The Best Ice Cream Shops in NYC
Where to Find the Creamiest, Dreamiest Scoops in the City
If you really know EatingNYC, you know that we take our ice cream very seriously. Lucky for us, NYC has some of the best ice cream shops, we think, in the world, serving up both old-fashioned classics and super innovative flavors. Even though the colder weather is approaching, there’s no bad time to prep you with a rundown of some of our favorite spots for ice cream in NYC. Here you go!
Caffe Panna
Open for just about five years, & their newest Greenpoint location opening in 2023, Caffè Panna has continued to create massive lines outside every day. The rotating menu of scoops, pints, sundaes, affogatos, and soft serve is posted on Instagram daily, exciting fans for what’s new. The flavors are anything but simple, filled with cookies, banana bread, caramel, fudge swirls, marshmallows, cheeses, and everything else you can imagine, all made from the highest quality ingredients. You can also always find the familiar Cookies n Panna or Red Flag, as they’re so good they never leave the menu. Be sure to check out the exclusive Granita, a refreshing treat only available at the Brooklyn location!
Ample Hills Creamery
Ample Hills Creamery is still serving some of the creamiest ice cream in the City. They’ve taken all of your favorite desserts, like rice krispies, peppermint patties, and even NY cheesecake, and ice-creamified them! If you’re planning to go over with your squad, definitely try one of their ice cream flights, so you can sample 6 different flavors! Some of our favorites here are ooey-gooey butter cake, the snap, mallow, pop, and salted crack caramel…. but we really love them all!
Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream
Walk into Morgenstern’s and it feels like you’ve been transported to a 1950’s ice cream parlor, but peek at the menu and you’ll be instantly reminded what century you’re in. This new American ice cream parlor has what seems to be an endless number of flavors (88 to be exact), from five kinds of vanilla to five kinds of chocolate, three different caramel, coffee, and strawberry flavors each, and that’s just their “normal” flavors. The one drawback is they don’t allow samples, so choose your flavors wisely!
Salt & Straw
After years of anticipation, Salt & Straw has finally arrived in NYC, bringing head ice cream maker, Tyler Malek’s, wildly creative flavors to two locations on the East Coast. Known for pushing the boundaries with unique combinations, Salt & Straw produces some crazy scoops like honey lavender, pear & blue cheese, and strawberry honey balsamic.
Malai
The name Malai means “cream of the crop,” which is exactly the type of ingredients they use in each of their flavors, all of which are inspired by the founders Southeast Asian culture. The eggless ice cream creates a smooth, creamy texture, perfectly complimenting the bold flavor & really letting them shine. Sample an assortment, from golden turmeric to Turkish coffee, red chili chocolate, and spiced peanut crunch.
Sugarhill Creamery
Sugar Hill Creamery in Harlem is known for delicious flavors with quirky names — like The Unicorn, a birthday cake ice cream with gluten-free vanilla cake, royal frosting, and rainbow sprinkles, and A$AP Rocky Road including milk chocolate ice cream with toasted hazelnut, marshmallow, oreos, and graham crackers. The crazier the flavor, the crazier the name.
Sedutto
This Upper East Side institution has every classic flavor you can imagine. Of course vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry, but the menu of 30+ flavors means there’s something for everyone. My personal favorite is the S’mores, with a graham cracker base, but I also love the birthday cake, sea salt caramel, and mint chocolate chip. And if you’re in the mood for something a little different, they have an entire menu dedicated to both hard serve and soft serve yogurt.
The Original Chinatown Ice Cream Factory
This place is has been a tourist attraction in Chinatown for over 40 years, but definitely should be added to your list. The Asian-inspired flavors range from egg custard to taro, green tea Oreo, ube, and black sesame. They also have classic flavors for those not willing to venture outside the box, but we really encourage finding something new!
Milk Bar
Christina Tosi, the mastermind behind Milk Bar, rose to fame with her iconic cereal milk soft serve. While we love all of her dessert creations—like the Milk Bar Pie, chocolate malt truffles, and confetti birthday cake—her classic cereal milk & seasonal soft serves remain one of our favorite ice creams in the city.
Softside
Softside, from the Upside Pizza team, does soft serve right. You’ll find classic flavors like vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, and pistachio, along with several toppings and sundae options. My favorite is The Riff, topped with honey, olive oil, and flaky sea salt—the perfect sweet and savory combo you never knew you needed. And the best part? It’s no longer just a summer treat! You can now enjoy their soft serve year-round at their Greenpoint and Soho spots.
Kith Treats
Who doesn’t love cereal milk soft serve? At Kith, they do you one better by straight up blending cereal right into your soft serve with whatever other toppings your heart desires (i.e. cookie dough or a Snickers bar). They even have a Waffle-taco, made with a fudge-lined Kith waffle cone, molded into the shape of a taco shell, filled with vanilla ice cream infused with cocoa puffs, cookie dough and mini marshmallows, topped with milk chocolate fudge and sprinkled with tri-colored candy coated chocolate crispies. Simple, right?!
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