Just finished Isaly’s: Chipped Ham, Klondikes and Other Tales from Behind the Counter by Brian Butko. I grew up in Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh, and the Isaly’s on Forbes Ave. was one of our regular stops. This book is nothing but extremely thorough and tells you everything (maybe more than you want to know) about Skyscraper Cones, the evolution of Klondikes, the disappearance of the famous ice cream scoops, and how to make chipped ham. I loved reading about it all. Now I would love to have some chipped ham, ham salad, and a White House Cherry cone.
I bought mine from the Heinz History Center:
4 Likes
Memories! Isaly’s figured prominently in the earlier years of my childhood until we moved out to a town outside its orbit. Many town centers in the Pittsburgh area featured an Isaly’s shop back then. For our family, it was a real treat to stop at Isaly’s for Whitehouse (vanilla studded with maraschino cherries) ice cream cones. We’d also take home a mound of freshly sliced—well, more shaved than sliced—chipped ham for sandwiches.
You might enjoy these short videos about Isaly’s by Pittsburgh historian Rick Sebak.
Klondike ice cream bars are now manufactured by Unilever. Maybe you’ve tried them? To me they taste nothing like the Isaly’s version did back in the day.
Another food company has since licensed Isaly’s deli products and ice cream flavors. I haven’t tried any.
2 Likes
