Celebrate National Ice Cream Day in New York City with ASHITA
Money can’t buy happiness but it can buy ice cream and that’s basically the same thing right? This summer’s frequent 90 degree days have us screaming for all the ice cream we can get our hands on. To celebrate National Ice Cream Day on July 18th, we wanted to share a list of 5 of our favorite NYC ice cream locations!
Surreal Creamery:
Located in Kips Bay on 2nd Ave Surreal Creamery had our eyes opened wide and our stomachs screaming for joy as we entered to find milkshakes in mason jars, floateas (a combination of boba tea and soft serve), and milkshakes topped with our childhood favorites such as Lucky Charms marshmallows, Fruity Pebbles, and Oreos. We chose the Taro bubble tea & matcha/taro swirled ice cream. This extravagant treat stood taller than our heads and was the perfect blend of flavors. We loved the combination of bubble tea and frozen yogurt and will definitely be returning!
Van Leeuwen:
With scoop shops located all throughout NYC, we headed to the Van Leeuween’s on Macdougal Street. Famous for their wide selection of regular and vegan ice cream options, we had a tough time choosing between unique flavors such as Royal Wedding Cake with elderflower and lemon, Honeycomb, and vegan Brownie Sundae Raspberry Swirl. We opted to go simple and get strawberry flavor in a waffle cone. Although a simple and common flavor, we were blown away by the creaminess of the ice cream and appreciated the fresh strawberry pieces throughout this perfect scoop. No flavor is a miss at Van Leeuwen and if you are braver than us, you should try their new Kraft Macaroni and Cheese ice cream.
Morgenstern’s:
Located in Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side, this nostalgic burger, fries, and ice cream joint transfers you to a classic ice cream parlor with workers in retro diner paper hats and stools at the counter. The extensive flavor list made it so hard for us to choose and we might have spent a little too long at the counter making sure we made the perfect sundae combination (oops)! We knew blueberries & cream was a must try, but we had trouble choosing between unique flavors such as avocado, lemon curd poppy seed, and papaya guava. We ended up going with a scoop of blueberries & cream and a scoop of lemon curd poppy seed covered in rainbow sprinkles.
Taiyaki NYC:
You have probably seen this iconic ice cream location all over your Instagram feed. Remember the waffle fish filled with a colorful ice cream swirl and a stick of mochi? Well, here’s their newest version! As part of a collaboration with Rilakkuma, Taiyaki created an adorable waffle Rilakkuma bear filled with a swirl of matcha and hojicha. We were huge fans of the waffle which reminded us of a decadent sponge cake.
Smoove:
Last stop on our ice cream tour was Smoove located on Grand Street in Manhattan. Their boba floats instantly caught our eye as they are a combination of the classic ice cream float and boba drink. They are also known for their colorful waffle cones that come in vibrant red, orange, and green. We got a scoop of the limited edition hojicha latte ice cream, a mix of sweet and smoky that left our taste buds begging for more!