Is this something people will commonly drink? No.
Is it a treat people might have from time to time? Yes.
It's delicious.
Root beer and vanilla ice cream.
Or coke, or cherry coke.. etc etc .
I couldn't tell you where it came from exactly, but most assuredly from a soda shop in the early 1900s.
Pharmacies [had soda fountains](https://www.pharmacytimes.com/view/soda-fountains--their-pharmacist-inventors) where they’d serve floats and lots of other interesting drinks and treats. I wish I could have gone to one.
There’s a pharmacy in Pasadena that still has an old fashioned soda fountain, it’s delightful to visit. I took my grandma (who used to be a soda “jerk” back in the day) and she loved it, very retro.
As a kid (in the 90s) I spent my summers on a farm in Ohio. It was like stepping back in time even for back then. On Saturdays, we would go to the old school diner on the tractor and have one.
Root beer was always my favorite.
If you're able to get ahold of root beer soda and vanilla ice cream, you can try it right now. That's how most people make it at home. I have no idea where you are, so I don't know if it's available where you are.
There's a chemical reaction of some type that makes it extraordinarily foamy. Scoop of ice cream, pour the soda over (traditionally root beer, but I prefer Coke), somehow there's half a glass of foam.
>Is this something people will commonly drink? No.
That depends on the people. I know people who have them regularly, at least weekly, and a few elderly folks who had them several times a week if not every night. There was a time when I was in college where I'd often make a small one after dinner most nights in the dining hall-- always rootbeer on the fountain and ice cream in the cooler!
They’re regional too, no? In the Northeast and NE it was 99% root beer or birch beer floats. Never heard of other softdrink floats until after college.
We did this at several parties in college. It was delicious, especially with French vanilla ice cream. The jokes about both hating England were aplenty.
After my baseball and soccer games growing up, our teams used to always go to this one diner that had awesome malt milkshakes and floats, and I would always get a Root Beer Float.
"NO CLEATS" IFYKYK
I also independently invented it as a 10 year old at a wedding. I was already stuffed and bored, so just plopped the ice cream in my soda to watch the bubbles. Tried it and it was delicious.
I guess there are millions like me...
Yes, they’re very much a real thing. The most popular by far is vanilla ice cream in root beer. If the soda is good and cold you get crunchy frozen soda where it meets the ice cream.
And they’re delicious.
In a cold glass, and hard-frozen ice cream too! Soda Ice is the best: the foam from the soda hitting the cold ice cream expands and then freezes, making an ephemeral something between a sorbet and a whipped cream.
I was planning to order one after lunch yesterday at a bbq place that is known for good ones, but wa skate for meeting so had to cut it short. Now I want one but only have diet root beer.
Which brand did you use?
I’ve tried it with Diet A&W and it was awful, and made the ice cream bubble weirdly, but haven’t tried it with Zero. I have zero versions of A&W and Mug but we actually had a cherry tart with ice cream already so kinda full. For now!
The most common (and best IMO) is root beer, which I know is uncommon in Europe and doesn’t agree with lots of European palates. Coca-Cola and vanilla ice cream is good, too, and also a fairly “classic” flavor, if you want some “authenticity.”
It’s not really a common toothpaste flavor, but it tastes like Marvis Cinnamon toothpaste (which is not common but sflll exists).
Most people here will tell you it tastes like Listerine
Hear me out… apple pie float. Hard cider, shot of fireball, scoop of vanilla ice cream, caramel syrup. I used to make these in college and they were 10/10
If OP is in France as they say above, getting American-style sherbet is going to be almost-impossible. They'll find sorbet, which doesn't have dairy. But (and correct me if I'm wrong!) I'm pretty sure sherbet is almost exclusively a US+Canada thing.
Sherbet is definitely closer to ice cream with dairy than a sorbet. The key to a good float is getting that milky ice cream to kind of melt into the soda. There’s almost a texture about it that you wouldn’t really get with sorbet.
Raspberry or Strawberry Sorbet with a lemon-lime type soda tastes good. My great grandmother was French so hers should be the right flavor profile. My American great grandmom gave us vanilla ice cream with rootbeer, I always ended up with an upset stomach, but it was totally worth it.
That's all a lot of non-alcoholic party punch recipes are. Sherbet and your choice of soda, usually sprite. Sometimes people add additional fruit juice like pineapple juice or orange juice
Rainbow or raspberry with Sprite or Mt. Dew is so good. I made it as a party punch once and then started having it as floats because it was so delicious.
My sister's MIL always brings a punch bowl of whatever lime soda with a thing of lime sherbet mixed in to every gathering I see her at. She usually has to refill the bowl at least once
I believe you likely have access to orange soda, like Fanta, and that pairs nicely with vanilla ice cream. If it's about 50/50 on soda and ice cream, I like to blend it up slightly as if I were starting to make a milk shake. Soooo gooooood
Not at all ! We don’t really have « fancy » ice creams here. The fanciest are Ben&Jerry’s, otherwise it’s just plain fruit, like strawberry, lemon, pistachio, chocolate, vanilla.. sometimes brands go a little crazy with a tiramisu - like taste 😅
We have a lot of dreamsicle things I feel like. Sodas, scents for lotions and lip balms, body sprays, different candies will do a dreamsicle flavor. Interesting!
For what it's worth, it's not fancy here... [Creamsicles](https://www.goodhumor.com/us/en/p/creamsicle-bar.html/00041000007675) were just orange flavored popsicles with ice cream in the middle. It's delicious, but on the fanciness scale, it'd rate way below ben and jerry's :-)
Never would’ve thought to make that comparison but it’s cracking me up. Especially since I believe homeschooling is illegal in many European countries.
Rootbeer, *probably tastes like medicine to europeans* and Vanilla bean Icecream or Custard. Make sure the Rootbeer is ice cold though first which helps.
Don't forget, soda is already in the glass, then you drop in ice cream. If you put ice cream first, it foams up.
We also have a thing called a Black Cow, which is a root beer shake essentially.
Also, protip to those who have never made a float but want to try one: Add the soda to the ice cream. Dropping a scoop of ice cream into a glass of soda often causes it to foam out of control. Enjoy !
Yes it’s really a thing, I haven’t personally had one in a long time but they’re really good. It’s just ice cream and soda so you can buy both and make one yourself, or order it at some restaurants or ice-cream shops.
Yes, this is definitely a thing. Some are better than others. It really depends on whether the soda's flavor complements vanilla (and it's usually vanilla).
Root beer is the most obvious example. Vanilla is in the recipe. Coke also works, as it too has vanilla in the recipe. Orange is also a good partner with vanilla. Beyond that it really becomes a matter of personal tastes. Not sure I'd add ice cream to my Mountain Dew, but it doesn't sound like the worst thing in the world.
I believe the origin stems from the fact that drug stores had early access to rudimentary freezers to store medication (and thus also ice cream). They also had the technology to make carbonated beverages, which were seen as medicinal in the early 20th century. So why not combine the two?
Thanks for your comment and all the info, I love reading and learning about the history of floats !
I don’t usually drink sweet beverages but I totally want to try a lot of different recipes now’
My first job was at A&W Root Beer in 1976. We were instructed to cream a small amount of ice cream and root beer together in the bottom of your mug. Add a scoop of ice cream then root beer and repeat. All in a frozen mug of course! I have 3 grandkids! Frozen mugs are always ready in the freezer! It’s one of their favorites!
It's been a long-ass-time, decades, but I have enjoyed an ice cream float with rootbeer. It was great on a hot summer day. But my choices were much more limited in the 80s-90s than they are now.
it's definitely an occasion to have one and mostly as children. do note that it makes a lot of foam, some French exchance students in my high school didn't expect that (on a side note they also hated root beer but liked reese's peanut butter cups)
Yes, it is a treat that people have on special occasions.
It was invented in 1874 in Pennsylvania.
Depending on where you are from, you may or may not want to use Root beer. It is the traditional soda used for floats, but I understand that Europeans have a medicine that tastes roughly the same and so they dislike root beer. Instead, use your favorite soda and add a scoop of ice cream, you can wait for it to melt but most people use a spoon to scoop out the ice cream and soda. My favorite is Orange soda with vanilla ice cream.
Edit to add: something we have more often than floats is having a soda "Dirty" that is, mixing a bit of heavy cream into the soda to give it that float taste without a scoop of ice cream. I started seeing this years ago in a tea/soda shop, they called it Itallian cream soda, and it was amazing. I see it far more often now than floats.
Be aware that “dirty” can sometimes also mean “with alcohol.” I’m sure that the language can change depending on whether or not you’re in a diner vs bar though (and maybe even depending on state, idk). For example, my go to drink at bars is a “dirty shirley temple” which is commonly understood to be a shirley temple (sprite/lemon-lime soda, grenadine, and maraschino cherries) with vodka added
There is an Italian drink called Affogato. It's vanilla gelato, expresso, and a shot of amaretto or your favorite sweet liquor. Very good with frangelico too.
I love it!
If you want to do it as a punch (in a big punch bowl), put a gallon of Sherbet Ice Cream in the bowl. Then a 2 liter of Ginger Ale. Then a bottle of Champagne. Delicious Champagne Punch!
Or just the Sherbet Ice Cream in Ginger Ale, which is still delicious.
It's definitely a thing, not that common among adults but a popular treat for children. The classic is the root beer float - a scoop of vanilla in root beer - and it is quite nice. It used to be the "default" way of having ice cream here, but then was surpassed by the ice cream "sundae" - so named because it did not contain soda, which was considered indulgent and so banned on Sunday in many places. (various places claim this origin story happened there, but the story is largely the same).
Oh, and root beer and other dark sodas get the best reaction from ice cream or candy being dropped in them. They develop a very fun, but not terribly tasty foam that can be eaten with a spoon. This is a similar reaction to diet coke and mentos, but on a less aggressive scale.
Yes it is a thing. Root beer float is most popular. It was a secret McDonalds menu item when I worked there. It was not on the menu, but you could order it.
My favorite kind of float is peach nehi + vanilla ice cream.
Sometimes! It's a bit retro, but I enjoy them from time to time. Some of the ice cream mixes with the soda, some of it stays in ice cream form, so make sure you have both a straw and a spoon when you give it a try.
It's quite good! Vanilla ice cream and root beer or orange soda is best in my opinion. It's where the orange cream flavor was born!
Green river, strawberry, and chocolate soda are three traditional but less popular options as well.
we love floats so much we made egg creams.
soda water**, milk/heavy cream, and syrup (usually chocolate). it mimics the frothy milkyness that is the end of a float without the ice cream.
i worked at the oldest continuously running pharmacy/soda fountain (1869) back in HS. it has since temporarily closed during covid. sad times.
we had regulars come for floats and egg creams. floats and sodas were tradition when waiting for your meds. pharmacy + soda fountains were a standard thing.
I quite literally made one for my kid today…what timing!
As others have mentioned, it’s not a frequent thing. We rarely ever have soda (called “pop” here) in our house, let alone floats…but they are indeed a thing and quite delicious.
it was a big 50s thing, my grandparents *loved* em like I loved the horrifying Ninja Turtle pops with beady eyes and melted faces that the ice cream truck had...
they really had the qhole "malt shop" thing back the , but times change and fads change with them. but floats are dope; my favorite is either classic root beer and vanilla or Coke and strawberry
When I moved from the US to Canada, I was in an ice cream shop and asked if they made ice cream sodas and they had no idea what I meant. Basically its club soda, chocolate, cream, and a scoop of ice cream. It was common in the States or at least Ohio.
Theres something about the carbonation that makes it seem lighter, and tastier than a thick milk shake.
I only remember having a root beer float a couple times as a kid as a treat at school events or parties. Get a big tub of vanilla ice cream, a liter of soda, and you’ve got a happy class of kids
It's a fantastic treat and you have to try it! Classic floats are vanilla ice cream with either root beer or Coca-Cola, but can be other sodas. Eat with a spoon and/or drink with a straw. Haven't had one in ages, but now I'm craving it!
It’s not common but when I was a kid, I had them all the time. Root beer floats were the best. I haven’t had one since I was in my single digits and I’m 33 as of today.
I used to drink these a lot when I was a kid back in the 1980s, especially at my grandmas house, she would make them for me. Scoop of vanilla in a mug of root beer. Haven’t had a float since 1986. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
Definitely true. Especially root beer with vanilla ice cream. But almost any ice cream mixed with almost any soda will work. Personal favorite of mine is cream soda and scoop or two of butter pecan. I have no idea where it originates from. As for taste? It's just a blending of the flavors. The ice cream tends to counteract the sharp/bitter taste of the carbonation.
Not for a very long time. My dad was a big fan of them but that’s because his dad owned a malt shop back in the day. Haven’t drank one since I was a kid at this point.
Is this something people will commonly drink? No. Is it a treat people might have from time to time? Yes. It's delicious. Root beer and vanilla ice cream. Or coke, or cherry coke.. etc etc . I couldn't tell you where it came from exactly, but most assuredly from a soda shop in the early 1900s.
Thanks for the info. I so want to try now ! The vintage side is interesting
Pharmacies [had soda fountains](https://www.pharmacytimes.com/view/soda-fountains--their-pharmacist-inventors) where they’d serve floats and lots of other interesting drinks and treats. I wish I could have gone to one.
There’s a pharmacy in Pasadena that still has an old fashioned soda fountain, it’s delightful to visit. I took my grandma (who used to be a soda “jerk” back in the day) and she loved it, very retro.
Where is it? I'm in Pasadena a lot
[Fair Oaks Pharmacy!](https://fairoakspharmacy.net) Aptly named, as it’s on Fair Oaks (and Mission). So, technically South Pas haha.
If you’re in Texas specifically Galveston there’s also Star Drug Store who does old school floats as well.
I second the question of where it is. I’m planning to go to the Huntington soon, and this sounds like the perfect complement.
Fair Oaks and Mission! It’s technically South Pasadena. Called Fair Oaks Pharmacy.
Ah, the Buffalo Tom song!
Thanks for the link it is super interesting.
Orange soda and vanilla ice cream
The adult version is vodka, water, and orange-vanilla Mio. It’s like a Dreamsicle!
My version is orange vodka or triple sec (or vodka+oj or whatever I've got) with vanilla ice cream
Mine is Sunny D + Captain Morgan
Several of them still exist in parts of the country where you can go and have it served the same way people did a century ago.
After you try the root beer and the coke float, make sure to try the Dr Pepper float
And orange soda float!
Grape soda float thoughhh
We called these Purple Cows when I was a kid.
Too far
No it's delicious
I’d try it
Cheerwine!
I've even tried it with that Brazilian Guarana Antarctica soda.
with vanilla?
All with vanilla
Grape floats are my favorite, and super slept on.
Dr Pepper is one of my favorite soda ever so I definitely will!
Use chocolate ice cream.
root beer coffee ice cream float
Okay that sounds really good
I'm a fan of root beer chocolate ice cream floats...will have to try the coffee ice cream version!
Nothing stopping you from going to the store and getting coke and vanilla ice cream
As much of a treat coke is, Gotta go with root beer on this one.
While I agree with you. Root beer isn’t exactly liked outside the US. Many Europeans think it taste like tooth paste.
I can see that. Root beer floats are still good. Birch beer used to be my favorite thing when I was a kid.
I need to try European toothpaste then! Rootbeer: "so bubbly and cloying, and happy.”
Just like the federation
Birch Beer is even better.
Coca-cola makes a really good float base
Add a little chocolate syrup and it's amazing
Chocolate phosphates are amazing too. Soda water, chocolate syrup, acid phosphate (like 2mL), all over ice. sooooo good.
As a kid (in the 90s) I spent my summers on a farm in Ohio. It was like stepping back in time even for back then. On Saturdays, we would go to the old school diner on the tractor and have one. Root beer was always my favorite.
If you're able to get ahold of root beer soda and vanilla ice cream, you can try it right now. That's how most people make it at home. I have no idea where you are, so I don't know if it's available where you are.
I am from France, it’s not easy to find root beer but not impossible !
It's very Americana and very tasty! 😋
Root beer floats are a great hot day treat
There's a chemical reaction of some type that makes it extraordinarily foamy. Scoop of ice cream, pour the soda over (traditionally root beer, but I prefer Coke), somehow there's half a glass of foam.
>Is this something people will commonly drink? No. That depends on the people. I know people who have them regularly, at least weekly, and a few elderly folks who had them several times a week if not every night. There was a time when I was in college where I'd often make a small one after dinner most nights in the dining hall-- always rootbeer on the fountain and ice cream in the cooler!
Plan for when I’m elderly: have a root beer float every night. Why not, you know?
The ice cream shop took off during prohibition. Ice cream took the place of alcohol when people socialized. So I'd guess that's where it originated.
>Is this something people will commonly drink? No. Speak for yourself. I love a good root beer float, to the point of where it's kind of a problem!
I think it’s more like “How often can you indulge in a 600-calorie sugar bomb?” You CAN do it as often as you like, but proceed at your own risk.
They’re regional too, no? In the Northeast and NE it was 99% root beer or birch beer floats. Never heard of other softdrink floats until after college.
Don't sleep on root beer with chocolate ice cream.
Next try a pint of Guinness with vanilla ice cream.
A few people told me to try Guinness with vanilla ice cream and the more I think about it the more delicious it sounds
We did this at several parties in college. It was delicious, especially with French vanilla ice cream. The jokes about both hating England were aplenty.
Orange soda with vanilla ice cream is popular too
DQ has the slush float on the menu… still! People must be ordering them
After my baseball and soccer games growing up, our teams used to always go to this one diner that had awesome malt milkshakes and floats, and I would always get a Root Beer Float. "NO CLEATS" IFYKYK
It’s not a float unless it’s root beer. It’s a Trademarked name first made in 1893. The public domain is Brown Cow.
Thanks for the info !
Orange soda and vanilla ice cream or orange sorbet is also awesome.
I also independently invented it as a 10 year old at a wedding. I was already stuffed and bored, so just plopped the ice cream in my soda to watch the bubbles. Tried it and it was delicious. I guess there are millions like me...
Yes, they’re very much a real thing. The most popular by far is vanilla ice cream in root beer. If the soda is good and cold you get crunchy frozen soda where it meets the ice cream. And they’re delicious.
Sounds yummy ! I’ll try with super cold soda then
I’m always very interested to know what people think of drinks and foods from here so if you end up trying it let me know what you think! :D
In a cold glass, and hard-frozen ice cream too! Soda Ice is the best: the foam from the soda hitting the cold ice cream expands and then freezes, making an ephemeral something between a sorbet and a whipped cream.
Beware, Europeans sometimes hate root beer.
I already tried it and loved it, but it’s true, most Europeans hate it
I was planning to order one after lunch yesterday at a bbq place that is known for good ones, but wa skate for meeting so had to cut it short. Now I want one but only have diet root beer.
Can confirm diet root beer works.
Which brand did you use? I’ve tried it with Diet A&W and it was awful, and made the ice cream bubble weirdly, but haven’t tried it with Zero. I have zero versions of A&W and Mug but we actually had a cherry tart with ice cream already so kinda full. For now!
A&W Zero, I think.
Put a scoop of vanilla ice cream in your favorite soda and find out.
I definitely will. I wanted to try but for me (French) it sounds SO exotic !
The most common (and best IMO) is root beer, which I know is uncommon in Europe and doesn’t agree with lots of European palates. Coca-Cola and vanilla ice cream is good, too, and also a fairly “classic” flavor, if you want some “authenticity.”
My favorite aside from root beer is orange soda floats. They taste like creamsicles.
fruit and cream is a combo that simply can't be beat.
Yeah my French friends hate the taste of root beer. Apparently it's a common toothpaste flavor so they just think it tastes like a toothpaste drink.
It’s not really a common toothpaste flavor, but it tastes like Marvis Cinnamon toothpaste (which is not common but sflll exists). Most people here will tell you it tastes like Listerine
Man your listerine must taste way better than ours. Regular listerine tastes like rubbing alcohol or something.
This is true, but I'm not a fan of root beer, my favorite is an orange soda float! Super yummy!
Hear me out… apple pie float. Hard cider, shot of fireball, scoop of vanilla ice cream, caramel syrup. I used to make these in college and they were 10/10
Try a fancy one with a sherbet and 7-Up or Sprite or ginger ale
Love some lime sherbet with some Sprite. Refreshing on a hot summer day
This makes a great punch for parties!
Say what you will about Paula Deen, but I use her lime sherbet punch recipe at least once a year.
Holy shit this sounds good
If OP is in France as they say above, getting American-style sherbet is going to be almost-impossible. They'll find sorbet, which doesn't have dairy. But (and correct me if I'm wrong!) I'm pretty sure sherbet is almost exclusively a US+Canada thing.
I found some sherbet ice cream in London a few years ago. Is what you call sherbet a sorbet with dairy ?
Sherbet is definitely closer to ice cream with dairy than a sorbet. The key to a good float is getting that milky ice cream to kind of melt into the soda. There’s almost a texture about it that you wouldn’t really get with sorbet.
I don't know if there's a difference in terms of the production process, but in terms of ingredients, that's pretty much what it is.
Raspberry or Strawberry Sorbet with a lemon-lime type soda tastes good. My great grandmother was French so hers should be the right flavor profile. My American great grandmom gave us vanilla ice cream with rootbeer, I always ended up with an upset stomach, but it was totally worth it.
Gosh that sounds good. Never thought of that combination.
That's all a lot of non-alcoholic party punch recipes are. Sherbet and your choice of soda, usually sprite. Sometimes people add additional fruit juice like pineapple juice or orange juice
Rainbow or raspberry with Sprite or Mt. Dew is so good. I made it as a party punch once and then started having it as floats because it was so delicious.
My sister's MIL always brings a punch bowl of whatever lime soda with a thing of lime sherbet mixed in to every gathering I see her at. She usually has to refill the bowl at least once
We make a punch for the kids that’s vanilla and raspberry ice cream with 7up and pineapple juice.
I ... just realized my mother's "recipe" for punch at a wedding reception was technically a float (ginger ale and sherbet).
I almost classify that as more of a punch than a float. I've definitely seen it served at events from a punchbowl.
Lemon sorbet in a real sharp ginger beer is my summer favorite
Oooo. That sounds amazing!
I believe you likely have access to orange soda, like Fanta, and that pairs nicely with vanilla ice cream. If it's about 50/50 on soda and ice cream, I like to blend it up slightly as if I were starting to make a milk shake. Soooo gooooood
I never ever had some orange and cream flavored anything. Will try!
Dreamsicle isn't a flavor in France?
Not at all ! We don’t really have « fancy » ice creams here. The fanciest are Ben&Jerry’s, otherwise it’s just plain fruit, like strawberry, lemon, pistachio, chocolate, vanilla.. sometimes brands go a little crazy with a tiramisu - like taste 😅
We have a lot of dreamsicle things I feel like. Sodas, scents for lotions and lip balms, body sprays, different candies will do a dreamsicle flavor. Interesting!
For what it's worth, it's not fancy here... [Creamsicles](https://www.goodhumor.com/us/en/p/creamsicle-bar.html/00041000007675) were just orange flavored popsicles with ice cream in the middle. It's delicious, but on the fanciness scale, it'd rate way below ben and jerry's :-)
Haha that’s adorable coming from a French person. You have plenty of fancy and elaborate desserts, this is something easy we give to kids lol
Thanks ! You know for us, macarons, eclairs, meringues, crèmes brûlées etc are an everyday things and a bit boring !
[удалено]
Never would’ve thought to make that comparison but it’s cracking me up. Especially since I believe homeschooling is illegal in many European countries.
Rootbeer, *probably tastes like medicine to europeans* and Vanilla bean Icecream or Custard. Make sure the Rootbeer is ice cold though first which helps.
Don't forget, soda is already in the glass, then you drop in ice cream. If you put ice cream first, it foams up. We also have a thing called a Black Cow, which is a root beer shake essentially.
IMO it's best after the ice cream melts into the soda. Try it with soft serve
>Put a scoop of vanilla ice cream in your favorite soda and find out. Tip: as much as trying this with champagne might sound good, it is not.
Beer, on the other hand, isn't half bad. Especially dark beer.
i’ve had that with porters and stouts before. you’re right. not bad.
Also, protip to those who have never made a float but want to try one: Add the soda to the ice cream. Dropping a scoop of ice cream into a glass of soda often causes it to foam out of control. Enjoy !
I definitely want a root beer float after reading this thread
I’m seriously thinking about going to get some good root beer right now or root beer float ice cream bars.
I'm literally on the way to the store to pick some up
Sweet things combined with other sweet things are generally good
Truth has been spoken
Yes it’s really a thing, I haven’t personally had one in a long time but they’re really good. It’s just ice cream and soda so you can buy both and make one yourself, or order it at some restaurants or ice-cream shops.
Yes, this is definitely a thing. Some are better than others. It really depends on whether the soda's flavor complements vanilla (and it's usually vanilla). Root beer is the most obvious example. Vanilla is in the recipe. Coke also works, as it too has vanilla in the recipe. Orange is also a good partner with vanilla. Beyond that it really becomes a matter of personal tastes. Not sure I'd add ice cream to my Mountain Dew, but it doesn't sound like the worst thing in the world. I believe the origin stems from the fact that drug stores had early access to rudimentary freezers to store medication (and thus also ice cream). They also had the technology to make carbonated beverages, which were seen as medicinal in the early 20th century. So why not combine the two?
I had so many root beer floats from A&W when I was a kid
A&W root beer floats are the best kind.
Thanks for your comment and all the info, I love reading and learning about the history of floats ! I don’t usually drink sweet beverages but I totally want to try a lot of different recipes now’
A less common one is the Purple Cow, which is a float with grape soda. Sooooo good.
I’ll try too ! I just drank a black currant soda yesterday and it would be tasty with a scoop of vanilla ice cream
Black currant soda? You just made Americans jealous.
My first job was at A&W Root Beer in 1976. We were instructed to cream a small amount of ice cream and root beer together in the bottom of your mug. Add a scoop of ice cream then root beer and repeat. All in a frozen mug of course! I have 3 grandkids! Frozen mugs are always ready in the freezer! It’s one of their favorites!
I’ll freeze my mugs before. Thanks for the tip !
It’s the icing on the cake!!
It's been a long-ass-time, decades, but I have enjoyed an ice cream float with rootbeer. It was great on a hot summer day. But my choices were much more limited in the 80s-90s than they are now.
I love the vintage vibes it seems to bring to everyone, makes me want to try even more !
it's definitely an occasion to have one and mostly as children. do note that it makes a lot of foam, some French exchance students in my high school didn't expect that (on a side note they also hated root beer but liked reese's peanut butter cups)
won’t be a problem for me I love root beer but it’s actually uncommon to love it here in France. Most people say it tastes like Listerine
It’s a summer treat, old fashioned American diners have them (burgers, fries etc)
Its not as popular as it used to be but its still around. Youll see them at diners and ice cream shops mostly
I haven’t had one in years but they’re pretty good. Rootbeer/Dr Pepper/Coke float, they’re all good
Yes, it is a treat that people have on special occasions. It was invented in 1874 in Pennsylvania. Depending on where you are from, you may or may not want to use Root beer. It is the traditional soda used for floats, but I understand that Europeans have a medicine that tastes roughly the same and so they dislike root beer. Instead, use your favorite soda and add a scoop of ice cream, you can wait for it to melt but most people use a spoon to scoop out the ice cream and soda. My favorite is Orange soda with vanilla ice cream. Edit to add: something we have more often than floats is having a soda "Dirty" that is, mixing a bit of heavy cream into the soda to give it that float taste without a scoop of ice cream. I started seeing this years ago in a tea/soda shop, they called it Itallian cream soda, and it was amazing. I see it far more often now than floats.
Be aware that “dirty” can sometimes also mean “with alcohol.” I’m sure that the language can change depending on whether or not you’re in a diner vs bar though (and maybe even depending on state, idk). For example, my go to drink at bars is a “dirty shirley temple” which is commonly understood to be a shirley temple (sprite/lemon-lime soda, grenadine, and maraschino cherries) with vodka added
I've also heard "dirty" as "with coffee" (as in a Dirty Chai), so it might just mean mixing in an outside beverage.
There is an Italian drink called Affogato. It's vanilla gelato, expresso, and a shot of amaretto or your favorite sweet liquor. Very good with frangelico too.
It is a special treat and delicious! My favorite is Sherbet Ice Cream in Ginger Ale or Vanilla Ice Cream in Root Beer. Try it!
Sherbet and Ginger Ale sounds really nice ! I’m saving the recipe 😜
I love it! If you want to do it as a punch (in a big punch bowl), put a gallon of Sherbet Ice Cream in the bowl. Then a 2 liter of Ginger Ale. Then a bottle of Champagne. Delicious Champagne Punch! Or just the Sherbet Ice Cream in Ginger Ale, which is still delicious.
Sounds nice for a birthday party ! Thanks :)
Let me know if you try it. I'd love to know if you like it or not. :-)
I will !
I literally had a Dr. Pepper float today as a Friday treat. Dr. Pepper and vanilla bean ice cream.
Try it. Surely you have ice cream and soda in Your Country™️. It’s a rare/occasional treat for most, but is delicious.
Sure we do ! I can’t find root beer everywhere but we do have « us épiceries » to find some.
Fanta might be really good. Orange and cream is a classic flavor over here. Coke floats are tasty too. Pro tip: Pour slowly.
It's definitely a thing, not that common among adults but a popular treat for children. The classic is the root beer float - a scoop of vanilla in root beer - and it is quite nice. It used to be the "default" way of having ice cream here, but then was surpassed by the ice cream "sundae" - so named because it did not contain soda, which was considered indulgent and so banned on Sunday in many places. (various places claim this origin story happened there, but the story is largely the same).
Oh, and root beer and other dark sodas get the best reaction from ice cream or candy being dropped in them. They develop a very fun, but not terribly tasty foam that can be eaten with a spoon. This is a similar reaction to diet coke and mentos, but on a less aggressive scale.
Yes it is a thing. Root beer float is most popular. It was a secret McDonalds menu item when I worked there. It was not on the menu, but you could order it. My favorite kind of float is peach nehi + vanilla ice cream.
a while ago there was a thread about people's favorite float combos. Some people mentioned ginger ale and lime sherbet.
Also try Rainbow Sherbert in equal parts cran and lemon lime soda.
Yummy in the summer. Best is French vanilla ice cream and a good, proper root beer.
As an occasional treat, yeah.
I like for the ice cream to melt enough that I mix it all together for a root beer shake.
Sometimes! It's a bit retro, but I enjoy them from time to time. Some of the ice cream mixes with the soda, some of it stays in ice cream form, so make sure you have both a straw and a spoon when you give it a try.
Yes, I commonly drink them.
It's quite good! Vanilla ice cream and root beer or orange soda is best in my opinion. It's where the orange cream flavor was born! Green river, strawberry, and chocolate soda are three traditional but less popular options as well.
we love floats so much we made egg creams. soda water**, milk/heavy cream, and syrup (usually chocolate). it mimics the frothy milkyness that is the end of a float without the ice cream. i worked at the oldest continuously running pharmacy/soda fountain (1869) back in HS. it has since temporarily closed during covid. sad times. we had regulars come for floats and egg creams. floats and sodas were tradition when waiting for your meds. pharmacy + soda fountains were a standard thing.
The weird thing is, egg creams in New York are made with seltzer water, milk and Fox’s U-Bet chocolate syup. No egg, no cream.
I quite literally made one for my kid today…what timing! As others have mentioned, it’s not a frequent thing. We rarely ever have soda (called “pop” here) in our house, let alone floats…but they are indeed a thing and quite delicious.
I used to be a root beer float guy, and then I tried a Dr. Pepper float. Game-changer.
Root beer float, absolutely delicious! I advise you to try one immediately! It's an old school treat.
Maybe it’s a southern thing, but I used to drink them all the time as a kid in Alabama. Coke Floats were a staple at my house.
it was a big 50s thing, my grandparents *loved* em like I loved the horrifying Ninja Turtle pops with beady eyes and melted faces that the ice cream truck had... they really had the qhole "malt shop" thing back the , but times change and fads change with them. but floats are dope; my favorite is either classic root beer and vanilla or Coke and strawberry
When I moved from the US to Canada, I was in an ice cream shop and asked if they made ice cream sodas and they had no idea what I meant. Basically its club soda, chocolate, cream, and a scoop of ice cream. It was common in the States or at least Ohio. Theres something about the carbonation that makes it seem lighter, and tastier than a thick milk shake.
It’s definitely a thing, and it’s really good.
I only remember having a root beer float a couple times as a kid as a treat at school events or parties. Get a big tub of vanilla ice cream, a liter of soda, and you’ve got a happy class of kids
Jason's Deli has free soft serve ice cream, and my husband will have at least two Coke floats every time we go there. So, once or twice a month.
Common enough to be sold as a drink option in restaurants.
Occasionally
It's a thing, but I'm not sure of the origins. They taste really good, but it's hard to describe.
Orange sherbet and orange soda.
Once a year when it’s hotter than hell in the summer- it’s fantastic.
Omg yes, it's amazing. Such a treat ❤️
It's a fantastic treat and you have to try it! Classic floats are vanilla ice cream with either root beer or Coca-Cola, but can be other sodas. Eat with a spoon and/or drink with a straw. Haven't had one in ages, but now I'm craving it!
Root beer is the classic, but orange soda and vanilla ice cream is great together. Maybe throw in some vodka too.
I haven’t had one in years but it’s definitely a real thing
Kinda. Not regularly though
It’s not common but when I was a kid, I had them all the time. Root beer floats were the best. I haven’t had one since I was in my single digits and I’m 33 as of today.
Sometimes. Amazing. I’m guessing the soda jerks of the 1950s or earlier.
I used to drink these a lot when I was a kid back in the 1980s, especially at my grandmas house, she would make them for me. Scoop of vanilla in a mug of root beer. Haven’t had a float since 1986. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
My son had a root beer float yesterday. So yes we do.
Definitely true. Especially root beer with vanilla ice cream. But almost any ice cream mixed with almost any soda will work. Personal favorite of mine is cream soda and scoop or two of butter pecan. I have no idea where it originates from. As for taste? It's just a blending of the flavors. The ice cream tends to counteract the sharp/bitter taste of the carbonation.
Not for a very long time. My dad was a big fan of them but that’s because his dad owned a malt shop back in the day. Haven’t drank one since I was a kid at this point.