Why is the 99 ice cream so called?
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.
