New Ice Cream Machine Hits Lexington

On Thursday, March 30th, 2023, the greatest addition since the spice rack hit the Lexington food line: a soft serve ice cream machine. Complete with both caramel and chocolate sauce, the first day saw almost every person in the lunchroom excitedly carrying a small bowl of the new frozen dessert to their respective tables.

The only flavors that have been seen so far are vanilla, chocolate, and chocolate-vanilla swirl, though there are plans for the machine to feature alternative flavors (all dairy free) such as root beer float, creamsicle, and possibly others. As time goes on we might even see the addition of a few more toppings. Though, even if it was culinarily static, the ice cream machine would still be a small miracle.

Back in September, when IMSA’s Student Council (StudCo) first met with Lexington, IMSA’s food provider, the idea of introducing an ice cream/froyo machine was brought up and subsequently rejected due to concerns regarding health and cost related issues. Luckily, through the advocacy and efforts of StudCo’s Lexington Team (which also brought students the spice rack), the idea was brought back to the table, negotiated, and then implemented in just a few short months.

The new ice cream machine has evoked a large range of opinions among Lexington diners. Some have praised it, such as Winston Mattson (‘24) who described it as “simply too good for our cafeteria, a diamond in the rough,” and Dashiell Leigh (‘24) who said “It’s gonna make me make bad decisions.” Other people brought up some oddities with the taste with Ethan Dawes (‘23) stating “The ice cream is fair, but it’s more ice than cream,” and Venus Obazuaye (‘23) saying “I think the taste is interesting, it tastes like a cross between ice and frozen yogurt.” Either way, everyone agreed that, as Nomar Martin (‘23) stated, “it’s such a big privilege that we get to have this in the first place,” and that they “didn’t think they would go through with it so quickly and that it has run surprisingly smoothly.” Venus Obazuaye (‘23) added that they were extremely excited about and grateful for the new ice cream machine.

Though it’s been kicking up a buzz, this actually isn’t the first time IMSA’s food provider has featured an ice cream machine. Before being replaced by Lexington after quarantine, Sodexo used to have an ice cream machine. It was lost somewhere between the switch and, based on Lexington’s original sentiment within their first meeting with StudCo, was probably deemed too expensive or unhealthy. The previous machine definitely wasn’t the most reliable. According to Willow Dennison (‘22), “It was broken 90% of the time.” Hopefully this isn’t an omen for what’s to come with Lexington’s machine, given that it has already broken down multiple times within just the first few days it has been active. Venus Obazuaye (‘23) also expressed that they were “a bit scared it will break because one day it just came out as liquid.”

It might be a good idea to take a page out of IMSA’s ice cream machine past, though, by using it to create some new and interesting food combinations. An old article from The Acronym instructs its reader to use Sodexo’s machine to create delicious ice cream floats, a combination which, in The Acronym’s opinion, needs to hit Lexington. The Acronym would also like to suggest that readers take Lexington brownies, warm them up in the microwave, and top them with ice cream and chocolate sauce for another fun treat that makes the most of this new addition.

As time goes on and the ice cream machine becomes commonplace, be sure to think of the members of StudCo who pushed for it and the Lexington workers who make it possible every time you get a bowl of soft serve goodness.