The -196 ice cream parlor has a few parlor tricks up its sleeve.
By SHAWN RODGERSThe -196 ice cream parlor has a few parlor tricks up its sleeve(photo credit: PR)
At -196 in Tel Aviv, the ice cream is a front row-worthy spectacle. What make -196 different from other ice cream parlors is how they make the ice cream.They use the simple but cool technique of mixing flavored cream with liquid nitrogen to create a deliciously smooth ice cream. It means the flavors are snappy, ultrafresh and extremely creamy.-196 opened two months ago by owners Daniel Nissnik and his brother. They discovered this unique concept of making ice cream while on a trip to Hong Kong and decided to bring it to Israel.The fun part about being in the parlor is watching the staff put the ice cream together.When the nitrogen is poured into the mixer with the cream, a large cloud of smoke envelops the bench. It is magical! Although the wait is a little longer than for the traditional scoop and scoot, the wonderful fresh flavors and beautiful consistency are well worth the extra couple of minutes.The ice cream (NIS 18 for two scoops, NIS 23 for three) is served straight from the mixer and is made with fresh ingredients such as fruit, cookies, chocolate... the list goes on. So when it was time for us to select the flavors, we naturally steered toward the unusual combinations.We tried Daniel’s personal favorite, which consists of chocolate with orange marmalade and whiskey. This was followed by peanut butter with white chocolate and pecans.Both were absolutely delicious.After a bit of a breather, we tried the mango sorbet, which was out of this world! There are also a few soybased flavors for those who want to be really adventurous.Overall, I enjoyed my visit to -196 and will be making many more return visits over the coming months.
