Making New Memories: The Magnolia Flavor House at Robinsons Magnolia

For the young kids of the 80s and the 90s, the Magnolia Ice Cream House in Quezon City was a place full of fond memories, as weekends were spent here with the family enjoying desserts. Likewise, it was also a place for teenagers to hang out, or for couples to go on a date over a banana split. Many were sad to see it go, however, when it closed down more than a decade ago, and when the whole factory itself closed down  (and relocated) later on.

Many were delighted with the news that the iconic ice cream shop would make a comeback in 2012, this time named the Magnolia Flavor House, at the new Robinsons Magnolia Mall, built at the site of the old Magnolia Ice Cream factory. The young kids of the 80s and 90s, who are now old enough to become parents, as well as the teenagers and the dating couples back then, would surely return to reminisce as well as to make new memories over their Peach Melba or Banana Split, their iconic desserts.

The Magnolia Flavor House standalone store at the garden of the new Robinsons Magnolia Mall

True enough, as we entered the place, I noticed a lot of forty-something couples there. There were also some children there, who were most probably brought along by their parents who did have fond memories at the old ice cream house. Of course, there were also people like my family and I who simply wanted to try out a different place for desserts. 

A look inside the shop

As we sat down at our table, we were immediately given menus. While the place specializes in desserts, they also added more stuff to their menu such as burgers, pizzas, pasta, sandwiches, and some others to keep the people interested (they didn't really offer these things back in the day). What many people came here for was, of course, their desserts, and their dessert selection certainly wasn't disappointing. 

The store was filled with forty and fifty-somethings who were probably reminiscing about the old days

The whole did feel inviting, with large glass windows surrounding the whole place, and with paint and furnishings that were mostly blue, yellow, and white. They also had this cool-looking "waiting area" where people could wait for an available table, that had a really comfy-looking pod chair as well as some stools that added an overall "modern" feel to the place. 

The dessert menu

They added more stuff to their menu

I ordered their famous banana split (P240), while my brother had a Peach Melba (P240). My parents decided to share a Mango Royale (P240). My mom also decided to order some snacks too; we had their  Nachos Overload (P185) and some of their Potato Wedges (I forgot how much it cost). 

When my banana split was laid out in front of me, I was a bit unsure of whether I would be able to finish everything--we did have a nice lunch at the Shangri-la Plaza Mall food court just a few hours prior. As the Nachos Overload and the Potato Wedges got to our table, I became more overwhelmed. Their servings were HUGE! I looked over to the other tables and noticed how huge their burgers and pizza were. I think this isn't necessarily a bad thing, though--I've read numerous blog posts complaining about the small serving sizes in some other restaurants. You can always take the food home if you can't finish everything.

Their famous banana split

At first glance, their banana split just seems like any other banana split. If you look closely, however, you will notice that the bananas are actually coated with chocolate, so there's actually more chocolate on their banana split, with the chocolate-coated bananas, the chocolate ice cream, and the chocolate syrup on top. This is really great for all chocolate lovers out there. One can never have too much chocolate!

Peach Melba, another one of their "iconic" desserts

Mango Royale--scoops of Mango Ice Cream topped with cream, cherries, nuts,  and caramel (?) syrup, all sitting on top of crushed grahams. 

Nachos OVERLOAD. Emphasis on OVERLOAD.

Who says we couldn't finish the nachos?

I will most probably be back again to try out their other desserts--they all seem so good! Despite the presence of so many other ice cream shops in the country (particularly, the foreign ones like Swensen's), there's still something about the classics like Magnolia that just brings back the fondest memories, whether at the old ice cream house (which I never really got to try), or those weekends or birthday celebrations at home with the gallons of ice cream shared with everyone. I'm happy to see that Magnolia is able to stand their ground against the competition, and they're expanding too--I heard they'll be opening a second shop at SM North Edsa soon!

The Magnolia Flavor House is located at the garden area of the Robinsons Magnolia Mall, located at Aurora Boulevard corner Dona Hemady Street in New Manila, Quezon City)