With a rotating menu and creative flavors, Baltimore-based The Charmery is a delicious Jewish-owned ice cream shop that has a new location in Chevy Chase. It oozes positive energy through silly paintings of ice cream monsters and window decals that look like sprinkles. I highly recommend checking it out if you’re looking for a sweet treat.
The Charmery menu is divided into two categories: “Always” and “#NowScooping.” The “Always” flavors include classics like vanilla and chocolate along with unique options like “Old Bay Caramel.” The “#NowScooping” flavors rotate seasonally and tend to run on the eccentric side.
For instance, when I visited, I tried a single scoop of a temporary flavor called “Peanut Butter and Jelly” ($6.49). It was fruity and rich with a thick and creamy consistency. I could tell that the vanilla base was high-quality ice cream. It did a great job of incorporating unique flavors while maintaining a widespread appeal.
I also enjoyed the temporary flavor “Saturday Morning Cartoons,” a vanilla base with fruity cereals mixed in. The texture had an ideal combination of creaminess and crunch. Creative flavors are a huge draw for The Charmery, whether you’re a casual ice cream enjoyer or an aficionado.
This business started with a husband and wife team from Baltimore who met at Jewish summer camp. Their shared love of ice cream leads them to invent these creative flavors, and they will often incorporate flavors that pay homage to their Jewish background, like tahini ice cream.
The Charmery is also great at the basics, like their permanent flavor Maryland Mud, a chocolate base with Oreos and chocolate chips. I had this flavor as a sundae ($10.49) with whipped cream, sprinkles and fudge. I found the fudge to be too rich for my taste, but all of the flavors in the ice cream and the sundae toppings worked well together.
The staff at the Charmery was nice and accommodating, especially when I asked to sample flavors. They were knowledgeable and helpful.
The pricing is also fairly reasonable and comparable to other ice cream shops in the area. Pricing ranges by the scoop with additional charges for toppings, and The Charmery also offers pints for $10.99. I did, however, find it unreasonable that a sundae with two scoops of ice cream cost nearly the same as a pint.
The Charmery is located in the up-and-coming community at Chevy Chase Lake. I had no trouble finding free parking on the street, though I could not find commercial parking within The Charmery’s complex. Chevy Chase Lake has a variety of outdoor seating at benches and tables, though its proximity to Connecticut Avenue makes sitting there less pleasant. The Charmery has dedicated areas for both indoor and outdoor seating.
Overall, The Charmery is a great place to go if you want to expand your ice cream palette with creative flavors. Check it out if you’re craving a sweet treat and want to support a Maryland Jewish-owned business.
