3 Scoops

If you love chocolate you need to get the OMFG chocolate ice cream. It really is omfg chocolaty and delicious!

I’ve visited Brighton a number of times, but only on my most recent trip did I venture to 3 Scoops with two friends late at night for a snack.
The three of us enter and see a family with young children enjoying their cones a little bit too much — definitely in need of a few baby wipes — and a woman playing a board game by herself on the side.
The employee was a poorly dressed, middle-​aged man who would not have been considered dressed appropriately to attend a flea market sale, let alone serve at a friendly, neighborhood ice-​cream bar.
My two friends begin to order, and I walk towards two open doors at the rear of the establishment hoping to peep in and see a rest room.
Immediately, the employee barks out at me to stop in my tracks, stating, «That’s my office. I do work in there. Get out!» Wow, he has an office… Cool. «There is no bathroom.
I brush it off, bite my tongue and wait for my friends. One of them completes her order and is at the register when she asks, «How much?» To which the employee replies, «Hold on, I’m on the phone…» No joke, the headphones he refused to remove from his ears, sending a great message to the shops patrons, were actually on as he was working, connecting him with his *friends… Great.
While maintaining my cool, I began lecturing the guy on customer service and respect. I explained how it was rude to be on the phone while serving, how the customer needed to feel like they were his first priority, and how it might not be ideal to jump down a persons throat for simply peering into a room located adjacent to the registers thinking it was a bathroom…
Little did I know, the mother of the family in the front of the store had also asked if her 4 year old son could use the restroom. At this point, she comes and joins the little party and informs us that her son simply needed to wash his hands. Then, the best part, he says that once he is done taking care of us, he will walk the boy downstairs to the restroom — oh, so there is one on premise…
Between all the commotion, the employee simply hands back the $ 20 bill my friend had tried to pay with and states, «I quit.» He walks into the back and closes his very special, office door…
Good riddance.
[P.S. I later learned from a friend who lives nearby that the «employee» is most likely the co-​owner with the woman who was playing a board game. I think he became flustered with all his own mistakes and wanted to avoid confrontation — real mature. I’d simply recommend avoiding the store — there is way better ice cream around the corner at Abbott’s Frozen Custard. Enjoy!]

Is it really possible to give ice-​cream one star?
I wouldn’t have believed it myself, until last night.
It’s summer, and we all have fun places to be, things to do, tans to acquire — so I will try to keep it short. And yet, it was so bad. So bad.
My husband, two-​year-​old daughter, and I read about 3 Scoops on the ‘Boston Magazine’ best-​of list, and I’m now convinced that the author was just going on memory from the previous owners. Or high. Or in a secret anti-​ice-​cream terrorist cell. Or a plant from Michelle Obama’s get-​fit campaign. SOMETHING IS OFF I TELL YOU.
In any case, we went over around 6-​ish and were greeted with some conspicuously funky music that was most likely the remnant of a resident scooper’s study abroad to Uruguay. It was one pan-​flute short of a Dead-​show pre-​game. Fine, I can dig it. The inside is like a café — not bad, with standard little tables, wood countertop, etc. It had some books on shelves, some board games about, very cool in that respect. Definitely seeks to be the thinking-man’s creamery, methinks. Accordingly, it is exceedingly dark, but you know. With all that reading they do, the Boston peeps can’t handle fluorescence.
We were «greeted» (mega-​ironic-​air-​quotes) by a woman who would have made a great 17^th-​century nun. In eastern Europe. Not in a good way. That is all I’ll say there. My husband’s word was «hostile,» and I’ll tell you — he’s got quite a vocabulary at his disposal, and that was DEFINITELY the precise word.
On to the ice-​cream, because — let’s face it — the rest is peripheral, and I would basically be kicked in the face if it led me to a transcendent scoop.
The flavors tended toward the intellectual — not quite as lame as avocado and cottage cheese and stuff, but this is not going to be your spot for cake batter, let me just say. I went classic: vanilla and chocolate («best of» salted caramel was nowhere in sight, curiously) with hot fudge (really chocolate sauce) and whipped cream. Wanted to get the lay of the land. Daughter got vanilla with sprinkles (which were really hard/​crunchy, tasted like three-​month-​old pure sugar crystals — nice colors, at least — important to a two-​year-​old). Husband got OMFG yogurt, and let me just say that the «F» is a gross overstatement. In fact, I’d probably do away with the «O» and the «G,» too — leaving «My yogurt.» Because that’s about as much of a descriptive party as we got. Mine was lackluster at best, and the whipped cream straight-​up tasted like plastic. I scooped it to the side to avoid mutating my cells on the spot. Thanks for the melted BPA, 3 scoops! What a fun summer treat! (gag)
Cash only, $ 16 — robbery.
Having just watched ‘Capitalism: A Love Story’ (somewhat under duress), I’m in a soft state when it comes to mom & pop’s — and yet if Capital One were to take over 3 Scoops with one of those new weird bank-​cafes that no one (including their advertisers) can figure out, I’m just saying that I might decide to stop in for some unethically-​sourced java. To restore the «F» I got from 3 Scoops, that is, and to add my own «U.»

Pretty disappointed in both the portion sizes and flavors. Have lived in the area for years, and used to patronize much, much more before it changed ownership. Now, with the new owners, prices are up, sizes are down, and flavor is nowhere to be found. Went in there tonight and ordered a medium half pumpkin/​half OMFG ice cream and paid as much as a I would have for a pint at the grocery. Was incredibly disappointed on my arrrival home that the pumpkin was virtually flavorless. I ate most of the OMFG, which also wasn’t as good as it’s been in the past, and I tossed the rest. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me… I won’t be going back

Ice Cream was really yummy!!! Purple Cow (raspberry ice cream with choco nibs), really good! The customer service could use a little sprucing up — but then again, maybe that’s because i’m from San Francisco and think that ice cream should be served with a smile.

2 weeks ago I had the worst ice cream experience of my life, and I know that’s an oxymoron! I was rushed by the girl serving me, she was incredibly rude and gritted her teeth the whole time, probably just because the place was about to close in 15 mins and it got crowded. I didn’t even ask for a sample or anything… just rude!!!

Feel bad giving them a bad review, but I used to love this place and then once it changed owners… not so much. The prices went way up and the sizes got way smaller — its pretty ridiculous. The ice cream is pretty good but its not worth it at all.

So, I moved to Brighton last August and since the weather has been pretty miserable I haven’t had that «I need ice cream feeling.» Not the «I need Ice cream I just got dumped» feeling or the «I had the shittiest day in the world give me chocolate» feeling. I mean that gorgeous day, summery night, and you need ice cream to top it off feeling. Well this happened on Sunday and my Sister and I were deciding where to go. Our first instinct was to venture to Allston for Froyo but the parking situation looked questionable. We decided on 3 scoops since its literally a five minute walk from my apartment.
The only reason this place is getting four stars is because the guy who took my sister’s order is either a complete asshole or had a rough day. Regardless, the ice cream is phenomenal. I think they are little ice cream gods here. I highly recommend the OMFG. It was a little awkward ordering it. I wasn’t sure if I should toss the F-​word in there or use the acronym so I panicked and pointed. It didn’t matter. If your looking for a rich chocolate overload, do it. My sister got the peanut butter OMFG and another scoop of white chocolate and she was pleased with both. I definitely recommend it here. It’s quaint inside, not much seating, but we didn’t have any intention of staying. My sister gets impatient to eat her treats.
All in all I predict this will be a go to place. Also, they have crazy flavors and they post them on facebook which is extremely convenient.

So, I really wanted to like this place more but I was a little disappointed. The ice cream and everything is homemade which is great and the atmosphere is nice. It is clean, well-​organized and feels warm. However, they only had a very limited number of flavors. I will say that they did have vegan ice cream which I thought was nice and would be good for my vegan friends. I tried a sample of it and it wasn’t bad. So, for any vegans out there, this is your place. The thing that hung me up the most was the consistency of one of my ice creams. I got a medium (2 flavors $ 4.44) w purple cow and then a mint chip. The purple cow was good but the black raspberry could have been a little more flavorful. The mint chip was almost empty so I got the bottom of the carton, which may explain this next part, but the ice cream was a little… chewy? It was a bit gummy and kind of chewy so it was weirding me out. Aside from this, the flavor was nice.
I am not sure if I’d go back but I do believe in supporting small businesses and I like that they cater to the vegan community too. They also have sorbet, if you are lactose intolerant. I think if they incorporated more flavors into the menu at any given time then this would increase my liking for 3 Scoops.

A great find in Brighton offering some very tasty ice cream =D Had a chance to try to their Bourbon Pecan Pie, OMFG (dark chocolate) and Banana Foster before ultimately deciding on the bourbon-​infused goodness. The ice cream has a nice creamy texture and the quality isn’t too far off at all from Tosci’s, which is my benchmark for the greater Boston area. Additionally, the OMFG in particular is a worthy alternative to the amazingness that is Picco’s Dark Chocolate ice cream.

I’ve heard that they are overpriced – heard right. But what made me write this was that i had the WORST frappé ever. This means they have gross chunks of malt, unmixed, and with so little ice cream in the frappé that the employee was forced to pour hershey’s syrup into it. So… it was worse than buying syrup in a store and pouring it into milk.
My guess is the owner’s have gone cheap – prices up, portions down, and filler instead of ice cream. Weak shite.

Honestly I came here the other night and I was really disappointed. The prices have gone up and the sizes have gotten smaller. Before my husband and I could have shared a small. I ordered a medium and it was barely enough for me. Also they didn’t have either one of our favorite flavors anymore.
I don’t know if I will go back anymore. For the prices I should just go somewhere else and get better ice cream and more of it.

had variety of flavors and types (ice cream, froyo, etc).
got a waffle cone and small cup for $ 9. pretty standard size for the price.

Adding in an update because they were super friendly and accommodating when I asked about sugar-​free and low-​sugar flavors. The guy was very patient about my questions and even helped brainstorm a few flavors with me. That’s going above and beyond, in my opinion.

I returned to 3 Scoops last week and was disappointed with the experience. While they now take credit/​debit cards, which is fantastic, everything else seems to have gone downhill.
There was one couple ahead of us in line and one of them ordered a flavor that was frozen so solid the woman at the counter finally said she couldn’t scoop it and asked if they could order something else. I found this ridiculous on two levels: first, that their freezer is clearly not calibrated correctly, and second, that this became the customer’s problem.
I ordered a small sundae, which was comically small. It truly looked like a peewee cup. At $ 5 this was also absurd, particularly with so many other excellent ice cream options in the Boston area that offer more for the money (Soc’s and JP Licks also offer premium ice cream but they do so in reasonable portions at similar prices).
I want to love 3 Scoops again; it’s my neighborhood ice cream place and I know how great it once was…

3 scoops is great,
They draw me in with that clever placard outside that outlines how much better one of their healthy cones is than the custard place up the street, and then i end up ordering something else, .haha.
The ice cream is good, and the service is always on point. Only issue is that it seems the soft serve machine is regularly out of order… (or at least when i have happened to pop in)
Otherwise its wonderful.

Now THIS is an ice cream shop! It’s clean, comfortable and the perfect size. The staff is friendly and patient when you want to try any or all of the flavors. Good location in Brighton Center.
They have both hard ice cream and soft serve. I tried several flavors but ultimately landed on the coffee cookies and cream. Made a sundae out of it. It’s a nice treat to see a reasonably priced sundae unlike many others in this area.
Dogs love 3 Scoops, by the way. Free dog treats. It was like a dog convention outside.
And now they are accepting credit/​debit cards. Talk about a perfect ice cream shop! I’ll be back here again soon (okay — probably today) and will bring more friends to make into believers.

I love great ice cream. I love vegan options as well on occasion, which can often be limiting when it comes to dairy because I’m allergic to soymilk. They carry at least a few non-​dairy ice creams, some with soy, some with coconut and rice milk. So rarely you see that in an ice cream shop.
They always have at least a few interesting flavors. They’re all delicious and always hit the spot (mexican chocolate is excellent)
And they double as an art gallery. I love integrated art spaces.

Visited last night for the first time and found my holy grail of ice cream, or «ice cream» I guess since they had a lactose-intolerant’s dream dessert — coconut ice cream made with soy and coconut milks.
After tasting my scoop (with chocolate jimmies, in a sugar cone) I loved it so much my boyfriend insisted we get a pint to go. They staff was super helpful, and friendly. They have tons of flavors of frozen yogurt and dairy-​filled ice cream too, and even have soft serve!
3 Scoops is definitely going to be my go-​to ice cream shop this summer! If you get out to Brighton Center it’s a must try!

I was very underwhelmed with this place and am not sure why people are raving about this place in the other reviews. Seriously have you people ever had ice cream from anywhere else?
The first thing that turned me off to this place was the fact the one freezer case was either broken or turned off and the other one was dirty looking and most the containers they had the ice cream in were beaten up looking and had very noticeably bad freezer burn on them. The selections of flavors was not very good and they didn’t have anything bordering interesting. The next issue was the guy working there. He was unfriendly, didn’t answer any questions and actually grunted at me at one point instead of using words. The ice cream I was barely better than what you can buy at the grocery store. They were cash only as well unlike almost every other ice cream store in the city. So I will not be returning which I hate because this place is nearby and is not a chain so I want to like it, but just can’t.