NYC parents having meltdown over $14 ice cream cones: ‘It’s out of control’
They all scream at this price tag!
Queens parents are having a meltdown over a local ice cream truck’s astronomical prices — including $14 for a waffle cone.
On a scorching Tuesday afternoon, unsuspecting parents found themselves digging back into their wallets to afford double-digit frozen treats from the bubblegum-pink New York Ice Cream truck set up near Astoria Park.
“I gave her $20, thinking I was going to get some change back, and then she told me it’s more. They got me good!” exclaimed Henry Fernandez, who forked over $26 to treat his two kids a small sundae and shake float after playing soccer in the park.
“Some people are taking advantage of inflation,” Fernandez added.
“I was thinking it’d cost me maybe $8.”
Many patrons griped they were unaware that they were getting gouged until the treats were in their kids’ hands — because the prices are displayed in a tiny font near the roof of the truck.
“Once you give your kids ice cream, you’re going to take it away from them? They’re going to get pissed at you and you’re going have a difficult afternoon,” said Alison Bruce, who forked over $14 for a waffle cone for her 11-year-old son.
“Can you imagine a family of four getting an ice cream, and it being upwards of $60? . . . That’s upsetting.”
Other Big Apple ice cream trucks have raised their prices during rampant inflation but customers are suffering less sticker shock.
In Union Square, a pair of Mr. Softees sold waffle cones and sundaes for $8 cash, or $9 if using a credit card, including tax.
And prices were clearly displayed next to product images.
Ice cream vendors in Downtown Brooklyn and Manhattan’s Upper West Side had identical prices.
Even the youths realize how their parents are getting taken for a ride by the Astoria vendor.
“It’s out of control!” cried Isabella Diaz, 11, whose mother coughed up $10 for her double ice cream cone.
Steven Christensen, executive director for the North American Ice Cream Association, said the $14 waffle cone is likely the result of sheer opportunism.
“A lot of times, you’re striking while the iron is hot,” he said.
“You’ve got a captive audience.”
Christensen added that ice cream trucks and shops have raised prices in recent years, between 5 to 10% annually, due to higher labor, food and gasoline costs.
At the pricey Astoria Park truck, other prices included: $5 for a cake cone — but only if paid in cash; $10 for a double cone, $12 for a sundae or shake, and $14 for floats. All credit card and digital payments get dinged with an extra 99-cent fee, plus tax.
Angelina Piro, 19, who manned the truck, admitted the prices were “not completely perfect” but justified her employer’s sky-high fees as the result of inflation and premium pricing for the location.
“In the Bronx, you could get a [regular] cone for $3, but look at the area you’re in. No one is going to be there,” she said.
Reps for New York Ice Cream did not respond to requests for comment.
