(Yasmin Islas / For The Times)
Where to get the best ice cream in L.A.: From classic parlors, to gelaterias and vegan creameries
Who can forget the sweet reward of an ice cream sundae or root beer float after patiently running weekend errands with a parent? Or maybe it’s a scene of you arriving at an ice cream truck, out of breath, to slap down a fistful of coins and order a chocolate-covered Drumstick. Your ears might still perk up when you hear the telltale clang of an ice cream cart’s bell. No matter your background, ice cream is the nostalgic treat that unites us all.
Sweet, creamy and flavored in more ways than Baskin-Robbins can count, ice cream is a snack that demands your full enjoyment. Look away for too long and you’ll find it pooled in the bottom of your cup or melting stickily all over your hand. On furnace-hot summer days, it offers the perfect counterbalance, sending an almost pleasant lightning bolt of brain freeze as we race to finish before the sun turns its velvety spheres into sugary, milky goop.
Even as the frozen dessert becomes more artisanal and luxurious, with makers folding in fresh farmers market bounty, updating recipes to accommodate plant-based patrons and incorporating flavors and techniques that honor a multitude of cultures, ice cream remains accessible, usually clocking in between $5 and $10 — an easy impulse to satisfy.
From classic ice cream parlors to Italian gelato and regional styles and flavors that play off of L.A.’s vast cultural landscape, here are 23 of the best ice cream shops for conquering the summer heat, spanning the San Gabriel Valley, Malibu and Newport Beach, with plenty of options all over Los Angeles.
All Chill
Atomic Creamery
August Novelties
August Novelties ice cream bars are currently available at Maciel’s Plant-Based Butcher Shop.
Awan
Dear Bella Creamery
Fair Oaks Pharmacy
Fluffy McCloud's
Fosselman's
Ginger's Divine Ice Cream
Hans' Homemade Ice Cream and Deli
Happy Ice
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams
Kansha Creamery
Lavender & Truffles
Le Cafe de la Plage
Mashti Malone's
McConnell's Fine Ice Creams
Salt & Straw
Sweet Rose Creamery
Thrifty Ice Cream
Uli's Gelato
Van Leeuwen
Wanderlust
Eat your way across L.A.
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