Orange County Creamery
In Dana Point and San Clemente, two former Danish ice cream shops went indie with a new look and recipes
Orange County Creamery is an interesting small ice cream chain with two locations – one in Dana Point in the same PCH plaza as Apizza Doho and Stacks Pancake House, the other in San Clemente near Sur Coffee, less than a mile from the San Clemente Pier and Casa Romantica. Originally opened in 2019 as outposts of the Danish ice cream chain Paradis, these stores went independent in 2023, rebooting their menus and leaving Paradis to find a new location (opened three years later in Old Towne Orange).
When we visited the Dana Point location in June 2026, Orange County Creamery had swapped the darker, somewhat cartoony Paradis decor for more neutral and natural designs, placing its logo inside a wall of artificial ivy across from a large L-shaped counter. Ice cream bowls ($4.89 to $9.19), shakes ($9 each) and sundaes ($8.50 to $9.50) form the majority of the short menu, with several coffee, hot chocolate, and affogato options in their own section, and pints of ice cream available in a freezer in the corner. Up to 16 ice cream and sorbet flavors are available by the scoop at any given time, with small, medium, and not-super-large paper bowls or waffle cones available to hold them.
Most of the flavors on offer during our visit were pretty basic: vanilla bean, chocolate, mint chocolate, butter pecan, Oreo, salted caramel, and cherry swirl were all classics, with s’mores, banana Nutella crisp, peanut butter chip, tiramisu, and taro representing the edgiest options. Strawberry, lemon, and watermelon sorbets were also available, with one freezer tray (likely coffee chocolate) empty. While a dozen of these flavors are available “year-round,” interesting monthly rotating flavors include banana bread, chocolate coconut, lavender, pistachio swirl, guava/papaya “guapa,” and mango cheesecake.
We didn’t try as many flavors as we’d normally prefer to sample, but each of the ones we chose was strong. On the ice cream side, tiramisu contained actual chunks of ladyfinger cake and obvious amaretto flavor, paired with a cream base that had just the right balance of fat and dairy for a full, flavor-accentuating texture. Mint chocolate was bright and minty – legitimately cooling on a hot summer day – with nice flecks of chocolate chip mixed into the creamy base. A separate lemon sorbet, notably one of the rotating seasonal flavors, combined lemonade-class powerful citrus with velvet-smooth ice, delivering even more refreshment than the mint chocolate scoop.
Our only gripe was that both of the cups we ordered – small sorbet ($6), medium ice cream ($8) – were quite small for those prices, with cones, waffle bowls, and toppings each adding roughly $1; triple-scoop cups are $9.19, and pints go for $11. While these prices aren’t completely out of line given recent inflation, they struck us as a bit high for what Orange County Creamery is offering. We’re not presently planning to return in the future, but if we do, we’ll update this article with additional thoughts and photos.
Stats
Price: $
Service: Counter
Open Since: 2023
Addresses
34255 Pacific Coast Hwy. #114
Dana Point, CA 92629
949.545.7199
95 Avenida Del Mar
San Clemente, CA 92672
949.545.7229
Instagram: @occreamery