THE LOCALS IN VERMONT FLOCK TO CANTEEN CREEMEE CO.
In the Mad River Valley, the creemee reigns supreme.
Canteen serves the Green Mountan State's summer scene with traditional creemees—and much wilder creations.
A LINE SNAKES UP TO A BANK of sliding order windows in a shopping plaza off Waitsfield Route 100. It's a Vermont summertime tradition: Canteen Creemee Co., a pint-sized corner landmark.
Truck beds have tubes piled high, fresh from floats on the Mad River. Wet hair, bathing suits, towels draped on shoulders—this is the scene on languid, high-summer days. As the line moves forward, hands reach out from the kitchen with voluminous twists of dark chocolate, maple, wild blueberry, basil and hon- ey lemon. Patrons stand by, catching loose drips on their tongues, reaching for more napkins. Canteen’s space, although renovated before opening in 2016, has a legacy of serving up snacks and creemees; for many years, it was Country Creemee & Grill.
“I love snack bars,” admits owner Charlie Menard. “I was always looking for places like this that made their own food. I wanted to make a place that did that.”
ROAD INTEL
Little River State Park, just north of historic Waterbury, offers 81 tent/RV sites.
Any summer road trip through Vermont will lead to a creemee stand; there are more than 400 in the state. The plush frozen dairy confection is a beloved staple, and eating it is a seasonal rite: its higher butterfat content and its landmark flavor of renown—maple—distinguish the creemee from your typical soft-serve experience. At Canteen, Menard sources his maple from local Dave Hartshorn and uses a classic creemee mix from Kingdom Creamery of Vermont in East Hardwick. “We use the 10-percent fat mix,” he says. “Nice, full fat.” Canteen also whips less air into its concoction than most rivals.
What really sets Canteen apart in Vermont’s sea of creemees is the equal attention paid to its food menu. Fried chicken—from two-piece to 32-piece, served with cornbread pudding and pickles—anchors the savory offerings. They also sling a classic burger, a cheese-steak, sometimes duck confit. No freezer-to-fryer here, ever—everything is made to order, often by a kitchen staff populated by young people from the community. There’s a host of regular customers, bolstered by a surprising, burgeoning crop of road-trippers from far and wide.
Soon enough, skiers will descend from Sugarbush and Mad River Glen for a twist in the snow, but for now, it's warm days cooled by a creemee, unspooling into heady evenings.
