Sugar ’N Spice Vs. Dad’s: the Decades-Long Rivalry for Balboa Island’s Frozen Banana Crown

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Both establishments long ago expanded beyond standard crushed peanuts. Today, their counters operate as specialized assembly lines where patrons construct elaborate customized desserts.

Sugar ’n Spice runs what amounts to a gourmet dipping station. Beyond milk chocolate, dark chocolate, and white chocolate, the kitchen offers specialty dips like salted caramel, strawberry, and peanut butter. Topping options range from diced English toffee and toasted coconut to crushed Oreos, rainbow sprinkles, chopped pecans, and spicy cinnamon chips. Sugar ’n Spice also perfected the "Balboa Bar", a rectangular block of rich vanilla ice cream impaled on a stick and given the exact same dip-and-roll treatment as the fruit.

Dad’s leans heavily into indulgence and texture. Its pastry background shows through in its topping selections, which include crushed cinnamon toast cereal, heavy graham cracker crumbs, mini chocolate chips, and butterscotch crumbles. The shop also serves its own version of the Balboa Bar, using a notably dense dairy base that appeals to nostalgic boardwalk dessert hunters.