Rita's of Bonita

Hot off the press yo'....

Rita's of Bonita (which is actually in Chula Vista, zip code wise) has finally opened....

After days of passing by this place and seeing the covered windows,  I got excited when I saw lines of people out the door a few nights ago. I also saw teens walking away with cups in their hand so I figured we had to check it out. I remember reading a few months ago that it was supposed to open in early March but it turned out to be early April.

All the workers were young, cheerful and greeted everyone that walked in with, "Hello, welcome to Rita's of Bonita!"...

There were so many choices on the menu...

What to get...

I wished the flavors weren't so "fruity".  I was disappointed there was no coffee flavored ice.

We were offered samples of whatever we wanted and as many (but we demurred and just got one sample)...I tried the juicy pear which I liked but TC ended up getting that flavor for her Italian ice...


Our desserts...

I tried the "Gelati" - You choose an ice (chocolate mint) and a frozen custard (vanilla chocolate twist). The girl layered the frozen custard on the bottom with the ice, and then a swirl of the custard on top.

I didn't really want mint as the ice flavor but I though it was the only flavor that would go best with the two flavor custard twist. It ended up being pretty decent. I wasn't sure if I could finish this, but the Italian ice itself was pretty light. Now if it was solid frozen custard, that would be another story.

Bert's Frozen Custard - he didn' realize I had the vanilla/chocolate twist; had he known, he would have gotten the strawberry/vanilla twist.

We both liked the thick, smooth and creamy texture of the frozen custard.

This was TC's Italian Ice - Juicy Pear with Cotton Candy:

I thought we had a good cross section of the menu offerings...

The juicy pear was the light green; the cotton candy was blue. I liked the pear flavor much better...

I wasn't sure if I'd like this combination, but it ended up tasting all right. The ice mixed into the frozen custard giving it an interesting texture. They also offer a blended version of this called the "Blendini" but I think I like this better, having two distinct icy treats layered.

The little chocolate chips made this better for me too since it gave it some crunch and texture.

Logo from their trashcan:



I'm so glad this place has finally opened! Even though it was almost 8 pm, the place was constantly busy. The company chose a good spot since it's right next to Southwestern College, across the street from Bonita Vista High and down the road from the local middle school as well. The downside is that the parking lot will be that much more craptastic with the cars and all.

Rita's, in the Ralph's shopping center complex, is near the newly opened Jamba Juice which replaced Los Alazanes taco shop, Subway (ugh, purveyor of toxic yoga mat chemicals in their bread), and Crispy's Donuts (which has my favorite blueberry buttermilk bar!). I guess they call this Rita's of Bonita since it's in the Bonita Plaza strip mall, but it's not really in the town of Bonita itself.

Leanne from Three Dog Kitchen went to Rita's but in the Carlsbad location....
September 2013

Rita's of Bonita (in the Ralph's shopping center)
1463 East H St.
Chula Vista, CA 91913
(619) 307-3743

www.ritasofbonita.com and facebook page

Recent articles:
" Italian ice chain coming to San Diego" - SD Union Tribune, Feb 4, 2014
"Rita's Italian Ice to expand in San Diego County" NBC San Diego, Feb 5, 2014
"Rita's Italian Ice now scooping in Chula Vista" Restaurant News, April 8, 2014

We are definitely going here again to try their other flavor combinations! Yee haw!