Summer’s in its two-minute drill—time to scoop like you mean it. I’m bouncing around Tolland County this week taste-testing the top spots - strictly scientific. Roll up with kids, date night, or your competitive frenemy; loser buys sprinkles.

UConn Dairy Bar | 17 Manter Rd, Storrs, CT 06269 | Campus legend. Ice cream made on site—walk the cows, then crush a cone.

Fish Family Farm Creamery & Dairy | 20 Dimock Ln, Bolton, CT 06043 | Working dairy pouring their own milk and making ice cream on the hill. Farm views taste better.

Kloter’s Ice Cream Barn | 216 West Rd, Ellington, CT 06029 | Walk-up window, fresh waffle cones, classic flavors—post up by the displays and chill.

The Scoop Ice Cream Cafe | 18 Church St, Ellington, CT 06029 | Neighborhood scoop shop with super-premium vibes. Quick cone, big smiles.

Ice Cream Depot | 8 Main St, Stafford Springs, CT 06076 | Small-town stand since ’76. Order a sundae, watch Main Street roll by.

Sonny’s Place – Ice Cream Window | 349 Main St (CT-190), Somers, CT 06071 | Mini golf + hard ice cream = kid-bribe combo. Park once, play hard, scoop harder.

ConeHeads Creamery | 95 Hartford Tpke, Vernon, CT 06066 | 32 “homemade” flavors at the reborn CT Golfland. Dino-golf, then dessert.

Stearns Farm Stand / Red Barn Creamery | 483 Browns Rd, Storrs, CT 06268 | Fresh ice cream “from our cows.” Farm stand snacks + country-lane sunset.

American Creamery | 206 Merrow Rd, Tolland, CT 06084 | Old-school counter with shakes and scoops—easy win after errands on 195.

Frankie G’s Ice Cream | 448 Hartford Tpke, Vernon, CT 06066 | New walk-up window on the strip. Grab a cone, watch the traffic show.

Missed a must-lick? Reply and help us build the county-wide list and we’ll spin up a permanent page.

Put your news where neighbors actually look. Reach 8,000+ locals across Hartford, Tolland & Windham Counties with a sponsored spotlight.

You probably cracked last week’s scramble: HARRY A. GAMPEL PAVILION. Opened Jan 27, 1990—UConn men beat St. John’s 72–58 on night one. Seats 10,299 under a circular aluminum roof about 320 ft across and roughly 140 ft high. The arena spans ~171,000 sq ft, with the 39,000 sq ft Wolff-Zackin Natatorium attached next door. Game-night thunder, right in the middle of Storrs.

So who’s Gampel? Hartford-born, UConn ’43. He cut a $1M check, the biggest private gift to the university at the time, and got naming rights in perpetuity. Then he built big in South Florida: think One Boca Place and Presidential Circle. Deep in Jewish civic life, too, with leadership ties that ran from Hartford to Aventura.

The building keeps leveling up. A $10M roof/ceiling panel overhaul landed in 2017. In 2024, UConn green-lit venue upgrades and swapped in two end-wall video boards nearly 120×20 ft each. And in 2025, SLAM Collaborative won the design gig for a planned $100M renovation - backed by Board approvals, including $9M for design work. Same dome. Sharper teeth.

SATURDAY 8/30

Storrs | Battle of the Bands | 2pm - Waldron’s 88 is hosting a Battle of The Bands at the Celebrate Mansfield Main Stage (2 Dog Ln). Eight bands, 20-minutes a piece, with the winner being featured at Celebrate Mansfield in Sept! Come support the next generation of local musicians! It’s also the perfect chance to check out what UConn is looking like these days.

Vernon | Back-To-School Photos/Fun | 4-6pm - Get some free back-to-school photos at Modern Style Events (400 Talcottville Rd). Events start on Tues 8/26 (and run on 8/27 and 8/28 at the same time) and end on 8/29 (6-9pm). On Friday, there will be a photobooth, games, and raffle. Family-friendly vendors and giveaways as well.

LIVE MUSIC

⬢ Bolton Green - Bolton | Rock Solid Alibi | 6:30pm

Rockville | Family Crafternoon | 4-5pm - This is the perfect chance for a little more family bonding before the little ones (elementary ages are best for this) head back to school full time. Drop into the Rockville Public Library (52 Union St) for arts and crafts.

LIVE MUSIC

⬢ Bolton Green - Bolton | Nightshift | 6:30pm

Vernon | Watercolor Basics | 6-8:30pm $ - This beginner-oriented class is great for dipping your toes into the watercolor pool (not my best water-related analogy, but you get it). Sign up with Arts Center East (709 Hartford Tpke).

LIVE MUSIC

⬢ Bidwell Tavern - Coventry | Acoustic Anomaly | 6pm
⬢ Joannas - Somers | Stix-n-Lix | 6pm

TRIVIA

Rocking Horse - Vernon | 7-9pm

Somers | Cruise Night | 4-8pm - Grab a glass of wine and check out some beautiful vintage cars at Worthington Vineyards (359 Mountain Rd). This is a family-friendly event! Well, not the wine part of it, but I’m hoping you knew that already.

Somers | Movie In The Park | 7:45pm - Bring the youngins to a family-friendly movie in the park (619 Main St). Somers Rec will be showing the movie If!.

Storrs | 3rd Annual Barn Sale | 10am-2pm - Listen, I’m not going to not put in a barn sale. Too many treasures to discover at 341 Hanks Hill Rd. Happy hunting!

Vernon | Ladies Cash Tournament | 7pm $ - Show those other women you mean business when it comes to shooting pool at Racks (500 Talcottville Rd). Bring cash, and some skills!

LIVE MUSIC

⬢ Greenleaf Cafe - Hebron | Brother Earl | 8:30pm
⬢ Cassidy Hill Vineyard - Coventry | Right Moment Band Duo | 6-8pm
⬢ Beni’s Restaurant - Vernon | Aaron Spearin | 6-9pm
⬢ Joannas - Somers | Chick’n’Wire | 6:30-9:30pm

Bolton | Lutz Farm Day | 9am-5pm $ - For $15, you get unlimited ice cream, barn tours, hayrides, live music, and more at Fish Family Farm (20 Dimock Ln). Additional tickets can be purchased for more activities. Portions of the proceeds will go towards the Lutz Children’s Museum in Manchester (one of my middle son’s favorite places!).

Columbia | Beginner Stained Glass | 11am-12:30pm $ - Learn how to make a stained glass lady bug garden stake at The Main Moose (94 Rt 66 E). Tix

Ellington | Farmers Market | 9am-12pm - This week’s theme is “Meet You Community Organizations” at the Ellington Farmers Market (72 Maple St). It’s the perfect opportunity to meet the people who are trying to make Ellington the best town it can be! Who knows, you may even find somewhere you’d want to volunteer.

Ellington | FXR Day | 10am-3pm - Old School Harley-Davidson (398 Somers Rd) is hosting one of the biggest FXR events in the Northeast. Judging and trophies for several categories, and an afterparty at Black-Eyed Sally’s in Hartford.

Somers | Puppies & Pilates | 11am-12pm $ - Take the most adorable Pilates class you’ve ever dreamed of at Worthington Vineyards (359 Mountain Rd). Keep in mind, these are puppies - and they’ll act like them, so if you’re super serious about your workout, you may want to skip this one. A glass of wine is included with the ticket! Tix

Stafford Springs | Farmers Market | 10am-12pm - Take the drive to the Sun Valley Beach Club (51 Old Springfield Rd) to check out the best of what local farmers, makers, and bakers, have to offer.

Storrs | Farmers Market | 3-5pm - You know the drill at this point, Storrs Farmers Market (4 S Eagleville Rd) - fresh produce, meat, and more.

Tolland | Annual Fun Fest | 12-5:30pm - The Quarry Campground (704 Shenipsit Lake Rd) is holding a day of fun, with entertainers, food trucks, bounce houses, games, animals, and more. It’s a little unclear whether or not you need to be a camper to enjoy, but you can always just pretend like you belong there (I take no responsibility if you end up getting kicked out. Though, that might end up for an entertaining story).

Vernon | Vernon Pet Pantry Help | 10am-2pm - Here’s your chance to do a good deed for pooches that deserve it! The Vernon Pet Pantry is looking for donations of pet food and any pet supplies you’d like to donate.

Vernon | Mindful Bike Ride | 10am - The Buddhist Faith Fellowship of CT is hosting a relaxing ride from the Hop River Trail Parking Lot (51 Church St) to Bolton State Park and back. You don’t need to be a member of the church, or even Buddhist, to ride. If you’re feeling generous, a $10 donation would be graciously accepted.

LIVE MUSIC

⬢ Rocking Horse - Vernon | Whiskey Boulevard | 9pm-12am
⬢ Stillwater Grill - Stafford Springs | Karaoke | 9pm-12am

Coventry | Farmers Market | 10am-1pm - It’s Savor n’ Sip Sunday at the Coventry Farmers Market (2299 South St) this week. I don’t know for sure what that means, but it sounds delicious to me!

Mansfield | Grist Mill Tour | 1-5pm - If you haven’t taken advantage of the free tours of Gurleyville Grist Mill (Stone Rd), then what are you doing? Get out into nature, and pick up some local history along the way!

Stafford Springs | Sunfest | 1-8pm $ - For just $20, you can check out Cold Train, Shovel Head, Rockoustic, and King Kuel at Four Seasons By The Lake (51 Old Springfield Rd). Rain or shine, it promises to be a day filled with music!

LIVE MUSIC

⬢ Cedar Knob Golf Course - Somers | Just Some People | 1-4pm
⬢ Mill Pond Country Store - Stafford Springs | Selena Nicole | 2-4pm

Willington | Car Show | 4-8pm - Looking at classic cars doesn’t count as labor, right? Why not cruise over to Hilltop Restaurant for a family-friendly way to spend an evening. 50/50 and bucket raffle will be going on.