What should you expect from a bite of After Ice Cream’s Milky Bun? Be prepared for a mouthful of delightfully cold homemade ice cream stuffed inside a warm, glazed donut — the perfect dessert hybrid to satisfy your summer sugar cravings.
The creators of the Milky Bun, Scott Nghiem and Andy Nguyen, were inspired by the sweet Hawaiian bread and ice cream combination they had eaten at home as kids. Since opening their first Afters Ice Cream in Orange County, they have been trying to incorporate pastries into the store’s frozen dessert menu.
“Having bread and ice cream is much more a common thing in Asian countries than America,” Nghiem said. “We couldn’t easily explain to people that bread and ice cream would be good together.”
Instead, they let the taste speak for itself. After removing the donut hole and tweaking the donut recipe to better accompany the texture of ice cream, Nghiem and Nguyen introduced the Milky Bun. It was met with great enthusiasm. Now, customers will wait in line for up to three hours to get their hands on the donut-ice cream offspring.
Afters Ice Cream offers a variety of unique ice cream flavors that you can choose from, including Jasmine Milk Tea, Vietnamese Coffee and Cookie Monster. The store then uses a special waffle-iron-like machine to seal the ice cream of your choice inside the donut, complete with toppings.
A F T E R S A photo posted by Afters Ice Cream | 12pm-12am (@aftersicecream) on
The success of Milky Buns gave rise to three more Afters Ice Cream locations as well as other stores that have begun to imitate the popular treat. Unfazed by the knock offs, Nghiem and Nguyen said they would continue coming up with fresh new treats for their sweet-toothed fans.
Who wants a #MilkyBun? A photo posted by Afters Ice Cream | 12pm-12am (@aftersicecream) on
Feature Image courtesy of Orange Coast Magazine/ Afters Ice Cream Instagram
