Passion fruit and saffron? Salted pretzel and caramel? These are nothing like the ice-cream flavors I grew up with as a kid in Maine. New England favorites Friendly’s or Hood certainly never led the charge in ice-cream ingenuity.
Meanwhile, my adopted home of NYC has hundreds of ice-cream shops — and many of the newfangled ones are trying to outdo the others with, let’s say, unusual flavors. With temperatures rising, I cooled off by trying new flavors and new spots. (Thankfully, I didn’t even get brain freeze.)
Here’s the lowdown on the city’s newest frozen treats.
Local gal
MilkMade, 204 Sackett St., Cobble Hill; 347-422-0879
MilkMade owner Diana Hardeman was in business school at NYU and training for the NYC marathon when she fell into a serious ice-cream addiction, eating a pint every night.
“After a while, I didn’t like it anymore,” confesses the 32-year-old California native, who bought a small ice-cream maker and experimented on her own. MilkMade’s subscription-based service (with bicycle delivery) was born in 2009, and the Brooklyn shop opened one month ago ($4 for a single, $6 for a double).
Hardeman is a stickler for using local ingredients, including Ronnybrook milk, Amagansett sea salt, Mast Brothers chocolate, Konery cones and Saratoga peanut butter. New summer-themed flavors, including three different takes on s’mores, debuted Friday.
Verdict: My flavor fave was the chocolate coconut macaroon, stuffed with hearty chunks of coconut cookies from NYC-based Danny Macaroons. Peanut-butter lovers will flock to the PB&J, with peanut chunks and a rhubarb compote fresh from a local green market. Can’t decide? Opt for the tasting flight of five minicones for $12.
Magic touch
Northern Tiger, 250 Vesey St.; northerntigernyc.com
For chef Doron Wong, bringing ice cream to Northern Tiger, which opened three months ago, was a childhood dream come true.
“My father rewarded us with soft serve when we were young,” explains Wong of his love for the spiral sweet. “It was always something that made me happy.”
Only one flavor is available at a time ($4 each), with past options including strawberries with popcorn, and peanut butter — and even ladies’ man Leonardo DiCaprio is a fan.
Verdict: The flavor on tap when I stopped by the shop was vanilla — but this is no ordinary Mister Softee cone. It was creamy and heavy on the vanilla, bolstered by just a hint of coffee. My cup was topped with a “magic” chocolate sauce that hardened upon impact, adding a much-appreciated crisp and crunchy texture.
Fairground play
El Vez Burrito, 259 Vesey St.; elveznyc.com
Mexican lovers can now grab a burrito on the go thanks to El Vez’s new Burrito Bar, which opened in late March — and those seeking a sweet treat can grab a cup or cone of soft serve as well.
The two flavors on tap are chocolate and horchata ($2.50 each), with toppings that include corn flakes, candied pumpkin seeds, cajeta (Mexican caramel sauce), colored sprinkles and churro stars.
“I’ve always been a chocolate fan,” says chef David LaForce, 42. “I wanted one recognizable flavor and one Mexican flavor.”
Verdict: If you’re not a fan of cinnamon, steer clear of the horchata soft serve — the spice is the only flavor that comes through. I topped mine with the churro stars because, duh. Pairing the two was reminiscent of drinking the milk left at the bottom of a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Vegan delight
DF Mavens 37 St. Marks Place; dfmavens.com
Dairy- and gluten-free DF Mavens ice cream has been available at Whole Foods since 2013. So how does the brand’s first scoop shop stack up for dairy-loving folk?
“A lot of people don’t even know it’s dairy-free, they just like ice cream,” says employee Michael Coltun, 23, who’s scooped cones ($4.50 for a single) there for celebrities such as Alicia Silverstone and Helen Mirren.
Verdict: By using coconut and almond milk as the base for most of their concoctions, DF Mavens’ 24 flavors have more depth than typical frozen fare — most notable in the Madagascar Vanilla and Del Lago Chocolate varieties. The Key Lime Creme is a bit too acidic, while the soy-based New Orleans Salted Praline is surprisingly lacking in flavor. But the Blueberry Cookie is a masterpiece, tasting just like blueberry pie.
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San Francisco Treat
Ice & Vice, 221 East Broadway; iceandvice.com
As the 2014 Vendy Award award winner for best dessert, it was only a matter of time before co-owners Paul Kim and Ken Lo upgraded their creatively stocked truck to a shop. “When I lived in San Francisco, I started experiencing different flavors,” says Kim, 34, who grew up addicted to traditional vanilla, of his decision to go into the ice cream biz. “Then I moved to New York and I didn’t see the trend; no one was pushing boundaries.”
Verdict: Buttered Popcorn may be the grossest Jelly Belly flavor, but Ice & Vice’s Movie Night scoop ($4.36 for a single, $6.20 for a double), made with Amish popcorn, toasted raisins and dark chocolate flakes, is as tasty as a buttery bucket. The must-try flavor, however, is Three Little Pigs: A salted caramel base is infused with bacon fat, tastes strongly of molasses and is sprinkled with chunks of bacon praline.
Cookie!
Ample Hills ice cream with chocolate Rice Krispies and hot fudge is sandwiched between two iconic NYC black-and-white treats from Baked. Available at both stores; bakednyc.com, amplehills.com.
Subcontinental
Babu Ji, 175 Avenue B; babujinyc.com
Kulfi is the frozen dessert of choice in Jessi Singh’s native Punjab in northern India, and now the chef is introducing it to New Yorkers at his 3-week-old restaurant Babu Ji.
Milk is cooked for five to six hours at a low temperature to keep it from boiling, then submerged in an ice bath before being molded into a sticklike shape. “It’s a very traditional recipe, and I want to keep it that way,” Singh, 40, says.
Verdict: The thick Kulfi ($6) has an almost chewy consistency, and tastes strongly of honey. Crushed pistachios and cardamom add a nice crunch and a savory touch to accent the sweetness. Singh says to watch for upcoming new flavors such as mango and coconut with chai spices.
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State-of-the-cart
Dos Caminos, 475 West Broadway; doscaminos.com
Chef Ivy Stark has been serving homemade ice cream at Dos Caminos’ four locations since opening in 2002, but she’s presenting three new house-made flavors for 2015 — as well as its first-ever ice cream cart, outside its Soho restaurant. “Ice cream is hugely popular in Mexico,” says Stark, who hails from Boulder, Colo. “All of our ice creams are made fresh with seasonal flavors.”
The cart is the brainchild of Stark and Mexican frozen-treat company La Newyorkina, who created several flavors of ice cream, sorbet and paleta (fresh-fruit ice pops) specifically for the collaboration ($4 each).
Verdict: I was intrigued by the cart’s Spicy Pineapple Jam ice cream, but was disappointed by its lack of fruity flavor. However, the paletas are refreshing. You can also go into the restaurant for Stark’s creations ($8 each): the Tres Leches is delectably milky, with chunks of homemade cake, while the hibiscus-cherry sorbet is surprisingly acidic (in a good way). And an ice-cream loving companion declared the Chiapas Coffee scoop “ballin’.”
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Sweet sorbets
Fort Grace, 293 Greene Ave., Clinton Hill; 917-909-1237
Fort Grace has occupied a small shack on DeKalb Avenue since 2009 — but this year the ice cream spot finally has a real home of its own.
“People in the neighborhood are really excited,” says employee Alyx Harper, 23, of the Clinton Hill shop that opened two months ago. “There are a lot of young families and couples who are happy to have a new space in the community.”
Verdict: The corner shop hangs artwork from nearby Pratt students. But I was a bit disappointed by the ice cream itself ($3.25 for a single, $5.50 for a double); the honey ricotta was overwhelmingly sweet, while the salted caramel simply tasted burnt. Instead, indulge in sorbet — the raspberry-cranberry-lime scoop was refreshingly tart, while the guava-pineapple-mango tasted exceptionally fruity.
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Combo king
Dominique Ansel Kitchen, 137 Seventh Ave. South; dominiqueanselkitchen.com/
Can Cronut creator Dominique Ansel find the same success with frozen treats that he has with deep-fried dough?
“I always loved soft serve more than hard ice cream,” says the eclectic chef, whose favorite flavor growing up in Beauvais, France, was vanilla. “And it’s always more fun to make your own flavors.”
Ansel is currently offering two varieties at his walk-up window ($7 each), which opened five weeks ago: burrata and gianduja (chocolate-hazelnut spread).
Verdict: It’s not often a dessert can be savory and sweet at once, but Ansel’s burrata ice cream is just that. The first few licks get you the balsamic glaze and micro basil toppings, which highlight the cheesy flavor of the soft serve. But as you delve deeper into the cone you discover chocolate and a strawberry confit at the bottom. The gianduja is a touch more conventional with its chocolate-hazelnut base; the orange-flavored mist spritzed on the final product adds a nice citrus note.
Tickled pink!
Any true ice cream fanatic has already sampled Milk Bar’s legendary cereal milk with cornflake crunch — but the sweet shop is introducing three new flavors for 2015: pink lemonade (below), root beer float and cinnamon-pineapple. Hurry, they’ll be gone at the end of July. For more info on availability, visit milkbarstore.com.