Serious Eats
Éma, Syrian Ice Cream from Bakdash in Damascus
If you're in the mood for a sugar coma, read Paris-based blogger Marianna's latest posts at Swirl and Scramble about her recent trip to Syria and Lebanon. I'm currently obsessing over her photos of éma, a kind of Syrian ice cream, from famed ice cream parlor Bakdash in the Souk al-Hamidiyeh. Marianna says that the ice cream—made of whole milk, mastica (which gives the ice cream its chewy texture), and rose water—is a specialty of Syria not easily found in other Middle Eastern countries. The ice cream is manually churned, scooped into cups and cones, and given a generous coating of pistachios before your eyes. Marianna calls it a must see and a must taste if you're in Damascus. Now I know where I want to go for my next vacation.