PrintMy Top 10 New York Ice Cream Scooperies
These last few days have almost done me in. So I've been treating myself to one scoop of ice cream a day (no more, no less, given my "eat less" diet, which has me down 40 pounds). Here are my NYC faves:
1. Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory: Old-fashioned American, not particularly high in butterfat, ice cream.
2. Otto cart in Washington Square Park: The cheapest way to sample Meredith Kurtzman's amazing gelato.
3. Shake Shack: I know it's a cliché, but the frozen custard here rocks, and the ice cream and shake only line is consistently short.
4. Il Laboratio de Gelato: Where Ciao Bella (see below) founder Jon Snyder now plies his trade.
5. Ciao Bella: It's still pretty damned fine, even without Snyder, especially the malted milk ball.
6. Cones: I love the fruit-based gelati and sorbetti here. Bleecker Street, just east of Seventh Avenue South.
7. Eli's: Eli is a ganef, but the man knows how to make great food.
8. Creme Cremaillere: Try the Mission Fig. Sold by the scoop at Manhattan Fruitier, 29th Street, between Park and Lex.
9. Emack & Bolio: I know they're from Boston, but the ice cream is really good.
10. Eddie's (Maspeth): For old time's sake.
Have I missed any?
Häagen-Dazs is by far my favorite mass-produced ice cream, a rare example of a formerly boutique brand that's maintained its quality standards after being bought.
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19 Comments:
No love for Ben & Jerry's??
Freedom at 10:43AM on 08/04/06
Love Il Laboratorio del gelato! not as wild about Cones. For different flavors, Chinatown Ice Cream factory is fun.
Have you tried: Creme Cremellaire brand ice cream? - their mint chocolate chip is superb.
Also it's now an ice cream/gelato lovers dream in Dumbo - besides Brooklyn Ice Cream - Almondine is making their own gelato - the pistachio is good, Jacques Torres is making his own ice cream - the chocolate ice cream sandwiches are delicious, Ciao Bella has gelato (sold out of Rice restaurant's storefront), and you can get pints of Ben & Jerry's & Haagen Daz at Peas and Pickles and pints of Creme Cremellaire, Ronnybrook, Reeds and Wine sorbet at Foragers.
weezy at 11:09AM on 08/04/06
I'm glad that Ed made special mention of Haagen Dazs, and left out Ben & Jerry's. In my opinion, the former is a rare example of a large worldwide brand which maintains high standards (a la Hellman's Mayonaise) as it did when it was still a small business. Ben & Jerry's, in contrast, is a brand which has long ago gone the way of most large brands and become an industrial product of inferior quality.
If one doubts this, there are two simple ways to put it to the test. The fun way is to get a pint of each in Vanilla, and taste them. Most people are able to discern the differences between these two brands quite easily. The other way is to read the ingredient list on the two pints. Haagen Dazs is made with more or less the same stuff you would use to make ice cream in your own home -- if you wanted to go through the bother. Ben & Jerry's on the other hand, consistently includes gums and thickeners, which no doubt make it easier to make and distribute, but lead to a far inferior mouthfeel and consistency. Perhaps the secret to the sucess of Ben & Jerry's is that they mix in lots of candy, and there are few flavors where you can really taste the ice cream. When you think about it, B&J is really more candy than ice cream. Some of the best Haagen Dazs flavors on the other hand, Vanilla, Coffee, Mango, Peaches & Cream, etc., involve no such tricks, and the ice cream is the star. This is espcially laudable of Haagen Dazs, as govenment interference in the dairy industry has led to spiralling milk costs, and as a result, its a lot cheaper to fill up a pint container with candy and cookies (which include lots of cheap corn syrup, starches, and such) than with ice cream.
As for the list, I will nominate Chinatown Ice Cream Factory for addition. Some of the flavors can be a bit artificial, but others are superb, including their Coconut, Banana, and a very interesting Avocado.
Makanmata at 11:24AM on 08/04/06
You've missed Australian Homemade on 8th between A and 1st. Try the Vanilla, Chocolate, and Sorbet. To die for.
jlepes at 2:05PM on 08/04/06
You're absolutely right. I had some ice cream there last year, and it was astonishingly good. I just forgot about it. I'm getting old, I guess. Usually I wouldn't something as good as that.
Ed Levine at 2:28PM on 08/04/06
I'm nostalgic for Bassett's...remember the store in our nabe, Ed? Their vanilla was excellent, and I loved the Irish coffee.
Cathy at 2:34PM on 08/04/06
La Maison du Chocolat makes GREAT ice cream in the summer- 2 scoops for $7. The chocolate is silky and you can practically taste the burnt sugar in the caramel.
I also love the fruit sorbets at Ceci-Cela...the frozen yogurt at 40 Carrots (in Bloomingdale's) is yummy too. They're the only place that makes plain (it's slightly tangy) froyo.
SuGoodEats at 11:05PM on 08/04/06
I won't say it's definitively Top 10 b/c there's a few places on your list I haven't tried, but next time you're in the East Village/Alphabet City, give Alphabet Scoop a shot.
They're at 545 East 11th St. (btwn Avenues A & B).
I had a half chocolate, half cookie dough cone there and it was delicious. They apparently make all of the flavors in a machine on the premises.
But the really interesting thing about this place is that they are apparently not-for-profit enterprise, who employ "at risk teens" from the neighborhood. They do this to keep those kids "off of the streets and away from gangs". Certainly sounds like a worthy cause.
Fairly priced, too. I believe a single scoop was around $2.60.
nittanylio at 7:42PM on 08/05/06
Alphabet Scoop sounds really interesting. Sounds a little like the cafe/bakery on Greenwich Avenue that was affiliated with Covenant House (alas, it just closed). I will definitely check Alphabet Scoops out.
Ed Levine at 6:17AM on 08/07/06
At Ed's recommedation, I hit Manhattan Fruitier last week on the hottest day of the summer. Power had actually just gone out in the building, so they were happy to sell a bit of the ice cream before it all tragically melted down. My friend and I both had the banana chocolate walnut ice cream, which was as good as it sounds.
Two additional things to recommend the place:
1) The old board game with a die-in-a-bubble (it may have been a Pop-o-matic from Trouble(board_game) -- it was too hot to take note) -- if you guess the number correctly, you get your cone free (always try "3" for good luck).
2) The waffle and cake cones were nice and small, and looked handmade (I went for the waffle).
moth23 at 11:36AM on 08/08/06
i agree with what was said about ben and jerrys. their strategy seems to be to just throw anything they can think of into their ice cream, which is mostly junk. it ends up tasting like a mishmash of chocolate, cake, syrup, etc. without any consideration for how the elements in the ice cream complement one another. their desire to be innovative and "original" trumps their desire to produce a quality product. haagen dazs is also my favorite mass produced ice cream. every one of their ice creams tastes exactly like what it is labeled as, and you can tell by the flavor and texture that nothing has been added. sometimes when im eating haagen dazs strawberry ice cream [one of my favorite flavors], my roommates will walk by and comment on how its not bright pink like the strawberry ice cream theyre used to. it is obviously because no artificial colors or flavors have been added. i could probably go on and on about the virtues of haagen dazs but anyway, this was a great topic and ill definitely check out some of the places on that list.
foodie1128 at 3:12PM on 08/08/06
There is a great new place...Shakes and Sundaes..on East 10th Street between 3rd Avenue and Broadway...wonderful flavors like Wasabi and Corn and Sesame and Ginger, and the traditional ones as well. I went to Il Laboriatorio del Gelato when it opened, and despite the fact that I ordered a cone when it was 8 degrees outside the owner was so curt that I decided I did not want to waste more time on him. Shakes and Sundaes rocks...and great for tastes too.
vittoriavh at 8:40AM on 08/18/06
Do you mean Eddie's Sweet shop on Metropolitan Avenue? That's Forest Hills not Maspeth.
guttergour at 9:18PM on 10/05/07
To me, LaSalle Vanilla or Cherry Vanilla is the ultimate
SavtaShayna at 5:02PM on 10/30/07
Grom gelato smokes the competition in my opinion.
pemabuk at 4:36PM on 06/21/08
What about L'Arte del Gelato..one on 7th and bleecker and the other in Chelsea Market?
izzy's mama at 9:38PM on 06/21/08
I second the nomination for Chinatown Ice Cream factory. Their almond cookie ice cream is divine.
blim8183 at 3:14PM on 06/22/08
yes Eddies Sweet shop in Forest Hills! Are they still there? oh, for the good old days!
hanak at 4:30PM on 06/23/08
I stopped by a really good place on the Upper East Side. It was called Last Licks. I felt like a kid again. It is a sports themed ice cream parlor. Flavors are named after various athletes. Tikitacchio (yeah like Tiki Barber) was amazing, It had chocolate and pistacchios. Its on East 93 Street. They have a candy store inside as well. Really really good!
KristinNicole15 at 3:57PM on 07/16/08