Milwaukee ? A sundae is no mere dish of ice cream. It’s an event.

It’s warm, gooey hot fudge sauce. It’s a bright red cherry and a swirl of whipped cream. It’s fruits, nuts, caramel and any of a number of other toppings — and don’t forget the nostalgia.

Books have been written about sundaes, and the happy memories associated with them.

Sundaes have even been named after people.

The “Bigger Than Bill” sundae at the landmark Mullen’s Dairy Bar and Eatery in Watertown, Wis., for example, is named after a third-generation Mullen who used to own the store.

The Bigger Than Bill, for $8.75, consists of seven large scoops of any flavor ice cream with three toppings, a whole banana, whipped cream and crushed nuts — “perfect for two or one slightly hungry teenager,” according to the menu.

“When people come into my place, they don’t worry about calories,” shop owner Ron Luepke said.

Mullen’s has been making its own ice cream for 71 years, and it does a lot of sundae business.

The shop holds tight to nostalgia, but does add new flavors to keep up with the times.

One sundae, with two scoops of vanilla ice cream draped with marshmallow topping and covered with Spanish peanuts, is reminiscent of the old-fashioned salted nut roll candy bar.

Luepke’s wife, Gloria, makes homemade shortcake for a monthly feature, strawberry shortcake sundae. That’s two scoops of vanilla ice cream with fresh strawberries, crumbled-up shortcake and whipped cream.

The secret to the perfect sundae begins with the dish, said Ron Luepke.

“Start with an old-fashioned tulip glass,” he said. “Next, place some of the syrup in the bottom of the glass, so when you push the first scoop of ice cream down into the glass, it gives it a swirly look. Place a smaller scoop on top so there’s room for toppings on the sides. Add toppings.”

Always use fresh ingredients, including fresh fruits and freshly roasted nuts, Luepke added.

Eat with your eyes, then a spoon.

In his ode to sundaes — “A Month of Sundaes” (Red Rock Press, 2002, $19.95) — Michael Turback fondly recalls his childhood love affair with the sundae.

“If I close my eyes, I can recall the excitement of our family Studebaker pulled up to the Carvel Ice Cream drive-in on the way home from a day at the Jersey Shore,” Turback wrote. “I remember the astonishing mound of smooth vanilla ice cream blanketed by warm, gooey chocolate sauce topped by billows of whipped cream and a bright red cherry.

“My dear mother always said that it wasn’t summer until you ate your first banana split.”

There is some dispute about the birthplace of the sundae.

It may or may not have been invented in Wisconsin in 1881, when a man named George Hallauer, of Two Rivers, ordered such a dish at Ed Berner’s soda fountain.

The ice cream-and-syrup treat became so popular that George Giffy, a soda fountain owner in Manitowoc, Wis., began serving it only on Sundays — hence the name.

Ithaca, N.Y., also claims to be the birthplace of the sundae. A scoop of ice cream with a cherry and a bit of cherry syrup on top was served one Sunday in 1892 at the Platt & Cold Pharmacy. Another competitor for the honor is Plainfield, Ill.

Regardless of where the sundae was born, it’s here to stay.

Here’s some recipes you won’t want to pass up. The first recipe for homemade hot fudge sauce comes from Schrafft’s, a sundae palace in New York known for its old-fashioned soda fountain and dining room, according to Turback’s “A Month of Sundaes.”