Just off of Highway 101, Tin City plaza is an industrial park full of tasting rooms, including wineries, a cider bar, a brewery and a brandy distiller: an amusement park for the imbiber. For road-ragged teetotalers, there is a wonderful ice cream shop. The scoops are delicious, low-lactose and low-fat, so there’s no excuse to miss it.
The Negranti Creamery isn’t just another kooky ice cream shop. Sure, signature flavors such as blackberry-rosemary and salted brown sugar shadow trends of hip scoop shops that love to balance the sweet and the savory, but this ice cream tastes completely different from any other we’ve tasted. The difference is sheep milk.
Sheep milk doesn’t add much in the way of flavor, but instead makes creamy ice cream without enough lactose to upset sensitive digesters and without enough fat to spoil a diet. (For dairy traditionalists who miss the richness of traditional cow milk ice cream, a few flavors made with conventional milk are available.)
We love the cinnamon and honey flavor because the combination goes so well with the lighter ice cream base. It reminds us of Mexican horchata (sweetened rice milk).
We also like Tin City Road, a hybrid of rocky road and an old-fashioned tin roof sundae: chocolate ice cream base swirled with marshmallow fluff, caramel, and peanuts. It works because the ice cream base itself is so light and refreshing.
The advantage of starting with the softer sheep milk background is that you can throw anything in or on this frozen treat. The menu includes a variety of sauces, syrups and a killer waffle cone. Every scoop served in a cup includes a little waffle cone chip to enrich it. The waffle chip may be used in place of a spoon for those who are absolutely committed to conservation of materials.
Other Nearby Restaurants
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SloDoCo Donuts
San Luis Obispo, CaliforniaSloDoCo offers colorful, creative strip mall donuts. It’s open all night to feed and caffeinate college students and the road weary.
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Lotus
San Luis Obispo, CaliforniaWhen Banh Mi craving hits in San Luis Obispo, find Lotus, a hidden Vietnamese restaurant amidst the shops and eateries of a busy downtown.
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Tognazzini’s Dockside Too
Morro Bay, CaliforniaTognazzini’s Dockside Too is the place to be in Morro Bay, California, for a casual seafood meal in a dog-friendly environment with a view of Morro Rock.
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Bijou Bakery
Cayucos, CaliforniaOne bite of a pastry from Bijou Bakery is all you need to understand why this special spot is considered a Central Coast gem by locals and visitors.
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Taco Temple
Morro Bay, CaliforniaIn Morro Bay, California, Taco Temple puts a special twist on tacos and other familiar Mexican-American restaurant favorites.
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Cavalier Coastal Kitchen
San Simeon, CaliforniaFor a casual, comforting meal with the Pacific Ocean in view, swing into the Cavalier Coastal Kitchen on your drive through California’s Central Coast.