This kosher ice cream shop in Queens feels like an ‘80s fever dream

Among the kosher restaurants and supermarkets, Bukharian barbershops, synagogues and Judaica shops peppering Main Street in Kew Gardens, Queens, one family-owned business particularly stands out: Max and Mina’s, a kosher ice cream shop opened by brothers Bruce and Mark Becker back in 1997 and still going strong with unmistakable character.

Walk in and you’ll be transported back to simpler times, when mottos like “Trix are for kids” and neon colors automatically sparked excitement—and the kind of memories we’re no longer sure warm our hearts because we were younger then or because times truly were simpler.

Plastered all over the walls is a kaleidoscope of cereal box covers—from beloved ‘80s staples to more modern iterations of now-heavily criticized brands like Froot Loops—each a clue to the kind of ice cream flavors you might encounter on site. In fact, at Max and Mina’s, a name that honors the owners’ grandparents, you won’t find your typical vanilla or chocolate. Here, creativity with a side of eclecticism and a dash of nostalgia rule the menu, which changes daily with flavors conceived by Bruce.

“I’m a game day person,” says Bruce, when asked about how he creates his flavors. “When I hit the machine, I see what my mood is like.”

Pressed for specific inspirations, he mentions regular trips to places like Costco, BJ’s and Walmart. “They have phenomenal ingredients,” he explains. “I’ll just buy them all.”

That process may sound unstructured or even chaotic, but it clearly works. The shop boasts a dizzying variety of eclectic flavors, with up to five new options introduced each day. Customers rush in or scroll through Instagram, eager to discover what’s new.

Recent hits include a blueberry banana pudding, a chocolate Godiva apricot combination that sounds unlikely but somehow works, and a pound cake shortcake jam that feels like an explosion of flavors upon each spoonful.

The ice cream world at large has taken notice, too: Max and Mina’s has earned accolades from the New York Times and the Food Network. It was also named the top most unique ice cream parlor in America in the book Everybody Loves Ice Cream, The Whole Scoop on America’s Favorite Treat by Shannos Jackson Arnold

“Unfortunately, a lot of businesses end up offering a stale menu,” Bruce says. “A big part of our success is innovation, which can’t be slowed down.”

As for the decision to keep the shop kosher—it’s currently under the supervision of the Vaad Harabonim of Queens—Bruce is quick to note that although most of their customers aren’t kosher-observant, he and his brother are. Add to that the fact that they’ve been running a business since 1997 in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood where the majority of establishments are kosher, and the decision becomes obvious. Why wouldn’t Max and Mina’s be kosher?

Perhaps that adjacency to kosher food establishments is what makes Max and Mina’s stand out even more. It doesn’t look or feel like your average kosher eatery, and the decor perfectly echoes the flavors on offer: wild, nostalgic and borderline surreal. The entire space is awash in neon and kaleidoscopic color, plastered with cereal box cutouts, old movie posters and vintage comic covers. Every inch brims with playful memorabilia and childlike wonder, seemingly expressing a single idea: life is fun, colorful and a little weird. And that, more than anything, is what makes Max and Mina’s so special: a real New York gem in a real New York neighborhood.