ATLANTA, GA — We searched far and wide for the best ice cream Atlanta has to offer. Now, we can all scream for ice cream at these fantastic spots that offer more than just the basic vanilla and chocolate.
Unique flavor combinations, inclusive nondairy desserts for the vegans among us and a variety of ways to consume the ice cream are all ahead in our recommendations of the yummiest ice cream shops.
The wildest, wackiest flavors you can dream up that still might actually taste really good is exactly what you will find at Morelli’s Gourmet Ice Cream, plus vanilla, chocolate, etc. Some especially creative ones are red raspberry Coke, Krispy Kreamier (containing actual donut chunks) and coconut jalapeño. The shop’s website has a fabulous feature that describes flavors in depth, so you will know exactly what the odder ones will be like. Morelli’s also carries fun nondairy flavors like coffee biscoff that are made with oat milk, as well as sorbets, flavors available in pints only, and gluten-free varieties. Beyond scoops, the shop serves ice cream cakes, ice cream pies, milkshakes, quarts of ice cream, strawberry pound cake sundaes and more. Find the daily flavors here for each location.
Big Softie takes its commitment to fresh ingredients and the local community seriously. The menu isn’t expansive, but the soft serve is made with local Georgia dairy and organic cane sugar. No one is claiming ice cream is healthy, but those are good ingredients. The menu denotes which flavors, toppings and hardshell options — a specialty — are vegan. The business makes soft serve cakes to order as well.
Big Softie supports other local business so much that by shopping at one, you are helping a bunch of others. First, its sister company is Little Tart Bakeshop, which makes all the toppings and waffle cones in house for the soft serve business. The bake shop is also located just across the hall, so you can have soft serve paired with any of its baked goods, sandwiches, coffee and other drinks. Big Softie also collaborates with other Atlanta businesses, such as the current Thai tea and mango sticky rice sorbet flavors (both vegan) that are made in partnership with Snackboxe Bistro, a Laotian restaurant in metro Atlanta. The business also contributes to the community. A portion of sales are donated to the Giving Kitchen (also in Atlanta), which helps food service workers. Doesn’t get much more Atlanta than this place. Follow the Instagram for updates and possibly the next collaboration.
One place takes cold ice cream to a whole new level. Amir’s Nitrogen Ice Parlor does not make ice cream the usual way. Instead, it mixes everyone’s order on the spot, allowing for ultimate customization of flavors and mix-ins. The ice cream base — a dairy, yogurt or vegan cream — is mixed with flavor and mix-ins, then frozen using liquid nitrogen, which has a boiling point of minus 320 degrees Fahrenheit. The gas is the secret to the business’s silky ice cream. When liquid nitrogen is poured above and below the ingredients, fat particles and water crystals freeze instantly while they are still small, keeping the ice cream, well, creamier. With 19 flavors and 32 mix-ins, this is an experience you can control however you like. The shop also serves shaved ice, a variety of coffee and specialty drinks, three types of cones and a few other bonus menu items.
Ice cream plus cookies equals Cathy’s Gourmet Ice Cream Sandwiches. When it says gourmet, the shop means it. The ice cream sandwiches are nothing like the ones you keep in the freezer. They are huge — as in practically the size of a regular sandwich. Second, you can design the whole thing, starting by picking a cookie flavor, then an ice cream and toppings.
Have you tried all of our favorite spots? If we missed it, what is your go-to ice cream shop in the area? Let us and the community know in the comments below!
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