Disappointing milkshakes

A while ago, we went out for lunch on a Saturday afternoon, and because it was a nice day and finally feeling a bit summer-like, we ordered a milkshake to share for dessert, not thinking that it would be or could be anything other than the kind of milkshake we're familiar with.

Imagine our disappointment when instead we were served with a massive amount of cold frothed milk that tasted like strawberry Nesquik.  (It quite possibly was.)  Really... really disappointing.  Part of it was probably the cafe (I'm sure you can get a milkshake with better flavoring, excuse me, flavouring, at other venues) but most of it is just the fact that I am not a big fan of foamed milk.  Not cold, not hot, either (I don't really care for cappuccinos) and certainly not a pint and a half of it.

That style of milkshake is actually pretty popular here, and popular in the same way milkshakes are generally popular in the US (in that it's not just something for kids, the way I imagine a glass of flavored milk to be).  Upon googling it we found some links such as "the top 10 spots to get a milkshake in Brisbane" and references to people doing "milkshake crawls" in the city and the like.  For some reason it's very foreign to me... adults going out and drinking milk like this.

If you want an American-style milkshake, you must order a thick shake, which seems to be less common (or at least places that sell milkshakes do not necessarily sell thickshakes, but if you sell thickshakes, of course, milkshakes will definitely be on the menu.)  The ice cream culture seems to be just a little different down here, at least regionally.  There aren't Dairy Queens in Australia, or A&W (they don't drink root beer down here, not really).  The only chain we've seen is Cold Rock Ice Cream, which has a location in Coffs Harbour and we also saw one in Airlie Beach.  In the States, you can buy soft-serve ice cream (and/or milkshakes) at pretty much any fast-food chain, so I wonder if you can buy ice cream (and/or milkshakes) at Macca's or Hungry Jack's (McDonald's or Burger King.)  We haven't checked.  There's at least one place in Armidale where you can buy ice cream by the scoop, but it was pretty pricey so we'll probably just keep buying a tub at Woolies when we want a treat.

Maybe it's like this in the US as well, but I am always surprised by the amount of gelato in the selection at ice cream parlors.  We've gone to a couple places to get ice cream as a treat, first in Armidale for fun but also while on holiday, in Coffs Harbour, Bellingen, and Airlie Beach, and gelato definitely seems more prominent than in an equivalent store in the US.  I wonder if this is a part of Australian culture (the way frozen yogurt places are really popular in certain parts of America, maybe gelato is just more popular here), or if gelato has just become more popular recently globally, both in the US and Australia, or if I just notice it now because of my own personal experiences (maybe gelato is popular everywhere these days, maybe it always has been but I haven't been in the right place to notice.  I don't think I had gelato until I went to college.)

I really didn't think I had that much to say about ice cream/milkshakes .... apparently this is an important issue for me.
;)