Does free ice cream mean summer is here? Along with breaking out the flip-flops and khaki shorts, the steadily rising temperatures should make you to mark your calendars for next Tuesday, May 8, when several L.A.-area Häagen-Dazs ice cream stores will be handing out free ice cream cones from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Since you can choose from any flavor — from dulce de leche to white chocolate raspberry truffle — which means you might consider doing some flavor/character assessment like Julia Louis-Dreyfus' character did during last night's Veep “Frozen Yogurt” episode prior to a campaign photo-op. (Jamaican rum is funky, unexpected and sexual; mint is clean and refreshing with traditional values; vanilla-chocolate swirl suggests racial harmony and crossing the aisle.)

Participating local stores include locations at The Grove, the Beverly Center, and the Glendale Galleria. We suggest arriving early, since you probably won't be the only one enticed by a gratis scoop of the sweet stuff.

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