Over the Moon for Molly

For years, I've had this secret desire to open up a dessert place in my neighborhood. I've got the theme picked out, the business plan written up, and some location ideas. But opening a shop would prohibit me from writing, running and raising our kids...so while I continue to kick the idea around in my head, it'll be years before it comes to fruition. I'll get to it once I send the kids off to college, go on the book tour for the first novel, and qualify for the Boston Marathon.

We live in a great little walking neighborhood and I've seen places come and go, but nothing truly dessert-oriented. We had, at one point, an ice cream store called "Wally's Scoop", but it catered to kids, mostly and was seriously lacking in atmosphere. The Crayola color-scheme just wasn't doin' it for me.

Last year, Trophy Cupcakes moved in, and while I enjoy their treats, they close by 8 p.m, so they don't cater to the late night crowd like, say, The Dilettante on Broadway or B&O Espresso.

We also have the Chocolati Cafe, and that's nice...if you just want chocolate.

So, what's a carbo-loading, sugar-craving, dessert addict to do on a Saturday night, after a movie? Well, I think someone may finally have a solution to my dilemma. Last Sunday, Molly Moon's Ice Cream Boutique opened on 45th , and not only are they open until eleven p.m., they've also got some pretty tasty ice cream.

I was never really a huge "gourmet" ice cream flavor gal. I like my Rocky Road, thank you very much; but when I took Mr. Na to Molly Moon's on Wednesday, I tried the salted caramel and the Vivace Coffee and whoa, were they ever yummy. Mr. Na had the "Scout" mint, and while it took him a minute or two to get past the fact that it wasn't artificially colored in green, he loved it. I also sampled the Cardamom, which I thought was nice, and I plan to come back for a full scoop in the near future.

It's nice to finally have a dessert place in the neighborhood that stays open long after the kiddies have gone to bed. It's even nicer that it's just ice cream, and not the treats I'm hoping to peddle one of these days!