A toasted bun for a $3 Hoffman hot dog !! Delicious & the butter pecan ice cream was loaded with pecans ! New owners need to have more staff. 1 line for food & ice cream with 1 poor young girl doing her best.

Love the ice cream at Skan Ellus Drive In! I usually get a cherry sundae made with soft chocolate ice cream and have it topped with whipped cream and a cherry. They have the best cherry topping. They are whole cherries that taste like you are eating fresh fruit. It is located between beautiful Skaneateles , NY and Marcellus, NY. Go there and enjoy the ice cream and the peacefulness of the surroundings. You will be glad you did.

Eating here was a very good experience had a double cheeseburger and a vanilla milkshake both were very good. The wait for the food wasn't that long at all, it was very clean very friendly atmosphere.

Good food. Creamy ice cream. Great service

My absolute favorite ice cream place in Skaneateles! They have kiddie sizes too - just be careful because they overdo ALL the sizes. A normal small could feed 3, so make sure to say you actually want the kiddie size if you only want a bit. All their ice cream is good - soft serve, hard, shakes... My cousins come here for hotdogs and lunch too, but I've only eaten here once. Fast service, great atmosphere.

Great Ice Cream with playground and dog park. Very reasonable dinner or lunch spot!

Seemed just about the same today as I remember it 25 years ago. Great memories here!

When we are in the upstate area then we HAVE to stop here for soft ice cream. I used to live in the upstate area and this was traditional. If we're near Skaneateles, stop at Skan Ellus! Thank you for still being there and, having such a great ice cream. 👍

Perfect spot to stop for ice cream after a day at the lake.

Buffalo chicken tenders were simply fantastic. Nachos and cheese is a great portion for the price. Solid drive in food and the car show is a nice bonus!

Delicious, creamy ice cream! Was thrilled to see heavenly hash, an old favorite, on the list of available flavors.

Best chili dogs around! Great service, clean, comfortable dining room. Update 4/12/24 New remodel looks great, bright clean inviting atmosphere but is unfortunately on the loud side Food is still great, some of the best French fries around. Chili is great but seems just slightly different than before.

We had hot dogs and ice cream. Excellent hot dogs with a toasted bun done perfectly. Ice cream was also excellent with fresh cones. I was surprised at the large variety on the menu. I will go again. Cost was a little more than average, but the quality makes it well worth it.

A great spot to stop at on a hot day for a refreshing ice cream. I didn't sample any food other than my dish of pumpkin vanilla twist ice cream. I would recommend it to anyone.

The updated drive in is great! Ice cream is good, bathroom is clean and the kids enjoyed the new playground area. Improvements much needed!

Four of us ordered fish dinners, root beer floats, burgers and fries with gravy, and potato salad last Easter Sunday. (2024) We love the new diningroom remodel and beautiful updated restroom. A very nice experience, as always.

My husband and I go here for a great ice cream treat. There is always a wide selection of ice cream. There is also outdoor seating to sit and take in a lovely Central New York Day. Well worth the trip.

We love Skan Ellus at the Village Office, always a favorite for lunch! We went out to support them on their Grand Opening and even though there was a mile long line, the food was amazing, and the service was exceptional! If you haven't been, or even if you have...you definately need to go check them out!

I've been visiting skanellus since I was a kid. Always consistent! Good food too! Full dining room out back. Ice cream is their bread and butter tho, one of the best Ice cream places around! Good prices.

A very nice ice cream stand, lots of things to choose from. They serve Byrne Dairy ice cream

Classic roadside ice cream stand with nostalgic vibes.

Great ice cream and service. Dining is inside and out. Nice location, right between Marcellus and Skaneateles. I have never tried the food, but there are always people dining in and taking out food orders, so it must be good!

We stopped here on a road trip through upstate NY, and it was absolutely delicious ice cream! The black raspberry and vanilla soft serve was a particular highlight. I can't speak for their food menu, as we did not sample that. All the staff were very nice and fast. If I ever find myself driving by again, I'll make sure to stop in! (Oh, and the bathroom was large and clean.)

Ice cream was great and fairly priced. The peanut butter sundae was excellent and the ice cream was high quality. The regular sundae was also excellent. The kiddie size in a dish were a good enough size for most health conscious adults as well and only $3.10. And lastly the cones were pretty large portions. The service was fast and will staffed and everyone was nice. I'd gladly go again.

Food is good, nice little place. Ice cream is excellent.

Great playground for the kids to enjoy while you wait for your meal or after you have ice cream. Really nice deck for eating. Inside dining area is like an old time diner and very spare.

Simple food joint with fast service and good food. The price is great for what you get. They have gluten free bread for burgers, the kind that is large and doesn't fall apart into pieces.

New owners-new upgrades to property, food and service. The lines are long to order food and drink, while you wait there are happy children playing on the new outdoor playground. The food comes quickly and it's really good. Lots of food variety, tons of ice cream, and desserts. We give this overhaul two thumbs up. Go soon.

Love the sandwiches and ice cream. Nice indoor seating with big windows to enjoy the outdoor views and even a childs playground. A restaurant where you can sit and enjoy talking with friends. Would love to see a salad on the lunch menu...one like a Wegmans Caesar or Cobb salad would be a great choice.

Stopped here for soft serve ice cream. Absolutely delicious. My first time having black raspberry. Had it in a twist with vanilla. They also have chocolate available as an option in a twist with vanilla. Nice friendly service. I didn't have any food so I can't rate that, but we had 9 happy people eating their soft serve.

Great service, good ice cream. Even if it’s crowded they handle it efficiently. Plenty of parking, plenty of seating.

Heavenly! A must stop on our way in and out of town! The fries are crispy and that soft serve raspberry is to die for!

Liz B

Great place to stop for yummy onion rings, ice cream and much more. Small playground for young children. Indoor and outdoor seating.

Perry Friesen

I had the Turkey Club and it was excellent. Very nice, fun, clean place.

Danny Ho

This is still a favorite, haven't been there in 20 years and it's still excels as one of the best ice cream places.

geoff4376

Place is phenomenal! They are usually pretty busy for a reason. Burgers are fantastic. Ice cream is top notch. They've been really good ever since I was a kid.

RCL

Great roadside restaurant and ice cream shop that’s been around for nearly 60 years and was recently renovated. Comfortable seating indoor and out, friendly customer service and good food. Outdoor seating is dog friendly. Open from March until November 1 each year. Recommended if you’re in the area and especially if you’re in the mood for a touch of nostalgia.

A D

This ice cream shop is a hidden gem. They serve delicious food and amazing ice cream. Bring your family and enjoy their delectable treats! 10 out of 10 rating!!!!

Great summer stop. Great ice cream, food and service. Stop when going by. Worth the stop.

They didn’t have what i wanted, we were served a banana split in a cup they were out of bowls, in all fairness it was 30 minutes before closing, the ice cream was just okay.

A great traditional ice cream place with burgers and fries.

The staff are nice and the selection of food and ice cream are good, wish there was a little more space outside to walk around while eating

We stop here every summer on our way to camp Casawasco Camp and Resort. If you want a good old fashioned hot dog or the most creamy ice in town, here is where you'll find it.

They had my favorite, soft serve Black Raspberry with Hot Fudge. Heaven.

Delicious roadside food, nothing fancy. If you want a chili dog or some fries this place is nice to stop by. The best part though is the ice-cream. So many wonderful flavors.

The chili dog was very good. The skanellus burger, not so much. Ground beef that tasted like corned beef hash to a point. Not bad but not what was expected. Ice cream is very good there. Good place to eat outside. Bathrooms are available.

Cute little place, good food. Order the chili cheese fries and they were a big portion! 😋 the burgers were a little overly greasy though but I may have been an off day for them. They have alot of options as well!

Holy large milkshake! I got a large because it was really hot out and almost couldn't finish it. I was not expecting to get a 32oz shake for just over $6. It was quite good. If this place wasn't so far away, we'd return...

This is the place for ice cream in Skaneateles. My parents swear by the haddock sandwich and they don't like fish. I wasn't happy with the hot turkey sandwich but nothing is perfect. My sister was as happy with her buffalo chicken strips. The ice cream was huge.

Sandwiches were excellent, very busy location, service a little slow. Ice cream prices seem high.

This is certainly a solid place to get ice cream. It's a simple summer hangout, with decent enough meal choices. You get a lovely view of the woods from the indoor seating area. If you have small children, this is the perfect place for you. Plenty of room for them to run their spastic little bodies around, while you, the parents, savor some excellent ice cream, a decent meal... or maybe both.

The menu has drastically upgraded with the new ownership. You can now get Spiedie subs in Skaneateles or a decent Texas hot (Hoffman hot dogs). The ice cream is as good as ever. The lines can still be long at times.

Classic and iconic ice cream spot for locals driving through skaneateles. They have one of the only flavor burst machines in the area; if you don't know what I'm talking about, do yourself a favor and go try a black cherry flavor burst ice cream cone. Basic food options like burgers and dogs are good and always meet expectations but we typically don't go for the food, we go for the ice cream.

Great ice cream place with better than expected food, with room for improvement. For example, fries were a nice, battered variety, while cheesesteak was made from an unusual patty style meat. Service was great here!

I’m excited for the “new” Skan Ellus! I tried the hot turkey with gravy and fries. Both the French fries and the gravy were good. There was enough gravy to enjoy but not so much I felt my sandwich was drowning in it. The decorated waffle cone was a good companion for soft-serve twist — I strongly recommend giving it a try. The new dining room is beautiful and the windows bring in a lot of natural light. The only downside being it’s somewhat loud, so bring your speaking voice if you visit with someone hard of hearing like me. Outside, the steps to the ordering windows are much better than they used to be (i.e., less abrupt).

Your classic beach town ice cream shop with a long menu of mostly fried foods. We had the haddock, chicken nuggets, and curly fries and some ice cream cones. Soft serve was slightly disappointing but the food was very good!

Bryan Cavellier

Good ice cream choices, clean shop. Fair prices. Overall pretty good.

Casey Faloon

Had the chicken spiedie sandwich and it was delicious. Chicken was moist , flavorful and not fatty. Kids liked their hot dog and grilled cheese. Coleslaw wasn't my favorite but overall It was a nice visit. And of course their ice cream is delicious. Need to have better music if you're going to play it that loud.

Jeff Coppola

This review and most reviews prior to 2024 are now dated. Now under new ownership and management starting 2024. I will post a new review soon. ... Dated review from 2023: Fast service for ice cream and milkshakes but very slow meal service. I ordered a hot dog and it took over 20 mins and it was not very busy.

+1

Zach Roper

This place had good service and was quick. A little out of the way but I'd say the ice cream was worth it. A medium cone gets you two fairly large scoops. The rainbow sherbet was refreshing and the orange pineapple was creamy with little chunks of fruit inside. The place was kept reasonably clean and the people up front were nice.

gerard grohol

Great place with amazing staff I had the apple dumpling ice cream it was great I like to try different types of new things so it was different but good

Couldn’t wait to try this new place. Had sandwiches, they were good. . We ate inside the new place, very clean but the acoustics were the worst when filled with people.

Mediocre taste. Everything tastes like it came from the freezer. Good enough for a quick bite on the run, but not much better than gas station quality.

Your soft ice cream is delicious, pumpkin and Doggie dish gone in a min. Your garbage container was full of bees. I got stung and am still suffering today. Move it.

Food is great value but girl working the counter was extremely rude when ordering.

Food is good. Love the new renovations! They now have dairy free ice cream, so big bonus there. Unfortunately, the quality of service is struggling. Every time we go, there is confusion over orders and often they aren’t sure whose order is whose. I have received incorrect orders as well after making sure the order was clear. Maybe more/better training is in order? Just seems very disorganized. I’d love to see Skan Ellus do much better.

Ewa Durda

We love Skan Ellus and it’s been our go-to spot for lunch or dinner on nice drives. The food is always great and fast. But the girl working the front window lately has been shockingly rude. She doesn’t greet you, doesn’t say thank you, doesn’t even acknowledge you. She just stares past you blankly like you’re an inconvenience for ordering. Yesterday while I was mid-order, she literally turned her back to talk to someone in the kitchen, leaving me standing there mid-sentence. No apology when she turned around, no effort to be polite and she had that same blank stare with miserable attitude. Even other customers next to us were shaking their heads at how rude it was. This wasn’t a one-time issue either as we had the exact same experience with her during our previous visit, which makes it even more disappointing. The food and kitchen staff are excellent, but that kind of behavior completely takes away from the experience. Management really needs to address this because no matter how good the food is, service like that makes people think twice about coming back.

N N

Good soft and hard ice cream cones, sundaes and shakes. They also serve chili dogs, burgers (they have a version that resembles a cheese steak sandwich but with crumbled hamburger called The Skan Ellus Burger), cold and hot sandwiches, fried seafood, and the normal selection of sides. UPDATE-1: New owners have extensively renovated this popular summer destination on the outskirts of Skaneateles. The menu is similar to the old one, and they still have the Skan Ellus Burger. From the newly paved parking lot, we noted that the building has a new coat of paint. Inside we found that the booths have been removed as well as a wall that divided the dining room into two sections. In their place, is an open space with tables and chairs. The walls and ceiling have been painted white giving the room a bright, clean look. The window replacements are larger than the originals, giving a nice view out the back of lawn and trees. You place your order at a window as you enter and they hand you your drink. Food is delivered to your table. We ordered a Skan Ellus burger and a chili dog, with sides of french fries, macaroni salad, and potato salad. The sides were very good and the French fries were exceptionally crispy. Unfortunately, the sandwiches were a disappointment. The crumbled hamburger in the Skan Ellus had the flavor of meatloaf and the bun was so firm that it was impossible to eat without the filling sliding out the bottom. I ended up removing the bottom part of the bun and using a knife and fork to finish the burger. The chili dog had a very generous amount of chili. However, the chili had little flavor except for heat and the hot dog roll disintegrated quickly, again letting the contents fall on the underlying plate. What should have been a very enjoyable finish to the meal also turned out to be a disappointment. For $8.50 plus a $1 tip the hot fudge sundae seemed small and underwhelming. Next time, if there is one, I'll probably just order a plain hot dog with mustard and a side of the wonderful french fries. On a positive note, the unisex bathroom may be the cleanest, largest, and most attractive bathroom in any drive-in restaurant or diner in New York State. UPDATE-2: Stopped for a small chocolate soft-serve cone. It was generous in size and had a good chocolate flavor.

+5

Timothy Swartout

Food is reasonable as well as prices. Kids running the orders need to pay better attention. We got cheese burger instead of chicken nuggets and they forgot 2 lemonades. They made it right

Disappointed in the change of the skanellus burger. Won't be worth the 45minute drive from us anymore. They were though very friendly and professional.

2024 Update -- Skan Ellus Drive In is under new ownership and both the quality of the food and service have declined. The cheeseburgers now have an odd, meatloaf like texture and they lack the wonderful maillard reaction that they used to have. At my most recent visit, several customers who ordered after me were served before me and I had to go and inquire before my food was brought to my table. All told, Skan Ellus is no longer worth the visit.

Food was ok, but not for the price, paid $5 for a hamburger that was only the meat and the bun about the size of a McDonald's hamburger, a small fry was $4 extra; got a VERY small sundae for over $6. Much more economical choices with better quality in the area.

Admittedly they fixed the place up, added a playground which was a great idea. But the ice cream they’ve served since the reopening is terrible. Every flavor I’ve tasted. Would not go back unless they switched brands

Newly remodeled burger and ice cream place. Very ordinary menu. Nice new dining room, but on this very hot day it was a stuffy 77 degrees in this room and there were FLIES EVERYWHERE! NO air conditioning in the 83 degree ordering area. Understaffed as usual, lately. I paid $4.80 for a small, yes a small ice cream cone. Will I be back? Why on earth would I return to this place ??

7:41PM So let me tell you how you are getting ripped off daily and they will do nothing about it. Stopped in tonight 6/24 to get 2 large milkshakes printed off their own web page that was updated 2016 price for the milk shake was listed as $4.50 They do not give you a receipt and charged $5.15 for the shake(s) . When i spoke to the young man ( a cook) who said he was in charge his comment was he has noting to do with the web site. Even with me giving him the print out with today's date he would not do anything about the over charge. This is not good customer service

Ordered a mac and cheese and they served me off vrand kraft mac for 6$. Very dissapointed

Was talked up to me. 4th of july. Boating all day. Ez mac n cheese. Friehofer bread. Terrible quality. Fries were decent. But they are fries. All with drink for 16$. Never returning.

First I must say that I’ve never left a review regarding anything. I simply haven’t felt the need. Sadly after today’s experience I will no longer return. After asking a question. My order was for one thing and was brought another. When I asked if I was charged for the item I didn’t order I was told yes. Miss Aubrey walks up to me says goodbye and waves a dismissal at me. Stunned by this I walked away and returned to ask her name she told me and I asked for the manager she said it was her and then I asked for the owners name. She told me and informed me he was her step dad. So if you like entitled little twits treating you as garbage head on in. What a sad future our world has before it. As a seasonal business such as this return business is a must. As expensive as things are these days it’s gonna cost more if this type of customer service is allowed to exist.

LOVE the new Skan ellus!! What a great job the owners have done. The charm and character is like no other and the food is amazing! It’s the perfect place to come for a meal, an ice cream and to spend time together. Bravo Skan ellus for keeping a timeless staple of Skaneateles thriving for generations to come!

We had lunch items, but probably should have had ice-cream. The wait staff was very nice, but the food was not very good. Because it was so hot out, we ate inside. It was air conditioned but had a strange smell.

Just stopped here on the 4th of July after being on the boat all day and I must say it was like eating school cafeteria food. Spent $28 on 2 burgers, fries and mozzarella sticks and it was not worth it at all. Very disappointed and unsatisfactory. They need to do better and have quality food . I don’t mind spending the money if the food and service is great.

I have been a Skaneateles native for 30 years and going to Skanellus tonight made me underwhelmed. The prices have definitely increased from where they were. It took me 15mins or more to get to the front of the line, I was second in line. The girl who was working was chatting with her two friends who were ordering instead of preparing their order and moving onto the next customer. I don’t think I will be back to Skanellus this season.

So disappointed in our visit tonight. First of all the attitude of the girls behind the window so needs to be corrected. None of them seemed to be getting along. They had to call the cook three times to come out to start the orders Then our order came out missing one of the items we asked for. They had to go find the cook as he had gone out back again. When we finally got the order and got it all home the hot turkey sandwich had three pieces of turkey rolled up in the center. The turkey club all the toast was burnt. It was not an enjoyable dinner what so ever. The place is not trained in customer service or how to ring up and bill correctly. The employees are not told to not to bicker with each other in front of customer. Oh and the best part was the person who had a peanut allergy and the one girl had attitude about putting cloves on so as to not cross contaminate and to use brand new sprinkles so she could enjoy and ice cream out with her boyfriend. I miss the way this place was run a few year back when all we had to worry about was if we had ordered too much food.

Was looking forward to a small ice cream with chocolate sprinkles. Paid $4.50 and got this tiny cup of ice cream. Sorry Skan-ellas, I won't be back for a small with sprinkles again. So disappointed.

So I have been going here for many years. Yesterday I went for the first time since new owners. The price for a small ice cream went up to $4.47 and when she handed it to me it was the smallest cone of ice cream I have ever been handed there. It’s one thing to jack up the prices but then to give you less? Not sure this was a positive change. Good luck to them.

Claire Wallace

Grew up here. Very sad. A shell of what it use to be. Hard to believe the dining room could be sticker than the original and yet here we are. I grew up having the hot turkey sand w fries and gravy. Still on the menu and yet never available when ordered.

Thad LeRoy

We waited in line for icecream for over 20 min with 2 people in front of us that neither was seen yesterday, we left and went elsewhere, what happened to the standard that they once had, how about apologize to the customers waiting tht something is going on? Oh well, guess we won't be back, faster service at Byrne and dairy

Jake

Never eating here again or recommending this place to anyone. Waited 40 minutes for 2 chili dogs that were stone cold, the buns were stale, and overall did not taste good. Spent over $20 on these hot dogs; very disappointed

Carrie H.

We have been a few times this year. Everyone is nice that works there and service is good but we are a little disappointed with the food. We went a few times in hopes it was just a little "bump" in the road for the new season but things are not the same. We are hooked on the signature things like the cabbage salad and skanellus burgers. We got both last night and they can't seem to nail the recipe with the changes unfortunately. I wish them the absolute best and hopefully they can turn those few items around as I know this type of business is a very challenging industry.

Yve salt

This is not a Skanellus cheeseburger. So sad that after all the upgrades and clean changes they made to this place, that the food lost in the end. VERY Dry meat, dry bun and not a potato bun, or even decent cheese. Also, if I may ask what happened to the old recipe/seasoning for the meat, way too salty, and it almost tastes burned, with no other flavors. To top it all off, 2 loose meat sandwiches came to $15. 😳 please go back to the old recipe way of making these.

Debra Bassett-Kiser

Have gotten ice cream there for years. It is ok. Just got food for the first time and it is not great. Overpriced. Dry tiny burger. Flavorless mac salad. Ordered an ice cream soda, which anywhere else is usually ice cream, chocolate syrup and soda. This was lacking the syrup so just ice cream and 7up. The girl at the window was not familiar with any menu items. I get that everyone is seasonal help, but train them before putting them at the window.