The best ice cream in Raleigh (& the world) returns, but for one month only
This month marks the two-year anniversary of my love affair with Chocolate Chess Pie Ice Cream at Two Roosters Ice Cream in Raleigh.
On roughly this date in 2023 I first tasted the objectively perfect ice cream flavor at the Lake Boone Trail shop and posted on social media that it was the best ice cream I have ever eaten: intensely dark chocolate ice cream with house-made chocolate chess pies churned in, the bites of pie crust delivering the perfect crunch.
My colleagues at The News & Observers encouraged me to write about it for the paper, and I did.
Lucky for me, I guess, Two Roosters only offers the flavor once a year, so I haven’t killed myself with it. Although last year I tried – I bought eight pints for my freezer, and then tragically lost six of them in a summer fridge outage. (Cardiology gods looking out for me, perhaps?)
So this is my public service announcement that Chocolate Chess Pie Ice Cream is back, but for this month only. If you’re planning a trip, please factor in the end-of-month Thanksgiving schedule and note that the last two years, some locations have sold out before the end of the month. (Yes, it’s that good.)
For the super dedicated, they even offer the very meta chocolate-chess-pie-inside-ice-cream-inside-pie version -- or in short, Chocolate Chess Pie Ice Cream Pie: an Oreo pie crust base filled with Chocolate Chess Pie ice cream and topped with whipped cream swirls and mini chocolate chips. Call ahead to order.
November ice cream flavors at Two Roosters
Here are this month’s special flavors, with descriptions courtesy of the ice cream shop:
- Chocolate Chess Pie - A dark chocolate base with fudgy pieces of homemade chocolate chess pie.
- Bourbon Pecan Honeycomb - A bourbon-pecan base with crunchy honeycomb candy pieces.
- Pineapple Upside Down Cake - A maraschino cherry base with caramelized pineapple cake pieces.
- Sticky Toffee Pudding - A caramel base with sticky toffee pudding cake chunks and crushed toffee bits.
- Spiced Pear Cobbler - A vanilla base with toasted cobbler chunks and a spiced pear puree swirl.
- Apple Cider Sorbet - A smooth apple cider sorbet.
Two Roosters locations, hours
For more info and a list of locations in Raleigh, Cary, Durham and Wake Forest, visit tworoosters.com or call 919-229-0491.
This story was originally published November 14, 2025 at 3:10 PM.
