In the midst of the heatwave the island felt this June, Hicksville became a little chillier with the opening of a new ice cream shop. Tucked in a shopping strip, Xtreme Treats, 259 W. Old Country Rd., opened its doors this summer to cool off guests young and old alike with its delicious ice cream concoctions.
A walk through the door and dessert enthusiasts are greeted by the sweet scents of vanilla and candy. Jars of baked goods like cookies, bark, biscotti and chocolates line the front counter, colorful chairs sit with tables along the wall and a shelving unit houses a seemingly endless amount of sugary treats and merchandise. Behind the cash registers, coffee awaits customers looking for a caffeinated pick-me-up and hot chocolate is available for those seeking something a little more sweet.
(Photos by Christina Claus)
To the left of the coffee and registers, the main attraction lies in the countertop in all its glory behind glass dividers. An assortment of cereals, like Fruity Pebbles, Lucky Charms and Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and traditional toppings, like Oreos, pretzels and sprinkles, are separated by a tub of freshly melted premium chocolate—no canned syrup mixes here, it’s all chunks of real milk chocolate—used for creating an Xtreme Treats specialty, The Big Dipper.
“It’s an oversized vanilla ice cream pop and then we dip it into the chocolate and then you get to pick toppings that go on it,” explained store manager Samantha Demarco. “Everybody loves it. A lot of people come in for it because the milk chocolate is really, really delicious.”
Also on the menu is the Whipp and the Xtreme Shake. The Whipp is vanilla ice cream infused with toppings of your choice, so your cup of yum will taste however you choose. Same goes for the Xtreme Shake, a big cup of milkshake deliciousness infused and topped with whatever your sweet tooth desires.
While the treats are mainly design-your-own, there is also an Xtreme Creations menu that has pre-made options to order.
“A lot of people get the Over the Rainbow, which is an Xtreme Creation, but you can also get it in a whip or a shake,” said Demarco, who admitted that the milkshakes are her favorite to indulge in. “It comes with Fruity Pebbles, topped with rainbow sprinkles and Lucky Charms, which is a cool, colorful mix.”
No matter what your treat is topped with, everything looks spectacular, so much so, in fact, that social media posts of the Xtreme desserts have been a big influence on the shop’s business.
“Instagram is one of the biggest social medias in helping us out,” said Demarco. A quick look at the store’s Instagram account, XtremeTreats11801, will show children with big smiles proudly holding up their mouthwatering desserts in front of the store’s rainbow Xtreme Treats wall. “We were on News12, so people are coming from all different areas of Long Island. It’s pretty cool.”
The brains behind the store are Sara Green and Tara Nawroth of Sara Tara Events, a Syosset-based full-service event planning company. The duo wanted to create a place that would be pure fun for kids, and so Xtreme Treats was born. Given their event planning background, the shop also offers birthday parties, Scout events and will bring its famous Big Dippers to wherever the party is so guests can “Get Dipped” for whatever the occasion may be.
To try one of its tasty concoctions, visit Xtreme Treats at 259 W. Old Country Rd. in Hicksville.
