In the past few months, social media has been blowing up with images and videos of a new ice cream shop in Ala Moana.
Called Nitrogenie, the store is part of an Australian ice cream chain that started a few years ago.The chain uniquely uses liquid nitrogen to cool its ice cream. After placing their orders, customers get to watch their ice cream being frozen by liquid nitrogen. According to their website, Nitrogenie’s ice cream base is a French crème anglaise consisting of eggs and creme. When the store first opened, along with the new Bloomingdale wing of Ala Moana, there were long lines of people waiting to try out this new type of ice cream. Now that the hype has somewhat died down, I decided to check it out to see if it was worth all the attention.
When I first walked into the new wing of Ala Moana, I noticed that all the stores in that area were trendy and had modern-looking storefronts. As I walked towards the end of the new wing, I noticed a bright purple “Nitrogenie” sign. Accompanying the sign was the phrase “Ice cream from magic”. This instantly caught my attention and sparked my curiosity. I was really excited to try this hyped up dessert. The interior of Nitrogenie felt very clean and modern, and a large flat screen served as its menu board.
The soft marshmallow fluff and crunchy graham cracker combination was a successful representation of s’mores on top of creamy frozen goodness.
Nitrogenie updates its flavors every Monday, giving their customers a wide selection. I ordered Lemon Meringue Pie, which was recommended by the cashier because of its popularity that week. I chose the regular size cup, which cost $4.99, and watched the staff put a mouth-watering custard base into a mixing machine. Then the magic happened: a white fog seeped out of the mixing bowl and filled the air. When my freshly frozen ice cream emerged, another staff person dusted on finely crushed graham crackers, squeezed on marshmallow fluff from a piping bag, and used a torch to lightly toast the marshmallow. The wait was not long at all and I received my ice cream within five minutes.
Then came the moment I was waiting for. I took my transparent shovel spoon and scooped up a generous amount of the three-layer frozen dessert. My mouth watered at the sight of the ice cream making the journey from my cup to my mouth. I ate everything off the spoon and my mind was instantly blown away. The creamy delight tasted so much like homemade lemon bars. The soft marshmallow fluff and crunchy graham cracker combination was a successful representation of s’mores on top of creamy frozen goodness. My knees buckled in amazement as my taste buds tingled with this flavor sensation. I finished the regular sized cup within a few minutes and was satisfied by the mini party in my mouth. The staff were really friendly and told me a lot about how the ice cream was made and where it originated.
Overall, I rate Nitrogenie an 8.2 out of 10. The taste, presentation, atmosphere and service were all 10s but the high price and small portions were negatives in my book. Nonetheless, I will definitely go back after I save up from my allowance.
