LA’s 5 Best Ice Cream Spots

If you’re looking for the best place to grab some ice cream in sunny Los Angeles, you don’t have to settle for the same old corporate creameries and yogurt chains. The City of Angels is home to some of the country’s most unique independent eateries, and that includes some of the best ice cream parlors overseen by today’s most forward-thinking confectionary minds. If you’re jonesing for some lemon sorbet and looking to beat the California heat, give one of these wildly popular shops a try.

SomiSomi Ice Cream

SomiSomi is known for their delicious Taiyaki, a Japanese ice cream sensation. Taiyaki is soft serve ice cream served in a fish-shaped waffle cone with your choice of filling: red bean, Nutella, or custard. To finish off the presentation, choose a topping like Oreo Crum or sprinkles. The shop currently offers a range of unique varieties including matcha, ube, true milk, and black sesame. In October, the company added strawberry and banana to their lineup. You can even mix the flavors to create something truly unique!  

SomiSomi has locations in Koreatown, Northridge, and Arcadia, and additional LA-area locations are slated to open soon.

Salt & Straw

If you’re tired of the same old chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry, you need to pay Salt & Straw a visit. Their lineup includes unique and ingenious flavors like honey lavender, roasted strawberry & toasted white chocolate, and even black olive brittle & goat cheese (it’s actually kind of amazing). The shop also has a unique flavor of the month, so you can always try something that's new and exciting. For instance, the March 2018 flavor is chocolate caramel potato chip cupcake – you’re not going to find that type of delicious anywhere else. Best of all, the ice cream is made by hand with local ingredients.

Salt & Straw is located at 8949 Santa Monica Blvd. in West Hollywood.

Cauldron Ice Cream

Featured on the Food Network, the Cooking Channel, and Eater, Cauldron Ice Cream is making quite the name for itself in Los Angeles. Their ice cream is handcrafted in small batches, and delectable new flavors are introduced every month. Their goal is to make people fall in love with ice cream again, and they’re doing just that by combining liquid nitrogen with a cold, creamy base and mixing it all together in their signature Puffle Cones. Where else can you get rose-shaped ice cream scoops served in a scrumptious, puffy waffle cone that resembles fried bubble wrap? This inventive creamery is constantly dishing up new flavors like apple pie, red velvet, and Cloverfield — which tastes just like Lucky Charms cereal!

Cauldron Ice Cream is located at 208 North Brand Boulevard in Glendale, and they have additional locations in Artesia and Santa Ana.

Honeymee

As the name implies, the magic ingredient at this trendy ice cream shop is 100% natural liquid honey. In addition, their ice cream is made with fresh Californian milk. You might opt for the Sweetie, which is true milk ice cream with a liquid honey swirl. If that’s not enough honey to satisfy your craving, you might try the namesake Honeymee, which contains the company’s signature ice cream and a real honeycomb chip topped off with honey. The shop even offers yummy honey milkshakes, coffees, teas, and waffles. Or, if you want the best of all worlds, you could always go for some honey-infused matcha ice cream in a black, red, or green waffle cone. There are thousands of combinations you could try.

Honeymee has several locations throughout Los Angeles County, including one at 3377 Wilshire Blvd. in LA. Additional locations can be found in Buena Park, Gardena, Irvine, Cerritos, and Rowland Heights.

Sweet Rose Creamery

By all accounts, Sweet Rose Creamery has the look and feel of a classic American ice cream parlor. They offer traditional flavors like vanilla, chocolate, and cookies & cream, but don’t be fooled by the down-home presentation. Sweet Rose is as unique and adventurous as anything LA has to offer. Sample some wild flavors like bergamot basil or horchata coconut sorbet, or indulge in a sweet chocolate-dipped banana or a waffle cone ice cream sammie with sprinkles. The owners use organic milk, cream, and eggs, and there are even dairy-free ice creams available.

Sweet Rose Creamery has locations in Brentwood, Santa Monica, Palisades, Studio City, and central Los Angeles. So if you’re cruising through any part of LA, a Sweet Rose is probably right around the corner.

If you think you've found the best ice cream in Los Angeles that isn't part of our list, let us know in the comments!