Now if you’re not singing Hey Ya by this point, you aren’t human. Anyway, summer has, after a few false starts, finally hit London (in the first week of September?!), and it’s high time you went out and indulged with the best ice cream in London. Luckily, this lot knows a thing or two about whipped-up sumptuous scoops. They’ll be a godsend, particularly during this summer heat we’re getting at the mo!
1. Chin Chin, Camden & Soho
A rather dramatic USP sees Chin Chin make their ice cream with liquid nitrogen, and that isn’t the only unique thing about them. The core range is a rather upscaled quartet: tonka bean, Valrhona chocolate, burnt butter caramel, and coffee and olive oil. Top that with the likes of grilled white chocolate, bee pollen honeycomb, cinnamon toast, or marshmallow fluff, and you’ve got one of the most delicious ice creams in town. Read more here.
📍You’ll find it at 54 Greek Street, W1D 3DS (Soho) and
🚇 Nearest stations are Tottenham Court Road and Camden Town.
2. Mamasons, Kentish Town, Chinatown, and Westfield (Shepherd’s Bush)
London’s first “dirty ice cream” parlour sounds more suited to the backstreets of Soho than Kentish Town, doesn’t it? Coined London’s first “dirty ice cream” parlour, the Mamasons name actually derives from the Filipino method of whipping up scoops in a drum using ice and salt – then giving it a naughty twist by serving it atop brownies or in pandan milk buns. Flavours such as black coconut and purple ube prove it to be a winning method, as does their rapid expansion into Chinatown nary a year after opening the original. Read all about it here.
📍You’ll find it at 91 Kentish Town Road, NW1 8NY (Kentish Town) and
🚇 Nearest stations are Camden Road, Leicester Square, and Shepherd’s Bush.
3. Milk Train, Covent Garden
Milk Train’s deluxe soft-serve ice cream comes in quirky flavours like matcha and toppings like rainbow sprinkles and Oreos, but the best is yet to come. No mere waffle cone will suffice for these ice creams, for each one is surrounded by a wispy white cloud of candyfloss. A wonderful fluff of sugary joy that’ll have everyone staring after you with envy.
🚇 Nearest station is Covent Garden.
4. Bake, Chinatown
An iconic Insta snack come summertime, Bake’s taiyaki ice cream cones are shaped into hungry fish with a mouthful of soft serve. You’re restricted to the choice of chocolate, vanilla, or (clear favourite) matcha, but think of the likes! Read all about it here.
📍You’ll find it at 9 Wardour Street, W1D 6PF.
🚇 Nearest station is Piccadilly Circus.
5. Badiani, various locations
Sprinkled around London are the iconic gelato hubs known as Badiani. Serving up the softest pistachio variety, a rich yet delicate scoop of chocolate, and tangy vegan sorbet. Given they date back to 1930s Florence, they evidently know a thing or two about the gelato game, and it shows from the first cooling taste.
📍Find your nearest Badiani location here!
6. Soft Serve Society, Shoreditch
Now here’s a society I’d love to be a part of. Another champion of the soft-serve game, don’t expect a standard Mr Whippy at Soft Serve Society – flavours run from vivacious vanilla to a witchy charcoal coconut creation, and you can have ’em in cones, freakshakes, or cups.
📍You’ll find it at Unit 35 BOXPARK, 2-10 Bethnal Green Road, E1 6GY.
🚇 Nearest station is Shoreditch High Street.
7. Nardulli, Clapham
A weekend favourite amongst the Clapham crowd, gorgeous Italian ice creams sit very nicely inside the Art Deco building. Whether you have it in a cone, glass, or in the form of an ice cream cake, every flavour from After Eight to Tiramisu can be found at Nardulli.
📍You’ll find it at 29 The Pavement, SW4 0JE.
🚇 Nearest station is Clapham Common.
8. Udderlicious, Islington, various locations
Independent ice cream parlour Udderlicious makes all their sweet treats in-store. All the ice cream is organic and includes flavours like Banana Caramel and Raspberry Cheesecake. Because they’re so committed to only having what you want, they allow customers to vote for the next ‘flavour of the month’ – so go out there and bring that choco-pistachio-caramel-cookie-dough hybrid into reality. (Please.)
📍 Find your nearest Udderlicious location here!
9. Soft & Swirly, Hackney
For unique flavours, and arguably some of the best soft serve you’ll ever have in your life, you have to head down to Hackney’s Netil Market. Ignore the other queues and head straight to the left for dessert first. At Soft & Swirly, they don’t have a gargantuan selection of flavours, instead, they keep the choices down to a handful, so they can focus on making incredible and unique ice cream and sorbet completely from scratch. One bite of their Lemon, Honey & Cardamom soft-serve and I was instantly in love. And with the flavours rotating constantly – a different soft serve every week – I’ll be back. Oh, yes, I’ll most definitely be back.
📍 Netil Market, 13-23 Westgate Street, E8 3RL.
🚇 Nearest station is London Fields.
10. Gelateria 3Bis, Notting Hill & London Bridge
Born in Rimini, on Italy’s Adriatic coast, the pedigree of Gelateria 3Bis is unquestionable. They maintain a presence in Rimini with two ice cream parlours, but more pertinently, you’ll also find them in Notting Hill and Borough Market, where you can pimp up your scoop with crepes, waffles, and milkshakes.
📍You’ll find it at 178 Portobello Road, and 4 Park Street, SE1 9AB (London Bridge).
🚇 Nearest stations are Ladbroke Grove and London Bridge.
11. Snowflake, multiple locations
What better place for the “snowflake” generation than this cracking ice cream parlour? Amongst the standout flavours at Snowflake are Biscotto, Popcorn with Sea Salted Caramel, Honey and Date, and a Pistachio gelato that’s widely trumpeted as amongst London’s best. Plus, plenty of vegan flavours for the plant-powered crowd.
📍See all their locations here.
12. Gelupo, Soho
My favourite thing about Gelupo is that it was co-founded by a man named Victor Hugo, which is just japes. Coming a close second is the wide range of gelato flavours to be found at this offshoot of Italian joint Bocca di Lupo, from banana stracciatella to ricotta, chocolate & pepper. Summertime sees the arrival of boozy flavours such as Pimms & lemonade, gin & cucumber, and sour cherry & sambuca, and you clearly aren’t going to say no to those.
📍You’ll find it at 7 Archer Street, W1D 7AU.
🚇 Nearest station is Piccadilly Circus.
13. Oddono’s, multiple locations
Most unhelpfully for my waistline, there was an Oddono‘s down the road from my old flat – and judging by the ever-present weekend queues, I’m not the only one who bravely faced down temptation. Find them everything from Battersea to Stoke Newington: they’ve mastered over 130 flavours without a single trace of colourings or preservatives, so it’s as close to guilt-free as you can get!
14. Greedy Goat, London Bridge
Deep in the heart of foodie paradise Borough Market, you’ll find a rather unique ice cream parlour. Greedy Goat is aptly named; their creations are all made from goat’s milk, which makes a scoop here lower in fat and calories than cow’s milk ice cream, and suitable for the lactose intolerant. Nope, we’re not kidding you…
📍You’ll find it at Borough Market, Bedale Street, SE1 9AL.
🚇 Nearest station is London Bridge.
15. Ruby Violet, Kings Cross
Organic ice cream and vegan sorbets are the order of the day at Ruby Violet, which brings serious dedication and craft to the ice cream game. Their strawberry sorbet is an absolute must-order in Summertime, and it’s the perfect pairing for a wander through Coal Drops Yard or along Regent’s Canal.
📍You’ll find it at 3 Wharf Road, N1C 4BZ (Kings Cross).
🚇 Nearest station is Kings Cross St. Pancras.
16. Romeo & Guiletta Artisan Gelateria, Stoke Newington and Leyton
Stokey locals know this is the place to be when the temperature ticks upwards – and they’re usually there ahead of the crowds. A rotating line-up of 22 flavours means you’re spoiled for choice, but we’ve been told the pistachio is a strong choice.
📍You’ll find it at 137 Albion Road, N16 9JU and 330 Lea Bridge Road, Leyton E10 7LD.
🚇 Nearest station is Rectory Road.
17. Caliendo’s Gelato, Kentish Town
Hailing from Naples, the team behind Caliendo’s has been making gelato now for well over a century, so you can understand why they’re such bloody maestros. They also do have a range of decadent desserts and gluten-free goodies here – plus the place is themed to The Italian Job! Winner, winner.
📍You’ll find Caliendo’s Gelato at 182 Kentish Town Road, London, NW5 2AE.
🚇 Nearest station is Kentish Town.
18. Happy Endings, Mile End
An apt one to finish off with! Happy Endings‘ motto is “Everybody deserves one”, and we can’t disagree. Get ‘The Naughty One’, with miso salt caramel parfait sandwiched between chocolate Guinness cake and soy dulce de leche, and you’ll be a very happy camper indeed. They provide their wares to loads of London restaurants, delis, and stockists, so they don’t quite operate as an ice cream parlour from their location. But you can order for pick-up from their Mile End headquarters.
📍You’ll find it at Arch 437, Burdett Road, E3 4AT.
🚇 Nearest station is Mile End.
So there you have it – a roundup of the best spots to find ice cream in London. From flavoursome gelato to nitrogen-fuelled goodies (!), there’s something for everyone here, and when the sun’s shining what more could you ask for?
Also published on Medium.