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Dairy Queen Is Back With ‘Free Cone Day’ This Month: What To Know

Dairy Queen is celebrating the first day of spring with its annual Free Cone Day. The chain shared on its Instagram announcement, “Is it really the first day of spring…

Dairy Queen vanilla cone
Dairy Queen

Dairy Queen is celebrating the first day of spring with its annual Free Cone Day. The chain shared on its Instagram announcement, "Is it really the first day of spring if we don’t have Free Cone Day?? Kick off treat szn with a FREE small cone at participating DQ locations on March 19."

"Nothing says warmer weather is around the corner quite like Free Cone Day. We're inviting fans everywhere to grab their friends and families and get their 'Treat Szn' started with something sweet – on us!" stated Maria Hokanson, executive vice president, of marketing at ADQ.

How to score your free cone at Dairy Queen?

No other purchase is necessary to claim your free cone. Just go to a DQ location on March 19. The offer is not valid on delivery or mobile orders. The cone being offered is a small vanilla soft-serve cone, featuring the iconic DQ curl on the top.

The free offer is valid at participating U.S. locations, while supplies last. It's worth mentioning that there is a limit of one cone per person, per day. So, you can only get one cone.

DQ's Free Cone Day is a favorite for many. Some people took to the food chain’s Instagram to share in on the excitement. "Yas my moms birthday, the perfect birthday treat/gift," someone said. Another person expressed how bum they are because they have to miss the annual celebration. "So sad [crying emoji] I’ll miss this, I’ll be on my honeymoon [crying emoji]," they shared. One person is all for the spring celebration but wants to take a step further by skipping ahead a season. They wrote, "Perfect day to transition to summer flavors."

ABC reported that the annual Free Cone Day has been a "start-of-spring" tradition at DQ since 2006. In 2022, Free Cone Day made its official return after 2 years of cancellations due to COVID-19.

Visit DairyQueen.com or download the DQ mobile app to find the nearest DQ restaurant.

10 Wild Ice Cream Flavors to Try This Season

Summer is officially ice cream season, and July is National Ice Cream Month. Actually, every season is ice cream season, if you ask me. I seriously enjoy scoops of my favorite ice cream whether it's 90 degrees outside or freezing cold. When it comes to ice cream flavors, it's hard to beat the classics. Vanilla, chocolate, chocolate-chip and mint chocolate-chip are always favorites. But, why not switch it up and try some really wild ice cream flavors?

As a graduate of Michigan State University, I've tried many random ice cream flavors at the MSU Dairy Store. MSU is an agricultural college, so it's known for the Dairy Store and having delicious ice cream. Honey Lavender and Spartan Swirl come to mind. But, enough about MSU. You don't have to come to Michigan to get some unique ice cream flavors.

Read on for 10 wild ice cream flavors that you need to try. These flavors are all from major ice cream makers, so they should be fairly easy to find, no matter where you're located. I've also included some non-dairy and gluten-free ice cream options for vegans and those on a gluten-free diet. I'm not vegan, but my favorite ice cream currently is actually non-dairy. Hopefully, there's enough variety on this list for you to find your new favorite ice cream flavor.

It's worth noting that some of these ice cream flavors are seasonal and only available in the summer. That said, the majority of the flavors below are currently available year-round.

Haagen-Dazs - Summer Berry Cake Pop Ice Cream

I've definitely never heard of "Summer Berry Cake Pop Ice Cream." What is a summer berry cake pop? Regardless, it sounds great. "We swirl velvety strawberry ice cream with sweet cream ice cream, add perfect, fluffy cake pieces and then finish with a tangy raspberry sauce," they describe on their website.

Breyers - Layered Dessert Caramel Apple Pie

Breyers' "Layered Dessert Caramel Apple Pie" is a special treat, bringing you that feeling of having a piece of apple pie with ice cream on top. "We start with smooth Breyers® and stir in real apples between two layers of caramel with pie crust pieces. The experience of caramel apple pie topped with Breyers, all in one scoop!" Breyers states on their website.

Halo Top - Blueberry Crumble

Halo Top ice cream is diet ice cream, with way less calories than regular ice cream. Their flavors are pretty standard, but they do have one, "Blueberry Crumble," that's super unique. I don't eat diet ice cream, but my friend had me try this one, and it was good. "Swirls of sweet blueberry pie filling and chunks of pie crust, our Blueberry Crumble light ice cream delivers the best of spring with a good source of protein," Halo Top states on their official website.

When I think of "Cookie Monster" ice cream, I definitely picture something blue, just like the real Cookie Monster. Well, Baskin-Robbins has that flavor of ice cream, and it's blue. They describe it as "sweet cream ice cream stuffed with chocolate sandwich cookie pieces, chocolate-chip cookie pieces and cookie dough batter flavored swirls." That sounds delish.

Dreyer's - Triple Fudge Brownie Boulevard

"Triple Fudge Brownie Boulevard" is a wild take on your typical brownie-packed ice cream. Dreyer's describes it as, "A fan favorite re-imagined: our beloved Double Fudge Brownie now with crispy brownie edges​! ​A delicious pairing of brownie pieces and brownie batter swirls is now complete with extra indulgence for the ultimate brownie lover."

Blue Bunny - Cherrific Cheesecake

Blue Bunny keeps their flavors list pretty classic. That said, they do have a few flavors that stand out. One is "Cherrific Cheesecake," which taste like it sounds. "Cheesecake frozen dairy dessert, cherry and graham swirls," they describe. It's like cherry cheesecake, but it's ice cream.

Ben & Jerry's - Oatmeal Dream Pie

"Oatmeal Dream Pie" from Ben & Jerry's is kind of like those Little Debbie Oatmeal Cream cookies. You know, the soft, tasty, cream-packed oatmeal creams. This is a new flavor from Ben & Jerry's, and this is the non-dairy version. It uses sunflower milk. It's also gluten-free. "Our friends at Partake have provided the oh-my-goodness-this-is-gluten-free!? oatmeal cookie you'll find in this snacktime favorite of a flavor," they state.

Cold Stone Creamery - Oreo Overload

Everyone has heard of cookies and cream ice cream. But, Cold Stone Creamery goes one step further and packs its cookies and cream ice cream with a ton of real Oreo cookies, making it stand out. "It’s just like dipping an Oreo in milk. Except, you know, with chocolate chips. And fudge," they describe. I'm in.

Here's another unique flavor. I've definitely had cookies and cream ice cream. But what about "Black & White Cookie Ice Cream?" I've never heard of such a thing! Haagen-Dazs describes it as, "Inspired by New York’s classic Black & White cookie, we mixed vanilla bean ice cream with soft cookie pieces and ripples of chocolate frosting. Forget the cookie and grab your spoon."

Dairy Queen - Non-Dairy Dilly Bar

Here's an option for vegans. Dairy Queen offers a "Non-Dairy Dilly Bar," which is "gluten free, dairy-free, and plant-based, made with a coconut cream based protein and finished with our delicious crunchy chocolatey coating," according to their website. So, you can have the fun without the dairy or gluten, which is a good thing for sensitive diets.