Foodstuffs: Cheap and Hidden Summer Desserts; Açaí Bowls; Heroes and Gin Night with Pammy’s

From Rónán Fitzgerald at Cambridge Day on June 26, 2023:

Casual ice cream and froyo

Wrongly reported “closed” on Yelp, Richardson’s Farm ice cream in the Somerville Theatre is very much thriving after the theater’s renovation. This small outlet of a Middleton company offers some of the cheapest ice cream around Camberville, with large portions – a massive scoop is only $4, a dollar or more under dedicated shops – and a rotating list of flavors such as German Chocolate Cake, Campfire S’mores and Banana Crunch (with banana and graham cracker) to keep you company during a movie or performance. You can also walk out with your ice cream, no ticket needed, from the lobby of the Somerville Theatre, 55 Davis Square.

Another tucked-away spot: Yotopia of The Shops at Porter, a collection of international restaurants and stores inside Lesley University’s University Hall, 1815 Massachusetts Ave., Porter Square. Alongside various Asian eateries is this frozen yogurt and boba tea shop, serving some of the area’s lowest prices since owner Sang Cho opened eight years ago. Classic froyo flavors such as Cookies and Cream and Matcha are 55 cents an ounce; a decently filled cup costs around $3. “People tell me my prices are too low, I need to go up,” Sang Cho said.

Açaí bowls and smoothies

Vitality Bowls hosts a “summer menu launch party” on Friday and Saturday: a buy-one-get-one-free deal on any açaí bowl, including new flavors: the Island Bowl (guava, acerola, banana, coconut shavings and mulberries), the Beach Bowl (coconut blend topped with granola, strawberries, pineapple and cacao nibs) and the Blue Bliss Bowl (pineapple, coconut, mango and blue spirulina topped with granola, banana, blueberries and coconut shavings). Many are marketed as “superfoods.”

“We qualify something as a superfood as anything with high elements of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber,” said Tim Johnson, owner of Vitality Bowls Cambridge. “If you’re looking for something different, bananas and oranges you’re going to get anywhere. But açaí berries, bee pollen, spirulina – they’re a little more niche, and the health benefits are proven.”

Also coming this summer are three new smoothies, Johnson said: Groovy Guava, Purple Passion and Pina Colada.

Vitality Bowls is at 425 Massachusetts Ave., Central Square, Cambridge.

Pammy’s heroes with gin

Pammy’s restaurant and Bully Boy Distillers team up from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday to serve Pammy’s signature Italian Hero Sandwich and Bully Boy’s Tre Fratelli (meaning “three brothers”) gin – but you’ll have to cross the river to the distillery near Nubian Square at 44 Cedric St., Boston.

Inspired by a conversation during a family meal, owner and chef of Pammy’s Chris Willis and his brothers Will and Dave Willis, owners of Bully Boy Distillers, decided to create Tre Fratelli gin exclusively for Pammy’s. This night only, Bully Boy offers it in cocktails, at a sampling station and in bottles.

One $38 ticket gets you an Italian Hero Sandwich, gin cocktail and access to the Cocktail Garden. You can buy them here.