Flying Way, Way Under the Radar: Bent Spoon Ice Cream of Princeton, NJ

You thought our coverage of the New Amsterdam Market was over? Not by a long shot. The monthly event was so compelling, that at least three Fork in the Road scribes attended--unbeknownst to each other--and filed separate stories. Sarah DiGregorio gave us a delicious overview, while Rebecca Marx detailed how the yet-to-be-opened Meat Hook was already flogging peripheral merchandise like caps, T-shirts, and snuggies for your can of beer.

Of an estimated 60 vendors, many offered either free tastes or reasonably priced portions, and I spent a happy hour grazing among the stalls. I ate a charcoal-grilled bratwurst with homemade sauerkraut, pork sausages and beans, a bowl of serious chili, and a handful of other small plates, all priced at $5 or less--it was quite a deal compared to the awful NYC Dumpling Festival I'd attended the day before.

My favorite treat came from an obscure Princeton ice cream maker. Bent Spoon scooped a choice of three ice creams all afternoon, with a pair of scoops costing only $3.50, which is on par with lesser ice cream around town. They could have gouged $5 if they wanted, their ice cream was so good.

The rosemary-chocolate might have been a bit weird, except the herb was reduced to a mere whisper, while the product was mega-chocolately. Best of all was pumpkin with chocolate nibs (pictured above). The ice cream was miraculously devoid of pumpkin pie spices, so it tasted of sweet fresh gourd, and the chocolate nibs provided more crunch than flavor at first, but then lingered as a choco-aftertaste. It was so good, I'm contemplating a trip to Princeton, since the next New Amsterdam Market is still a month away.