I have lived in the northeast, the South Pacific, the Coast (also known as the West Coast), and the Southeast.

I've had rum raisin ice cream. It's my favorite! Haagen-Dazs, especially. However, does seem like I've seen it at Baskin Robbins, though I have not been there in a very long time

I have never eaten Rum Raisin ice cream, mainly because I don't like chewables such as raisins or chocolate chips in ice cream. I do love Spumoni ice cream, though, and a local restaurant had the "good" type that contained candied fruit. Yum! Edited to say - yes, this is contradictory - candied fruit is also chewable. But it's a particularly good addition to ice cream.

Yes, but I don’t like it. Most ice cream stores around here offer it. I’m a mint chocolate chip girl.

No. I've had access to it, but anything with raisins in it is a big fat no for me.....So I've never tried it. If I'm going for ice cream,it's got to be something rich and delicious,usually chocolate. Not raisin. Yuck.

No because I'm not a fan of raisins.

I have too many favorites to name, but if you've not had dulce de leche, it's just a little bit of heaven on earth.

I have had it types both good and bad. Most that I have tried do not the rum flavor although the smell is strong.

I used to love spumoni when there were separate flavors each with different candied/glazed fruit and nuts mixed in. Only place that I knew made it stopped doing so because people did not like the texture of all things.

Were our fathers twins? Are we? My father loved all ice cream, but only he loved rum raisin and spumoni. He also loved pistachio, which I didn't like but might appreciate now.

It's not exclusively East Coast. None of my people are from there, and my parents spent their entire adult lives in Southern California, and were here 60 years ago. I know for a fact that my father was eating rum raisin here in the 1960's. I think my mother liked it too, come to think of it, but she wasn't picky about ice cream flavors.

I haven't tried it since childhood, but I think it was just too sweet for me. Cloying. Because the actual ice cream was sweet and the raisins were sweeter. That's why I don't like caramel ice cream either, though a little caramel swirl in one with some bitter chocolate and not a lot of sweet in the base is fine. B&J's Americone Dream, for instance. It's a little too sweet, but mostly pretty good.

I have not. But I'll pass, thank you. Lol.

I've always lived in the PNW and Rum Raisin ice cream has been around here for many years. I can't recall when I first had it but it was way before Haagen Daz made an appearance here - some shop that had hand dipped ice cream, but not Baskin Robbins for sure. I don't even know for sure what brands of ice cream the old fashioned hand dipped ice cream stores used to sell, but I imagine around here it was Dairygold or Foremost? It was before the boutique ice cream craze.

I LOVE rum flavor but am one who doesn't love chewables in ice cream either. So, I've eaten it, it sounds good and tastes better than I'd imagine, but it's not my first choice.

Funny. We just got back from the ice cream store and I had a scoop of rum and raisin.

My second favourite, after mint chocolate chip.

Edit: Best Rum & raisin I’ve had was in Ireland. They really soaked the raisins in rum, plumped them up and was nice biting into them

Yes, I love rum raisin ice cream, if it's a good brand. Not all brands are created equal, you know. And it's not available all the time here, just occasionally, around Christmastime. Many years ago, before I came to Texas, I worked for a short period of time, in an Italian restaurant. Their food was delicious, and the most popular dessert there was their Spumoni ice cream. It was my first experience with that flavor, and I was sure I had died and gone to heaven! Talk about GOOD! Almost never see it around here, though. The one time I did see it, it wasn't very good at all. Not sure what brand it was, perhaps a store brand, which would probably explain it.

Now I want ice cream. . . . . . .

Rusty

I just remembered that I liked coffee ice cream as a kid. Still do, though my favorite is BR Jamoca Almond Fudge. And I like any ice cream with nuts like Butter Pecan or Black Walnut.

I used to work for Laura Secord Candy Shops and it was a very popular flavour. My mother used to buy it all the time when I was a kid. I haven't seen it in years. I did try it once or twice but it's a big NO from me.

I worked at a Baskin Robins 31 Flavors location when in high school (late 60s) and Rum Raisin was for sure one of the flavors. Jamoca Almond Fudge was the biggest seller of mixed flavors (ie not counting for vanilla, chocolate, strawberry). Mandarin Orange also had its fans. Funny enough, I like rum, raisins, coffee, fudge, almonds, oranges and chocolate, but each of these three flavors I absolutely detest.

A great job, ice cream store customers are always happy and almost never complain. I could eat anything I wanted during a shift (food kept in the back out of sight) or any other time just by stopping by the store.

Never had it. Never noticed it, either, but that doesn't mean it wasn't there. Off hand, it doesn't appeal.

I have not had it in a long time but I like it.

Love it. Also love Butter Pecan.

Yes, love both Rum Raisin and the Spumoni with the fruit in it. Not as easy to find these days. I have lived My entire life in California.

I've never had rum raisin. I've never had any interest in trying it. I'm not a huge ice cream eater, although I do like it if one of the full fat versions like haagen dazs. We will often have a container of it here in the freezer, but something simple. Vanilla, chocolate, possibly strawberry.

I buy my mothers favorite coffee flavor every month. It has to be Haagen Dazs, has to be coffee, and has to be in the little single serving size. No, I don't know why but it doesn't matter, I just make sure there is plenty in her apartments freezer. ;0)

The year I turned 13, my parents were on vacation during my birthday. My grandmother’s housekeeper was looking after me and my brothers. She was very sweet, Norwegian, and she made a rum cake for my birthday party. Ugh. It was horrible. I mean, I was a kid, just becoming a teenagee, Worst birthday ever. I haven’t had anything with rum since.

I've never had rum raisin....not a fan of raisins, but I like spumoni.

Never had either rum raisin or spumoni - I guess neither was ever on my radar.

Willing to try both 🙂

I don't particularly like the taste of alcohol so rum raisin is not a flavor I would care to try. I've never had spumoni either. I'm not even sure what spumoni is.

I love ice cream. Right now my freezer has Triple Vanilla, Pistachio Almond, Cherry Vanilla Cherry Almond Chip, and Meyer Lemon Sherbet.. Marianne's Ice Cream based in Santa Cruz, CA makes a white spumoni to die for. I am ok with the neon green, white and pink neopolitan version but the white spumoni is the best ever. Never had rum raisin. The idea of raisons in ice cream doesn't appeal to me. I guess I should at least try some.

I grew up in town in the Ny/NJ metro area and there was an ice cream shop that made their won ice-cream....Grunings for anyone who might know. They had the best icecreams....and rum raisin was on my list....along with coffee, butter pecan, pistachio and in season, fresh peach that as swoon worthy!
And while Grunings didn't make it I loved spumoni as well as bisque tortoni!...a special treat at a nice restaurant.

Ice creams are definitely not all created equal. Rum and raisin is a very common flavour here. I’ve had vile rum and raisin tasting totally artificial and I’ve had delicious r and r made by local dairies, or in Italy. The big brands don't compare imo.

Just say no to dead grapes in ice cream. The only place dead grapes are okay in is bread pudding and even then I'd prefer pecans.

No, I don't care for rum; I like peach and strawberry chunks in their flavors, but raisin is not a flavor I would crave. I also don't like nuts very much in ice cream even though I like the flavor- the freezing makes their texture odd. The exception seems to be if the nuts are coated in chocolate.

Yes, I recall Rum Raisin as a flavor available way back when. The only Spumoni I ever saw was the tri-color version (maybe from United Dairy Farmers?) I don't remember just what was in it.

Back in the 70s, the only Baskin-Robbins store near was in Oxford (where Miami University is located - I was a commuter student there) and I would be sure to get their Viennese Torte ice cream - coffee layered with vanilla and (IIRC) something like chocolate wafer cookie or cake. My absolute favorite and I was sad when they discontinued it.

I do like rum raisin ice cream but sometimes there are raisins which have a gritty crunch to them, as if they weren't thoroughly cleaned. It'd be fine if they dropped the raisins and kept the rum.

I think the "gritty crunch" is probably raisin seeds.

Rum raisin is a common flavour here and it's one of DH's favourites. I've never really cared much for it- I'd eat it if that was the only flavour available but I wouldn't choose it. My favourite has always been mint chocolate chip, though we have a premium brand coffee icecream with ribbons of orange toffee and chocolate coated almonds flavour here available in take home containers which is my usual purchase as we both like it.

I worked at a Haagen Dazs store for two summers in the mid-80’s. For a while mint chocolate chip was our best seller, then in 1985-ish cookies and cream was introduced. Everything else took a backseat to that flavor. We sold very little rum raisin ice cream. Much of it was bought by my father.

It’s strange to see a long discussion about this ice cream as an odd and exotic creature when it is such a familiar classic here. Personally, I love raisins in any form and while I don’t like drinking rum I do like anything rum flavoured. Spumoni, on the other hand is word I first read in this post.

No. I never will. I despise raisins.

Growing up in the 60’s, my family used to go for Sunday drives to Cochrane, Alberta for ice cream. A family run business made ice cream there and Rum Raisin was one of the choices. My mom really liked it.

Our Italian Centre sells spumoni and I’ve always thought of it as gelato, I’m probably wrong but either way it’s pretty good.

"I think the "gritty crunch" is probably raisin seeds."

Many a time I've eaten/chewed on both seeds and soil, there is a distinct difference in the "crunch".

I remember being in a bakery and looking at the raisin, cinnnamon rolls and just about ready to order one and noticing one of the raisins had wings,😳

I like rum and I like raisins but not together in ice cream. Same with coffee and some other ingredients. I’m really not fond of a chocolate-based ice cream either, but if it has chocolate chunks in a vanilla base I’m good with it. Life is too short to taste artificial anything. Blech!

Rum and raisin shouldn’t be artificially flavoured. Nor should any other ice cream. If that’s all one has tasted it could explain the dislike or imagined dislike of r and r.

Rum raisin was never a flavor that attracted y interest. I've never tried it. And now I have to look up spumoni.

I didn't realize so many people disliked raisins. I don't like them either. I thought I was alone in that.

I like rum in cookies and mixed drinks. That's about it.

I was thinking like Flora LOL It's everywhere in Europe. My husband loves it, although he never drinks spirits. My favourite is mint choc chip.....or there's a wonderful ice-cream shop nearby than makes a lemon meringue that is wonderful.....

Islay

I think most posts were from folks saying they either liked it or they didn’t, not that it was an unusual choice or that they had never heard of it. My take away from this thread is that rum and raisin ice cream has been around for years but it is not a favourite of many.

Our ice cream place is now featuring haskap berry and keso/queso.

eta not combined, but I suppose one could have a scoop of each 🍨

I love mint chocolate too! My husband dislikes it.

No....never had rum raisin. I'm sure my husband never has either. My husband likes Moose Tracks, fudge tracks....or bunny tracks....see the theme here...? ♥

no, I don't care for Rum in anything

We had it in the Midwest when I was a kid, mid century. Not common but available in some place. My Mom liked it. I decidedly did not so didn't pay much attention to its availability. Available I think in chains specializing in multiple flavors . . .