Phin & Phebe's - Banana Whama

Banana Whama - Banana Pudding Ice Cream with Hand-baked Vanilla Wafers

I am continuing my survey of New York City brands while I am in town visiting my sister.  Today's review is the Phin & Phebe's Banana Whama flavor.  Phin & Phebe's started in Brooklyn in 2010 as a side business where they supplied hand-packed pints for a couple of markets in their neighborhood.  It was not long before they were able to expand their business enough to where they were able to quit their day jobs.  It seems like a lot of artisanal ice cream brands came out of Brooklyn at around this time.  I chose the Banana Whama flavor partly because I like banana and partly because I like the pun.  It has been over 90 with high humidity every day of my visit -- so it has indeed been a cruel summer here in New York.

There was an extra paper seal which I had to peel off after removing the lid.  Once that was gone, the top of the pint shows the banana pudding base is an off-white yellow.  Eating my way into the pint,  the banana pudding base was a bit less dense than some of the other artisanal brands but the the banana flavor was delicious.   I have noticed that are two types of banana flavoring.  There is the strong, sweet kind of banana flavor seen in puddings and pies which is better is small doses and there is an earthier kind of banana flavor found in banana bread which is best when eating large quantities.  This pint provides a good balance between these two.  Both the first and last spoonfuls were delicious.  The vanilla wafer pieces were decent, but they were relatively small in size and in number.

I enjoyed this flavor, although I enjoy banana more than most so keep that in mind.  This is pretty much the same flavor as the previously reviewed Steve's Southern Banana Pudding.  I liked this pint better, though I did like the wafer mix-ins better from Steve's.   Phin & Phebe's is a fun brand.  They put a lot of effort into the artwork on the sides of the pints and add goofy details to each of their flavor pages on their website.  If you're in the New York area, then check them out.