Toscanini's
Encyclopedia
Toscanini's Ice Cream Company (known simply as Toscanini's or Tosci's) is an ice cream parlor
and café
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
, founded in 1982. It has won the Best of Boston
award for best ice cream in 1997, 2009, and 2010, as well as other Best of Boston awards. It has also been highly rated in Gourmet
magazine, and claims to have been highly rated in the New York Times food section.
. Other locations have included the Someday Café in Somerville, Massachusetts
(closed August 2006), a location in the MIT student center (closed December 2000), and a location on Massachusetts Avenue in Harvard Square
(closed December 2006). Toscanini's ice cream can also be found in some restaurants and supermarkets in the Boston area, such as Whole Foods Market
.
Owner Gus Rancatore recently published an Amazon Short with author Helen Epstein, entitled Ice Cream Man: 25 Years at Toscanini's, presenting a personal story of how Toscanini's came to be. The short has spent several weeks on Amazon's top ten list.
by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue because of failure to pay more than $167,000 in taxes dating back to 2000. Ice cream maker Samuel Mehr set up a website with a PayPal
donation link, and an overwhelming amount of support from the local community and beyond provided the owners with more than $30,000 toward satisfying the tax bill. A payment plan was organized with the MA DOR to pay the balance. After being closed for eight days, Toscanini's Ice Cream and Coffee Shop re-opened for business on January 25.
Ice cream parlor
Ice cream parlors are places that sell ice cream and frozen yogurt to consumers. Ice cream is normally sold in two varieties in these stores: soft-serve ice cream , and hard-packed, which has an assortment of flavors, as well as frozen yogurt, which is a low-fat alternative and tastes slightly...
and café
Café
A café , also spelled cafe, in most countries refers to an establishment which focuses on serving coffee, like an American coffeehouse. In the United States, it may refer to an informal restaurant, offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches...
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, founded in 1982. It has won the Best of Boston
Boston magazine
Boston is a monthly magazine concerning life in the Greater Boston area and has been in publication for more than 40 years.-About the magazine:The magazine is self-described as:...
award for best ice cream in 1997, 2009, and 2010, as well as other Best of Boston awards. It has also been highly rated in Gourmet
Gourmet (magazine)
Gourmet magazine was a monthly publication of Condé Nast and the first U.S. magazine devoted to food and wine. Founded by Earle R. MacAusland and first published in 1941, Gourmet also covered "good living" on a wider scale....
magazine, and claims to have been highly rated in the New York Times food section.
History
Toscanini's original (and presently only) location is at 899 Main St. in Central SquareCentral Square (Cambridge)
Central Square is an area in Cambridge, Massachusetts centered on the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Prospect Street and Western Avenue. , formed by the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Columbia Street, Sidney Street and Main Street, is also considered a part of the Central Square area...
. Other locations have included the Someday Café in Somerville, Massachusetts
Somerville, Massachusetts
Somerville is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, located just north of Boston. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 75,754 and was the most densely populated municipality in New England. It is also the 17th most densely populated incorporated place in...
(closed August 2006), a location in the MIT student center (closed December 2000), and a location on Massachusetts Avenue in Harvard Square
Harvard Square
Harvard Square is a large triangular area in the center of Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue, Brattle Street, and John F. Kennedy Street. It is the historic center of Cambridge...
(closed December 2006). Toscanini's ice cream can also be found in some restaurants and supermarkets in the Boston area, such as Whole Foods Market
Whole Foods Market
Whole Foods Market is a foods supermarket chain based in Austin, Texas which emphasizes "natural and organic products." The company has been ranked among the most socially responsible businesses and placed third on the U.S...
.
Owner Gus Rancatore recently published an Amazon Short with author Helen Epstein, entitled Ice Cream Man: 25 Years at Toscanini's, presenting a personal story of how Toscanini's came to be. The short has spent several weeks on Amazon's top ten list.
Seizure by the Massachusetts DoR
On January 17, 2008 the business was seizedConfiscation
Confiscation, from the Latin confiscatio 'joining to the fiscus, i.e. transfer to the treasury' is a legal seizure without compensation by a government or other public authority...
by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue because of failure to pay more than $167,000 in taxes dating back to 2000. Ice cream maker Samuel Mehr set up a website with a PayPal
PayPal
PayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
donation link, and an overwhelming amount of support from the local community and beyond provided the owners with more than $30,000 toward satisfying the tax bill. A payment plan was organized with the MA DOR to pay the balance. After being closed for eight days, Toscanini's Ice Cream and Coffee Shop re-opened for business on January 25.