The Spy always loves an invitation for food, so when Kathy Lash sent a note last week, we high-stepped right over to the new/old Justine’s, in St. Michaels.
“You just can’t keep an old broad down” chuckled Tom Quimby, as he expertly mixed ice cream and special secret ingredients to make a to-die-for creamsicle milkshake. Quimby ran Justine’s Ice Cream Parlour in St. Michaels for most of its 25 years history, and now – after a several year hiatus – both Quimby and Justine’s are back, with the same feel and old menu that made Justine’s what it was for so many in St. Michaels since the late 1980s.
Memory is triggered most powerfully by taste and smell, and stepping back into the new/old Justine’s, one is rocketed back to St. Michaels, just how it used to be. With the famous “wall of shakes” and Quimby’s impish smile, you just might think you’re 15 years younger, standing at the counter on Talbot St. on a hot afternoon.
Justine’s was purchased in early May by Kathy Lash and Joe Trippi, active in D.C. politics, who have been summering in St. Michaels forever. When Kathy saw the opportunity to purchase part of her memories of St. Michaels summers, she jumped at the chance and promptly found Quimby, who was ready to go back into business in St. Michaels. One month later, and the shop looks just like it used to, and with some new, fresh young faces, is fully operational once again.
With over 40 different shakes, all original, old fashioned ice cream floats made with syrup and seltzer water, banana boats and malts, Justine’s is the kind of place you start at in June, at one end of the menu, and finish up in October, having tried it all. “It’s just a happy experience”, said Lash. Indeed, how could it be anything else?
Quimby created three different “taste tests” – a creamsicle shake (most popular, hands down, over time), a hot fudge sundae shake/malt (oh, yeah!) and a key lime shake (omg!). We sat at a table in the shop by the window, watching people walk by, as we slowly slurped the shakes like kids. Lash’s nephew Jarred Heim walked in the door in an ice cream costume (what a good sport!) and piped in with facts and figures about the product offerings. Lash, a petite, perky blonde cheerleader, skilled as a press secretary for a member of Congress and filled with clever marketing ideas, perched on a stool nearby.
“Like us on facebook and help us create new shake concepts!” she said. The current new invention, created by facebook fans is tied to St. Michaels’ history, just like Justine’s. It’s called “the sundae that fooled the British” and you too, can join in the fun and offer your suggestions about what it might look like. A cannonball surprise – raspberry, blueberry and vanilla, with chocolate chips like cannonballs sprinkled on top? Go ahead and enter your ideas on their facebook page and win.
Other new items on the extensive menu include peanut butter and chocolate covered pretzel treats, a HOT chocolate shake (yes, cayenne!) and fresh fruity delights. You’ll see and hear more social media fun, such as “where in the world is Justine’s?”, so stay tuned for more from Lash and Quimby.
Celebrating 25 years of ice cream – Justine’s in St. Michaels is proving that you definitely can’t keep an old broad down, especially when she’s serving up America’s favorite treat, in one of America’s prettiest summertime towns.
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Justine’s – 106 N. Talbot St. 410-745-0404
Open Sun through Thurs 11 a.m. – 8 p.m., and Friday & Saturday 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
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