Anyone Disappointed in Dole Whips?

[cd&kids]

Okay...I hope this doesn't get me crucified on these boards...because every single thing I've ever read about Dole Whips on this website has been 1,000% positive!
BUT....we were oh so slightly disappointed when we got our Dole Whips a couple weeks back. First of all, I didn't realize that they really are not much more than ice cream. (Not that we don't like ice cream....we LOVE IT). But, we thought they were more in the "smoothie/half-food-half drink/chunky-pineapple-kind-of-need-a-fork-to-eat-it" category.
It was a pretty warm afternoon...we had been walking around all day at MK....and we were in between lunch and dinner and I wanted something to help the whole family last the next 90-minutes or so before dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern. I had heard so much about Dole Whips on these boards (and had asked a couple questions about them, too!), so we did Pirates of the Caribbean and then got our Dole Whips.
I have to say....I really was disappointed. We all tried different flavors. There's no question, everyone liked the pineapple/vanilla combo the best. It was very good. BUT...again, I wasn't expecting what essentially was a bowl of ice cream. To me, it was like we all just had dessert....an hour and a half before dinner! Had I known what these things really were, we would have gotten them during different time and circumstances...and I'm sure I would writing a new thread right now about how great they were!!
Just thought I'd pass along my feelings hoping they'll help someone else out. I know many, many people...like me...do a ton of research before going on their vacations and I hope this helps!

 

[Shells9]

We like the Dole Whip Floats, which is better than than the Dole Whip, IMO.

 

[TigerBear]

I've never had one. Thanks for explaining what they are like. I hate when you hear so many good things about something and then your expectations are too high.

 

[*Flower*]

I made the very same mistake!!!

Of course I got bailed out......... DH ate it for me!!

 

[ceecee]

I too, expected something a little different than ice cream. It was refreshing and not as sweet as regular ice cream. We still thought it a nice treat. DD actually liked the pineapple better than the chocolate she got. We had a frozen Raspberry Lemonade and we all decided it was our favorite treat! I would like to try the float though.

 

[danny1649]

For giving your honest opinion and why you didn't like them.I appreciate it.My DW doen't not like them she doesn't like anything pineapple, I like them but that does not give me any right to flame you because you don't.Thanks for your honest review.

 

[BonnieA]

I tried them a few years back. I was not impressed. Guess I'm just a citrus swirl fan. They have always been my favorite.

 

[KCritter]

I'm with you. I tried one a couple of years ago, and thought it was just OK. I didn't think it was bad or anything, I guess I expected it to be more than just pineapple flavored ice cream. Maybe I should try the float next time.

 

[hercamore]

Yep,

I like the floats much better. MOre refreshing.


herc.

 

[kda]

Guess I never noticed there were floats. Sounds like something different to try. What are they made with? Seltzer water, 7-up, etc?? Thanks.

 

[dawgfan]

I too thought they were supposed to be something great but they turned out to be no more than Pineapple sherbert. I mean really. Try Pineapple sherbert that you can get at any grocry store and you have tried a Dole Whip.

 

[stonecreekboys]

I wish I'd read this before I ordered one in May. It wasn't very good at all. I went way out of my way to get one because of the reviews I had read.

I love pineapple, but it almost had no flavor. I threw it away. Won't stop there again unless it is to try a float!

 

[jiggerj]

You never know until you try something if you like it or not. I would like to try it on our next trip. I did try the Kaki Gori in Japan at Epcot and did not like it at all...too sweet for me. But I wanted to try it.

 

[cinmell]

Originally posted by stonecreekboys
I wish I'd read this before I ordered one in May.

Me too! It wasn't what I thought it was going to be at all. I wound up throwing it away. I'm glad I tried it though.

 

[piratesmate]

We never tried them at the parks, but after reading all the great reviews about them I went looking for a recipe for them. I found one (an imposter) at Dole.com & we really liked them. However, they were not really what I thought they'd be either. Even so, they're a favorite around here but we do eat them more as a dessert. I like that I can make them with Splenda & low-fat Cool Whip instead of Whipping Cream. Also, we tend to eat them while they're still slushy.

Just in case you'd like to try them:

Pineapple Icee Whip
a Great Pretender for Dole Whips, from Dole.com

Prep: 10 min.
Freeze: 3 hrs.
Makes: 8 servings

2 cans DOLE Crushed Pineapple (20 oz. each)
2 Tbl lemon juice
2 Tbl lime juice
1/3 c sugar
½ c chopped maraschino cherries, mini marshmallow or mini chocolate chips, (optional)
1½ c heavy whipping cream, whipped

Drain pineapple; reserve 2 tablespoons juice. Set aside. Place pineapple, lemon juice, lime juice, sugar and reserved pineapple juice in blender or food processor container. Cover; blend until smooth. Stir in cherries or marshmallow or chips, if desired. Pour into two 1-quart freezer zipped bags. Store bags flat in freezer. Freeze about 1-1/2 hours or until slushy. Stir gently pineapple slush into whipped cream until just blended, in large bowl. Return to freezer until completely frozen, about 1 hour. Serve.

 

[Took]

I'm with you, BonnieA. Citrus swirl every time!

 

[Aisling]

I think Dole Whips are a "band wagon" item. Someone raves about something they love, it catches on, and you're not cool if you don't love it, too! LOL

I, too, was surprised to find that Dole Whips were just a simple ice cream dessert. There was so much hype, OMG I had to have this ambrosia! But I did enjoy it.

Something similar was going on on another board with rice cream from the Norway Kringla shop. Someone loved it, told everyone about it, and it became a thead a mile long singing it's praises as a must-have find of the century. After a while, someone posted that it was good but nothing special, and suddenly a lot of the original posters who would kill for a rice cream said it was just ok!

But it's fun to be on the band wagon, to be deliriously excited about something, especially if it's something Disney!

 

[Aubrey]

This is certainly not a flame but I wonder why people would expect chunks of fruit and the need for a fork from something called a "whip". The term "whip" implies a light frothy texture, no?

 

[sha_lyn]

Originally posted by Aubrey
This is certainly not a flame but I wonder why people would expect chunks of fruit and the need for a fork from something called a "whip". The term "whip" implies a light frothy texture, no?

You read my mind.

I really like dole whips but my favorite are the cappuccino floats that are at the stand near Magic carpets of Aladdin.
Of course we like Kakki Gori and beaver tails too

but then again CM's get huge raves here and we absolutely hated it.

 

[Epcotgal8]

For a while I thought I might never have the chance to try a Dole Whip which became a family joke. On our first 3 WDW visits it was always closed or we were on our way to dinner so I never got to try one. On our last trip I made a huge point of getting one. DD and I decided to leave the guys in the MK while we went to do some shopping/eating at Epcot. We were on our way out of the MK and I said, "No first we are going to try a Dole Whip." The stand was open but there was a long line which we patiently waited in. We got the vanilla/pineapple swirl Dole Whips. It wasn't bad by any means but just ice cream (and the pineapple side got a little too sweet for me on a hot day) so we ended up throwing about half of them away. I do agree the floats with the pineapple chunks looked better so mayabe I'll try one next time.