LA is known for its fantastic tacos, authentic Korean joints and burgeoning Italian food scene but for some reason its ice cream spots have always flown a little under the radar. Maybe it’s the city’s love for all things healthy, but you’ll be hard pressed to convince us that some kale juice is tastier than a scoop of salted caramel ice cream from Carmela. From the innovative flavors at Scoops Westside to the composed huckleberry meringue at Friends & Family, here are our five favorite places to enjoy some ice cream in Los Angeles.
Saffron & Rose
Almost every city in the US has an artisanal ice cream shop serving salted caramel ice cream now, but when it comes to Persian ice cream, Los Angeles stands out. Mashti Malone’s serves up great scoops of saffron pistachio, but our hearts lie with Saffron & Rose and a refreshing scoop of their orange blossom ice cream.
Scoops Westside
Scoops Westside, tucked in a small strip mall off Overland Ave, is home to some of the most creative ice cream flavors in all of LA. Though the flavors change daily, the brown bread is a constant menu staple that every first time visitor must try.
Sweet Rose Creamery
In 2010, standout Santa Monica restaurateurs Josh Loeb and Zoe Nathan (from Rustic Canyon) teamed up with Shiho Yoshikawa to open the first Sweet Rose Creamery in the Brentwood Country Mart. Four more locations have opened since, but the amazing ice cream is still made daily in small batches with organic dairy, eggs, fruits and nuts.
Carmela
Carmela Ice Cream just might have the best salted caramel ice cream in all of Los Angeles. This small batch creamery, which started out in Pasadena before expanding to Fairfax, specializes in rich and creamy ice creams that utilize a wide range of fresh and local produce.
Friends & Family
As much as we love the baked buckwheat pancakes and olive oil fried eggs at Friends & Family, our favorite thing to order there just might be huckleberry meringue filled with blueberry ice cream and topped with a drizzle of blueberry compote. Roxana Jullapat has been serving this dessert since her days at Cooks County and Lucques. In that time, it has become somewhat of a signature dish and we couldn’t be happier to see it on the menu at Friends & Family.
This review was written by In The Loup contributor Ash Narayan