Toots Turns a Maine Ice Cream Stop Into a Farm Outing

At Toots' farm location, ice cream comes from a full-sized railroad caboose, and the after-dessert entertainment may be a cow in front of the stand, a goat on the grounds, or a pig named Strawberry answering to her name. It is a pleasantly unfussy combination: pick a cone or a sundae, find a picnic table, then take a slow lap around the farm.

The homemade ice cream has the rich, creamy texture people hope for from a hard-scoop stand, though it is notably soft and smooth on the spoon. Familiar choices such as mint chocolate chip and cookie dough share space with a much more playful flavor board, so an easy stop for a scoop can turn into several minutes of serious decision-making.

The changing selection includes Maine-friendly maple walnut and blueberry, along with strawberry rhubarb, creamsicle, caramel coffee, blackberry, caramel cashew and hazelnut chip. Some names are straightforward; others happily are not. Mexican Chocolate S'more, Whoopie Cow Pie, Snickah and Grandma's Peanut Butter Fudge give the freezer case a little personality.

Charlie Cherry is another option, and the list can change with weekly specials, so a favorite flavor is not necessarily the only reason to stop back. This is a good place to arrive with a willingness to abandon your original plan once you see what is available.

Small “baby” cups offer a manageable way for children to join in or for adults to try something unfamiliar without taking on a full serving. Flights make the comparison game more deliberate. A four-flavor spread of chocolate, mint chip, caramel coffee and maple walnut, for instance, moves from classic to coffeehouse to distinctly New England without leaving the table.

Ice cream is the main event, but Toots also makes room for the old-fashioned dessert-counter pleasures. Milkshakes, gelato and banana splits broaden the choices for a group whose members are not all after the same thing.

A banana split is a particularly nice excuse to slow down at the picnic tables rather than carry a cone back to the car. On a clear evening, those tables also provide a place to sit and watch the light fade over the farm.

Custom celebration cakes are another branch of the business. One especially festive example paired half angel food cake with half yellow cake, showing that a birthday order can be more than a standard cake topped with a few scoops. The cake designs can be developed from a loose idea, leaving room for a little surprise when the finished dessert arrives.

The caboose gives the farm stand a setting that a conventional ice cream shop cannot duplicate. You order your dessert from a railroad car, then step into an outdoor space with farm views, tables and animals nearby. It feels like a roadside detour with enough to do after the first bite.

There is room for children to move around while the adults settle into their desserts. That extra space matters on a family outing: no one has to finish a cone in a hurry simply because the line is over or the order has been picked up.

The animal roster has included cows and bulls, goats, chickens and roosters, pigs and a horse. Baby goats tend to command plenty of attention, but Strawberry the pig has her own following. Visitors can stroll among the animal areas rather than treating the farm as scenery viewed only from the ordering window.

Toots also has a newer location with a more conventional shop setup. It is a cute, clean indoor space with seating and a cozy feel that can be especially welcome during colder months.

That location is useful to know about because it is not simply the caboose experience moved indoors. The farm setting, outdoor animal wandering and railroad-car ordering belong to the farm location; the newer store offers the frozen desserts without the same grounds or animal area.

At the farm, picnic tables make it easy to turn a dessert run into a longer break, although the outdoor portions of the visit naturally depend on the weather. Parking has been described as plentiful at the location visited.

Service can move quickly, though crowds and timing make a difference. An opening-day milkshake order brought a wait of roughly 30 minutes, while visits over holiday weekends and in fall have also been notably prompt. If the line is busy, the flavor list gives you something worthwhile to study.