Softee vs Stevie - [Sample Posting and Poll]

[info]

Bungalow Bar Tastes Like Tar
The more you eat
The worse you are


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Any user can have their own poll!!!!

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

[quote="info"]Bungalow Bar Tastes Like Tar
The more you eat
The worse you are


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I used to love Stevie. I remember running down the street to catch him many times because he passed us by and didn't see us. I also remember Mr. Softee - That was kind of something new and the first time I ever had soft serve ice cream so I guess that is why I have to say that was a little more special to me - I guess I had Good Humor other times not just at Bungalow Bar and Stevie - Softee wins out for me because it was my first and you almost always remember your first on all things. LOL Patsy

[Julie (Luciano)]

I loved Stevie - he was the best. He used to give you free ice cream on your birthday and let you ring the bells on the ice cream truck. I remember he also assigned a birthday to the kids with winter birthdays and soemhow he always seemed to remember the date he assigned!

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Yes Julie I agree - Stevie was the best. Honestly it was hard to choose but there I was thinking of which tasted better (which of course to me was more important than anything lol) But Stevie was truly a kind and loving man who as far back as I can remember knew most of us by name and our Mom's names too. I wish there had been a choice of Loved Both on this vote that would have been my pick instead of one over the other. Mr. Softee was the start of a different ice cream era " The New Ice Cream " versus Stevie " The Old Neighborhood Ice Cream Guy".. I remember ice cream from either one of these tasting better than any ice cream you can buy or find today. Just like the little packaged cakes (Yankee Doodles, Devil Dogs, Ring Dings ) - they do not taste the same today either. When they took all the bad stuff out of things like this all that was left was fake Chemicals and air. LOL

[toddf]

I remember my mother throwing monwy down from our 4th floor window and trying to catch it when Stevie came. The truck had 2 openings to the box. One on the passenger side & one in the back. If he really liked you, he let you open the box and get whatever you wanted if he was busy on the other side of the truck. He always let me do that....if he didn't like a kid or they bothered him he had a big club he'd take out to scare them...

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Todd: I have to confess I didn't know him to carry a bat or a stick. But, boy do I remember all the kids yelling up to the windows - "Hey Ma, throw me down some Stevie Money" - I had a teacher in school about 5th grade (P.S. 102) - who I know was trying to take some of the Bronx out of our speech by explaining to us that what we were asking our parents to do when we said that or something similar to it, LOL was physically impossible to do... LOL All in all I was a Bronx kid and am still proud of it....

I still Loved Mr. Softee too though - tough choice to pick one over the other (so I would take turns and get them both) LOL Not at the same time though -

[info]

Stevie, Stevie, Stevie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Joe Anastasio]

Stevie!!!

My favorite was the ice cream in the upside down cone shaped cup with the gumball in the bottom.
I remember asking him for some dry ice and then putting it in the park shower (drains stopped up with towels of course) to watch it boil.
My most vivid memory is the one and only day I ever asked him to "trust me" until the next day to pay him. I was extremely shy and not ever having much money I really seldom ever bought anything. But I'm sure he recognized me as one of the kids who always hung around the truck. That truck was pretty cool and I was thrilled to get to ring the bell one time. I waited until all the other kids had left whick took what felt like forever! There I was in my most pathetic, timid voice, "Could you trust me 10 cents until tomorrow???" Instead of saying yes or no, he said something about not wanting to do that and then he reached into the truck, found an ice cream that was partially broken and just handed it to me. I was so surprised that I looked at the ice cream a little dumbfounded. I finally realized he didn't expect anything and thanked him with the biggest smile on my face.

I also remember Stevie chasing the annoying kids away with his stick when he got fed up with them. Always a good time - ice cream and free entertainment!

[Julie (Luciano)]

Joe,
I almost forgot about that stick/bat that he used! Luckily I was never on the recieving end.
Julie

[info]

These days Mr. Softee has everything that Stevie used to have. Was this always the case? Maybe as a kid I didn't notice that Softee had a big variety. I had thought Softee only had cones and Stevie had a more "gourmet" offering. Hope someone with a really good memory can clarify this for me!

Marion

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Marion:

Hope this helps answer your question. From what I can recall when "Mr. Softee" first started to come around the neighborhood (very early 60's) he just had "soft serve custard ice cream" and Vanilla or Chocolate was his full menu (every once in a while he would have Strawberry softserve). The strawberry didn't seem to hold up and he didn't always have that. But, if you caught your parents on a rich week you could get a Bannana Boat or a vanilla or chocolate cone with chocolate coating on top. You could also get (just) chocolate sprinkles. As time progressed I remember things being added like a Blizzard or a Rootbeer float. But from what I can recall he was originally the basic cone (or a waffle cone - which was bigger than any other cones). Also the smaller Sugar cone was available or a cup (you could also get a sundae which meant you got strawberries or chocolate fudge and caramel dripped over the ice cream cup) then we also could get pineapples... That is my recollection and I think I am correct but would not sign it in blood I think my memory is serving me correct but my stomach could be getting involved in the stroll down memory lane too... I will be glad to stand corrected if anyone else has a better memory than mine... Best Regards Patsy

[info]

Patsy, I will rely on your excellent recollection!

Marion

[Buggsy]

If you think it was all about the ice cream you are wrong. Stevie was a neighborhood character who was a legend in his own time. How many people remember the Mr. Softee driver's name? Stevie was the best the ice cream didn't matter.

When Mr. Softee first started he followed Stevie on his route and pulled up behind him on every stop, which envoked some of the neighborhood guys ire. My brother Richie and Billy "Doodles" Weaver got in trouble with the Cops from the 43rd for egging the Mr. Softee truck from the roof of my building on Thieriot Ave. It was a lot to do about nothing.

[benny]

I agree with Buggsy, everybody remembers Stevie but I don't' think anybody could name who Mister Softee was. I remember one day were Stevie was setup on Taylor and Softee was on Thieriot. Stevie was getting all the kids, so Softee came around and pulled up behind Stevie. Stevie get really po'ed and beat the crap out of him. Don't encroach on his turf! I do recall having a birthday at least once a month, trying for a free ice cream (and I'm in January), usually got it too.

[matt keenan]

Buggsy and Bennie: Great stuff, you just can't make it up. I betcha Vinnie has some great stories, I believe he was related in some way to Stevie. We all loved Stevie sometimes he'd give out a piece of hot ice and we'd put it water to watch it steam up. As far as Mr.Softee, we didn't make his life easy. One hot summer day he came up by the handball courts and we made sure we were first on line and bought a few chocolate cones. While the Mr. Softee guy was busy with the other kids orders we smeared the windshield with the chocolate ice cream. It was melting on there real nice and puddling up on those wipers real good. The guy finally came to the drivers seat and couldn't see out the window and to make matters worse the idiot put on his wipers to smear it up even more. As I said it was a hot day and that stuff started baking real good. Just another day in trenches and a victory notch for Stevie in the ice cream war.