's glass got me excited at the possibilities held inside. As we opened the door and headed in, the excitement increased tenfold. It was like being a kid in a candy store. Except that we are adults... in a candy store. Upon entering, I first noticed the long row of candy in the glass containers where you can scoop out as much as you want. Lining the walls were a million different candy from a million different times and cultures. I saw things I hadn't seen in years. They had stuff I didn't think existed in time where color TV is the norm. On top of the candy, they also had a display case full of baked goods. Whether these are made in-house or from a local bakery, I am not sure. Either way, the stuff looked fantastic behind the glass. Turtles. Truffles. Caramel Bars. It all looked so good that I think my blood sugar level elevated just looking at the offerings. This store has more than just candy, baked goodies, and sweets from everyone's childhood. They also had the novelty toys from the same time period the candy/sweets come from. There were novelty toys that tied in to current day trends but they also had toys that kids from our time would enjoy just as much as kids from the time from which they came. I also think there was a back room that was full of a combination of everything the store offered. On this day, I let my inner child run wild and I picked up a small sack full of candy. I didn't want to get too much because I don't have the best self-control when it comes to my sweet tooth. Next door is another Holland's store that offers up popcorn in many different flavors and even more soda to pick from. This store did remind me of the candy store from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, minus the Candy Man tossing candy to and fro. Though that would've been quite the sight to see. The store just has this feeling of being a great place to get your sweet tooth fix while reliving items from your childhood and also your parent's childhood. I will end this with a warning. If you have kids and bring them here... expect to drop a lot of money on sweets and toys. It's easy to spend a small fortune in a place like this. Also, don't let your kids see Holland's Caramelcorn next door. They might get loaded up on sugar and then get popcorn cheese everywhere. How sweet it is.

The best variety of popcorn indulgence is waiting for you at Hollands. It is hands down better…read morethan Garrett's! I make trips to central Illinois, and this is one of my must do stops!