30 Scoops in 30 Days: Manhattan Beach Creamery (Day 14)

Manhattan Beach Creamery is a pleasant neighborhood ice cream store, stocked with as much candy as it is ice cream. The white leather, half-shell chairs, halfway between Louis XIV and Philippe Starck, are a good spot to watch surfers trudge to and from the pier or Saturday Night or Saturday night revelers stream into Simmzy's, popular for its pub burger and craft beer selection, and David LeFevre's newly opened M.B. Post.

They make their own ice cream, offering about two dozen flavors at a time. Though it's house-made it tastes more or less like Dreyer's, if the supermarket brand was a wee bit more experimental. There's red velvet ice cream strewn with cake and strawberry ice cream with gobs of strawberries that have been so thoroughly gelatinized they may as well be sticky jam balls. The cones are dipped in chocolate, sprinkles and nuts (if you want), and the ice cream can be served as a sandwich between two flat, rather dull cookies. It's all fine, if unmemorable.

What's most lovely about Manhattan Beach Creamery is the candy. Pretzels, marshmallows and just about anything else you can think of dipped into chocolate. It's a bit like being in the Disneyland candy store, minus the Selena Gomez soundtrack and the wall-to-wall sensory stimulation. Still, there are enough treats here to make Willy Wonka nod his head in approval.

This is a good family place and a nice neighborhood shop but not worth driving any distance to visit.

• Day 13: Jerry's Soda Shoppe


• Day 12: N'ice Cream


• Day 11: Gelato Bar


• Day 10: Kind Kreme


• Day 9: Rite Aid


• Day 8: Saffron & Rose


• Day 7: Carmela Ice Cream


• Day 6: Mikawaya


• Day 5: Grom Gelateria


• Day 4: Sweet Rose Creamery


• Day 3: Fosselman's


• Day 2: Mateo's Ice Cream & Fruit Bars


• Day 1: Scoops Westside


• Day 0: It Begins!