Have a sweet tooth like me?  You'll need this Ultimate Guide to the Best Ice Cream in NYC!

Ask anyone that knows me what my favorite food is... and they'll probably say ice cream.  A day is not complete in my house until some ice cream is devoured, and whenever I visit the city, at least one ice cream shop is visited.  AT LEAST one.  Usually 2.  If I'm not with anyone that will judge me, 3.  

Whenever I have friends or family visit NYC, they usually text me the question... what do we eat?!  I love that question.  I love sharing my love of food with others.

And whenever someone asks about ice cream places, I know I have a great list to share with them.  Sadly I've seen some great ice cream places come and go in NYC.  But the below places are my current favorites [updated October 2025].  These are the ice cream places that I would recommend for you to visit to NYC.  This is the ULTIMATE guide to the best ice cream in NYC.  

Know some other places that deserve to be on this list?  Let me know!  

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Seed and Mill

I shouldn't like this.  It definitely shouldn't be one of my top 3 most craved ice creams in all of Manhattan.  How is it that this VEGAN ice cream is so. freaking. good.  It's better than most of its dairy counterparts, and you 100% would never know it's vegan if I didn't tell you. 

And it's not just me that thinks the Seed and Mill vegan tahini soft serve is legendary.  Yes, it's award-winning, but it also passes the test of every single person I recommend it to.  I've never met anyone that doesn't love this Vegan Tahini Soft Serve Sundae from Seed + Mill.  It's super creamy.  Super packed with flavor.  And there's none of that weird vegan ice cream aftertaste.  It's made with an oat milk base and all-natural ingredients, and topped with tahini drizzle and crushed up homemade halva.  

Speaking of halva, make sure to grab some while you're here!  Need some savory food as well?  Make sure to check out Los Tacos No. 1 (get the Especial with Pork) and Very Fresh Noodles (get the Spicy Cumin Beef Noodles) while at Chelsea Market!  

Seed and Mill

409 W 15th St.

New York, NY 10011

(inside Chelsea Market)

 

Van Leeuwen Ice Cream

Me and Van Leeuwen Ice Cream go way back to 2008.  That's a LONG time for a business in NYC.  I still remember that scoop of vanilla off of a pale yellow food truck from some new trendy ice cream mker.  That vanilla was revolutionary.  It tasted like no vanilla ice cream I ever experienced.  Fast forward a few years, and then fell off the face of the planet.  Then, the resurgence that propelled them into the most recognizable ice cream shop in NYC.  

They found their niche with incredible vegan ice cream with both traditional and highly inventive flavors, which helped them explode not only with brick & mortar shops, but also selling pints in grocery stores nationwide.  

I eat Van Leeuwen Ice Cream probably weekly (the dairy version, not vegan).  It's a standard in our house, and it's always good.  We love that our dairy free friends can equally partake as well!  

You can find locations in pretty much every neighborhood in Manhattan.  Stop in, you won't be disappointed.  

Van Leeuwen Ice Cream

Multiple Locations

 

Ample Hills Creamery

This will forever be one of my favorite scoop shops in the city.  With locations in multiple boroughs, Ample Hills has quite the story.  They were HUGE about a decade ago, including opening a location at Disney.  However, they ended up going bankrupt and having to sell their business a few years back.  Thankfully, they were able to buy it back and now are going strong!  My two favorite flavors are Ooey Gooey Butter Cake (its a MUST) and Nonna's Oatmeal Lace.  

Ample Hills Creamery

Multiple Locations

 

L'Industrie Pizzeria

Yes, the pizza is viral and a must try.  But while I was waiting for my pizza to be ready, I saw a soft serve ice cream machine and thought the perfect way to pass the time was to try a cup.  It was AWESOME.  The flavors rotate.  The one pictured was a peanut butter soft serve with a concord grape sorbet, that they then drizzled with olive oil and sea salt.  Go for the pizza.  Stay for the ice cream. 

L'Industrie Pizzeria

Brooklyn + West Village

 

Salt & Straw

This west coat ice cream chain has a cult following and recently came to NYC.  They have outrageous sounding flavor combinations.  Don't be shy, try them... they encourage it!  

The classic flavors are great also, including their bestselling Sea Salt Caramel.  However, I'm always inclined to try one of their whimsical rotating flavors.  And listen, some of them will sound downright disgusting, but promise me you'll sample at least 1 super weird sounding ice cream while you are there.  You may just be shocked how good it is! 

Salt & Straw

Multiple Locations

 

Caffè Panna

Owned by the daughter of Shake Shack founder and super famous restauranteur Danny Meyer, Hallie Meyer opened this Gramercy ice cream shop in 2019.  Even all these years later, there is almost always a HUGE line waiting in front.  Don't be intimidated, as the line moves incredibly fast.  If you go after dinner, expect their most popular flavors to be sold out.   And no matter what, make sure you get it topped with panna, the super light and fluffy Italian whipped cream!  

Note: there is no inside to Caffe Panna.  It is purely a walk-up and take away ice cream counter.  

Cafè Panna

77 Irving Pl. New York, NY 10003

 

Anita Gelato

With over 25 locations worldwide, Anita Gelato serves up some expertly prepared gelato.  The pure visual sight of the overflowing canisters of colorful gelato is enough to make a grown man cry.  My favorite flavor is the Pavlova & Mixed Berries, but to be honest I'm not even close to trying them all yet.  There's so many! 

This is a good option to get in Times Square (as is Van Leeuwen) if you're seeing a Broadway show! 

Anita Gelato

Multiple Locations

 

Il Laboratorio del Gelato

This is one of my favorite gelatos in the city.  It's incredibly smooth, intensely rich, and they have a huge selection of creative flavors that rotate regularly.

Mascarpone.  Creme Fraiche.  Avocado. Sounds weird, right?  Nope.  They are all amazing.

And don't worry, my extra weird friends.  They have even more unique, wacky flavors than that.

My absolute favorite though is their Dark Chocolate Gelato.  You need to get it.  Please.  Do it.  And then email me immediately to thank me, because it's going to change your life.

But hello surprise out of left field... I never, read NEVER order sorbet.  Like, who orders sorbet when there is gelato on the line.

But they have such a large selection of amazing sounding sorbets, last time I went, I decided oh heck, why not... And people.  Their sorbets are AMAZING.  Sorry for yelling, but it's that important.

That's the nectarine above (next to dark chocolate gelato , of course).  It tasted like you were biting into the most ripe, perfect nectarine you've ever tasted.  It was so refreshing and for a brief moment, felt the epitome of summer perfection.

Insider tip... they let you sample a few flavors, so live dangerously and sample some flavors you find intriguing, but weird.  You may surprise yourself!

Il Laboratorio Del Gelato

 188 Ludlow St.

New York, NY 10002

(Lower East Side)

 

Some former favorite ice cream spots that are sadly no longer with us:

• Big Gay Ice Cream
• Coolhaus
• Morgenstern's
• Davey's

 

 

 

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