BIG SOFTIE. WHY SOFT SERVE AT FAMILIAR CREATURE IS A DESTINATION DESSERT
Familiar Creature gets a lot of things right from its award-winning wine list to schmaltzy potatoes. But Saratoga’s Montréal-inspired wine bar opened last year with a single dessert: soft serve. And while Chef Michele Hunter’s monthly flavors have a cult fan base, the wine bar is getting an unexpected rep as a dessert destination for ice cream.
Story: Susie Davidson Powell | Photos: SDP/The Dishing | Location: Familiar Creature, Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Last weekend, after a particularly hefty porterhouse dinner for two at Solevo Kitchen with the Belmont Stakes on TV, we skipped dessert and stepped into the warm night. But we weren’t going straight to the car. First, we needed to head across the street in search of this month’s soft serve creation: Vanilla mascarpone ice cream with poached rhubarb, roasted strawberries, basil syrup and caramelized puff pastry.
Destination dessert: Soft serve
The flavor: This week’s flavor happened to be vanilla mascarpone ice cream with poached rhubarb, roasted strawberries, basil syrup and caramelized puff pastry, but they have had many other bangers. Think bergamot, frozen hot cocoa, espresso with caramel and hazelnut, blueberry s’more, and strawberry shortcake with homemade strawberry shortcake + strawberry crumbles. Whether you check the flavor on Instagram or go uninformed, you will not be disappointed.
Why soft serve? We asked Chef Michele.
“Brendan and I were trying to keep things light and fun, and I thought WHY NOT soft serve?! It’s hard to find year round in Saratoga, and is one of my favorite desserts!” - MH
Chef, what’s been your favorite to date?
“Hmmm…. Favorite to date is a hard choice. Pistachio is a personal favorite for soft serve overall - and the pink peppercorn meringue with it was so tasty. The sweet corn soft serve is probably my favorite; it was a fun one to develop the flavor for and it felt very unique.” - MH
What’s a flavor you are working on or want to try?
“I’m honestly excited to try a chocolate sorbet in soft serve - but kind of like a fudgesicle I would eat as a kid. But, we are eating a lot of ube things out here and that may make an appearance this summer!”
What to pair? Can’t go wrong with a glass of bubbly, but if this is your last stop of the night, you might want to go with Dr. Loosen’s non-alc riesling from the historic German estate in the Mosel region. Wine Director Miles Merton has both still and sparkling N/A riesling on the list! Trust him. - SDP