What Are The Vegan Options At Bruster’s Real Ice Cream? (Updated Guide)

  • By: Daniel B.
  • Date: August 31, 2022
  • Time to read: 6 min.

Finding a vegan ice cream flavor is not a piece of cake. Most food chains out there don’t even offer vegan-friendly ice cream. In general, ice creams are made of cow’s milk, cream, and sweetener. As dairy is forbidden for vegans, regular ice cream is not an option for you.

Fortunately, some restaurant chains offer ice cream from plant-based milk, including coconut milk, soya milk, oat milk, and more.

Bruster’s also offer numerous vegan-friendly products. It has nine vegan ice cream flavors, including banana, chocolate, vanilla, and more. All these ice creams are made from coconut milk suitable for vegans. This ice cream parlor chain also offers Italian ice, sorbets, and beverages that are utterly guilt-free for vegans.

Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about the vegan status of Bruster’s Real Ice Cream.

Bruster’s Real Ice Cream – A Brief Description

Bruster’s, also known as Bruster’s Real Ice Cream, is an American-based ice cream parlor chain located in Pennsylvania. The company is famous for its delicious and mouth-watering ice creams flavors and frozen yogurt.

As of 2021, more than 200 Bruster’s stores are available in over 22 states. The company has also created some of its branches in South Korea and Guyana. Other than ice cream, it also offers Italian ice, sorbets, and beverages.

Vegan Options At Bruster’s Real Ice Cream

Like other ice cream parlors out there, most ice cream flavors offered by Bruster’s contain dairy products, including milk and cream. Luckily, Bruster’s also creates some delicious flavors with plant-based milk, such as coconut milk.

According to PETA, Bruster’s Real Ice Cream falls into Grade C for vegan-friendly products. To give you a more detailed perspective, below, we have compiled a list of some of the most delicious vegan-friendly products offered by Bruster’s:

Non-Dairy Ice Creams

As mentioned earlier, Bruster’s Real Ice Cream is famous for its ice cream flavors. In general, this ice cream parlors chain offers dozens of delicious flavors. However, most of these flavors contain cow’s milk and cream.

For vegans, Bruster’s only offers nine vegan-friendly ice creams, such as:

Vanilla

Vanilla is one of the most popular ice cream flavors. This ice cream is usually created by cooling a mixture of vanilla flavor, sugar, and cream above a container of salt and ice.

Bruster’s utilizes 100% organic coconut milk to create vegan vanilla ice cream. Keep in mind that it does contain tree nuts. So, if you have allergies to tree nuts, this flavor is undoubtedly not for you.

Ingredients: Caramel Color, Natural & Artificial Flavors, Neutral Base, Sugar, Sea Salt, Mineral and Vitamin Blend, Cane Sugar, Sweetened Coconut Milk.

Strawberry/Banana

Bruster’s also offers a mixture of strawberry and banana flavors. This one is both healthy and delicious, and it is free from added preservatives and artificial flavors. Plus, it is loaded with vitamin D, calcium, and potassium.

Ingredients: Neutral Base, Sugar, Bananas, Natural Flavors, Sweetened Strawberries, Sweetened Coconut Milk, Mineral and Vitamin Blend, Guar Gum, Red 40 & Blue 1.

Strawberry

Now, if you don’t like the taste of banana in your ice cream, you don’t have to worry because Bruster’s got you covered. Bruster’s also offers strawberry flavor ice cream that does not contain dairy products. 

Ingredients: Sweetened Coconut Milk. Cane Sugar, Mineral and Vitamin Blend, Sea Salt, Sunflower Lecithin, Ascorbic Acid, Natural Flavors, Sweetened Strawberries, And Red 40 & Blue 1.

Mint Chocolate Chip

Bruster’s mint chocolate chip ice cream contains mint ice cream with chocolate chips. This flavor is the 4th most popular ice cream flavor out there.

Ingredients: Sweetened Coconut Milk, Mineral and Vitamin Blend, Gellan Gum, Natural Flavors, Chocolate Flakes, Cocoa, Coconut Oil, Neutral Base, And Yellow 5 & Blue 1.

Graham Central Station

Initially, the Graham Central Station was an American funk band. However, Bruster’s offers an ice cream flavor known as Graham Central Station. The ingredients of this ice cream flavor are all vegan and dairy-free.

Ingredients: Coconut Milk, Vitamin and Mineral Blend, Natural Flavor, Graham Variegate, Whole Wheat Flour, Sugar, Soybean Oil, Powdered Sugar, Coconut Oil, Soy Lecithin, Neutral Base, Graham Base, Salt, And Yellow 5 & Yellow 6.

Cookies & Cream With Oreo

Cookie & Cream is an ice cream flavor that includes chocolate sandwich cookies. Bruster’s famous cookie & cream flavor comes with pre-crumbled Oreo cookies. This one is also made from plant-based milk and other ingredients.

Ingredients: Sweetened Coconut Milk. Mineral and Vitamin Blend, Sea Salt, Sunflower Lecithin, Natural Flavor, Oreos, Thiamine Mono-Nitrate, Cornstarch Leavening, Salt, Soy, Neutral Base, Citric Acid, Sodium, Xanthan Gum, Water.  

Other Flavors

Besides these, Bruster’s also offer three additional flavors, including banana, chocolate, and chocolate chips. All these flavors are delicious and completely free from dairy products, and they contain coconut milk and natural flavors.

Sherbet And Italian Ice

Besides delicious ice cream, Bruster’s also offers several sherbets and Italian ice flavors. Unfortunately, Bruster’s combines both these products into the same list. However, it’s worth noting that both sherbet and Italian ice are two different things.

While Italian ice is vegan, sherbet contains dairy products. As Bruster’s has combined both these products into the same list, it’s a possibility that there are some vegan sherbet flavors offered by Bruster’s.

Anyway, the “Sherbet and Italian Ice” list at Bruster’s contain the following flavors:

  • Watermelon
  • Super Hero
  • Strawberry Kiwi
  • Strawberry Daiquiri
  • Sour Apple
  • Pina Colada
  • Peach
  • Lemon
  • Grape
  • Dewey Mountain
  • Cotton Candy 
  • Cherry
  • Blue Pop
  • Banana

The non-vegan sherbet flavors at Bruster’s include:

  • Strawberry
  • Orange
  • Lime
  • Cranberry
  • Raspberry
  • Black Raspberry

Sorbets

Sorbet, also known as water ice, is a frozen dessert free from dairy. This dessert is typically made from sugar-sweetened water and specific flavorings – usually honey, liqueur, wine, fruit puree, and fruit juice.

Unlike sherbets, sorbet does not contain any dairy. So, it is a perfect frozen dessert for vegans. Bruster’s also offers several flavors of sorbet that are truly mouth-watering. The most popular sorbet flavors at Bruster’s include:

  • Strawberry Lemon
  • Strawberry
  • Pineapple
  • Peach
  • Mango Dragon Fruit
  • Mango
  • Lemon
  • Coconut
  • Black Raspberry

Beverages

For their vegan customers, Bruster’s also offer numerous exciting drinks, including:

  • Sodas – If you don’t want ice cream, you can get a separate soda at Bruster’s as well. They have different companies’ sodas available, including Coca-Cola.
  • Floats – You can get coconut vanilla ice cream at Bruster’s for vegan-friendly floats. Afterward, mix any fountain drink with your ice cream and enjoy!
  • Freezes – You can also enjoy freezes at Bruster’s Real Ice Cream parlors. To make a freeze, buy a vegan sherbet or Italian ice flavor and mix it with Sprite!

5 Best Alternatives To Bruster’s Real Ice Cream

Ice cream is one of the most popular frozen desserts out there. So, we know nine flavors are not enough for vegans. Therefore, below, we have mentioned some of the best vegan ice cream parlors chain available out there:

JD’s Vegan

Legendary music producer Jermaine Dupri founded JD’s Vegan. This food chain is dedicated to vegans and offer six different vegan ice cream flavors, including:

  • Cookie & Cream
  • Apple Butter
  • Strawberry Sweetheart
  • Chocolate My Way
  • Peach Cobbler
  • Key Lime Pie

Sub Zero Nitrogen

Sub Zero Nitrogen is another ice cream parlor chain that deserves a spot on our list. This Utah-based chain offers ice cream flavors made from soy milk. Some of the most popular Sub Zero Nitrogen ice cream flavors are:

  • Raspberry
  • Lemon
  • Coffee
  • Peanut Butter
  • Mango
  • Lime
  • Amaretto

Ben & Jerry’s

Ben & Jerry is undoubtedly the most popular ice cream chain available, and this company offers 15 different flavors that are entirely free from dairy. Along with ice cream, it also offers vegan frosting and vegan shakes that are worth every penny.

The most popular ice cream flavors at Ben & Jerry’s Include:

  • Cherry Garcia
  • Coffee Fudge Chip
  • Coconut Almond
  • Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
  • Caramel Almond Brittle

Amy’s Ice Cream

The best thing about Amy’s ice cream is that the flavors at this shop are constantly changing. They like to be creative and produce unique and delicious ice cream from time to time.

In general, the most popular vegan-friendly ice creams flavors at Amy’s Ice Cream are:

  • Coconut
  • Mango
  • Lime
  • Chocolate
  • Coffee
  • Salted Caramel

Baskin-Robbins

Baskin-Robbins is famous all around the globe. The vegan ice cream flavors at Baskin-Robbins include:

  • Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
  • Chocolate Extreme
  • Coffee Caramel Chunk

In A Nutshell

Bruster’s Real Ice Cream offers several vegan products. Their most popular vegan options include vegan ice cream, vegan sherbet & Italian ice, vegan sorbets, and vegan beverages. 

Bruster’s offers nine different vegan-friendly flavors containing creamy coconut milk!