Why are 99 ice creams called 99's?!
Why are 99 ice creams called 99's?
Answers:
The origins of the name are uncertain. One claim is that the '99' was coined in Portobello, Scotland, in 1922, by the Arcari family, who owned a well known ice cream shop there. They sold ice-creams with half a large 'Flake' inserted in the top, and reputedly gave it the name simply because the shop was sited at 99 High Street. The idea spread locally, then further afield.
Another theory (put forward by a Cadbury's sales manager, but now proved to be unfounded) was that the name came from Italy: "In the days of the monarchy in Italy the King had a specially chosen guard consisting of 99 men (The Guard actually consisted of 110), and subsequently anything really special or first class was known as 99 ― and that is how the 99 Flake came by its name". The Wordhunt initiative in 2005 found that the myth actually referred to the Vatican's Swiss Guard, which traditionally had 105 members, and now has 100.
Another possibility is that it was named by Italian ice-cream sellers (many of whom hailed from mountainous areas in the Veneto, Trentino, Bellunese and Friuli) in honour of the final wave of conscripts from the First World War, born in 1899 and referred to as "i Ragazzi del 99" - the Boys of '99. They were held in such high esteem that some streets in Italy were named in honour of them. The chocolate flake may have reminded them of the Alpine Regiment's hat, with a long dark feather cocked at an angle.
A Flake 99Yet another ingenious suggestion is that the initials of "Ice Cream", IC, form the Roman numerals for 99 (being 100 - 1). In practice, the number 99 is not written like this but as XCIX. It could, of course, be that the name was coined by someone who either did not know this or ignored it.
One more explanation suggests that the original length of the flake chocolate bar was 99mm, but this is an unlikely explanation as the chocolate bar preceded the introduction of the metric system.
And, finally, a company known as "Askey's" first established a cone called "99". As people ordered this, "99 with a flake" would have been shortened over the years to "99 flake".
It has also been suggested that a Chinese ice-cream seller in the 1920s was approached by a group of British Deaf, who asked for extra chocolate with a doubled sign of a hooked finger. The Chinese seller, not certain what to call the chocolate flake, interpreted this sign as the number 99.
Source(s):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/99_flake...
they used to be 99p then thought they could raise it to get more money!
Because they are supposed to cost 99p but nowadays they just rip you off!
They call 'em fivers now!
They used to cost 99p. Now they just try and rip you off.
it was the price many moons ago
I bet you couldn't eat a hundred!
Way back when I was a kid they were the expensive ones. They were huge in a double cone with a flake in and syrup and nuts on top. They cost 99p. We were very lucky if we could get Mum to buy us one of those !
Not sure - but they were around pre-decimal - so they couldn't have been named for the price of 99p!
It might be a good idea to ask Walls Ice Cream!
There was a program on it while ago called "Balderdash and Piffle" in the UK on the BBC. It was about how some curious names and words came about. Apparently several families in the ice-cream selling and making business claimed their family had come up with the name for them after living at number 99 on their street. Or that they named it after the last number on their ice-cream-mobile's registration plate- this is probabaly a load of piffle ^^. We're still not sure where the name came from originally because ice creams wouldn't have cost 99p in those days- infact, that would've been quite a rip off- not that they aren't now.
EDIT: damn someone got there before me :p
I believe the Askeys story to be the correct one. The question is why did Askeys call it a 99.
I have never heard of this. Do they have 99 flavors? I have only heard of baskin Robbins and they only have 31 flavors far cry from 99.
I dont really know.
I do know its scorching outside & the ice-cream van has just pulled up.
Im away for a 99...!
In, possibly the 1930s, in a tiny ice cream shop in Edinburgh, the shopkeeper stuck a chocolate bar in his ice cream cones and it proved very popular with customers. The shop, at, wait for it, *99* Portobello High St sold ices up until just a couple of years ago. I read about this recently in the Edinburgh Evening News.
because they were originally 99p but now the prices have gone up
maybe because there are 99 good reasons to eat them, i wont list them though! sad life i lead!!