It’s officially summer and that means one thing; ice cream. The sun may not be out all season long but that’s not gonna stop us from getting our scoop on. These are the best places in London to get ice cream in lockdown – you can swing by most of the shops for takeaway and all of them are delivering if you’d rather it come to you.
Happy Endings – If meal deal sandwiches are not for you, Happy Endings offer the perfect alternative. Yup you guessed it, we’re talking about ice cream sandwiches, like malted milk parfait in an oat biscuit and salted caramel & miso parfait between chocolate Guinness cake. You can order direct from Happy Endings or add them on as a pud when you next get a Yard Sale Pizza.
Bears Ice Cream – the Goldhawk Road shop specialises in Icelandic style soft serve ice cream, and whilst the parlour may be closed right now, all you West Londoners can still get your ice cream fix because Bears is delivering. They do tubs of flavours like golden syrup sponge; peanut butter, banana & chocolate shard; and rhubarb crumble & custard as well as sorbets that can be added to alcohol for a boozy cocktail.
Romeo & Giulietta – this is an absolute hidden gem in Stoke Newington and the ice cream here is some of the best in London. They specialise in authentic Italian gelato, with flavours including ricotta and fig; salted caramel; supreme pistachio; and extra dark chocolate sorbet, and the shop is open for business.
Jefferson’s – you can swing by the Balham dessert bar as it’s running both a takeaway and click & collect service, or you can have Jefferson’s come to you by ordering it on Deliveroo. You can get tubs of caramel popcorn, vanilla honeycomb, and cold-pressed coffee; signature sundaes; milkshakes; waffles and more.
La Gelatiera – La Gelatiera make traditional artisan gelato according to their Slow Food philosophy. The Crouch End, Covent Garden and East Village stores are open for takeaway, serving flavours like honey, rosemary & orange zest; extra dark chocolate sorbet; and sea salted caramel, and you can find them on Deliveroo and Uber Eats too.
Gelupo – it’s all about authentic Italian gelato at Gelupo made with fresh and natural ingredients. Flavours include pistachio, ricotta sour cherry, fresh mint straciatella and bitter chocolate, and you can get tubs delivered or order for pick-up from the Soho shop.
Badiani 1932 – as the name suggests, Badiani has been making real deal artisan Italian gelato since 1932 so you know they’ve got it down. You can get takeaway scoops from the Notting Hill, Chelsea and Mayfair locations, or you can get tubs (which you can split into different flavours, with the likes of pistachio, coffee, mint chips and milk chocolate) delivered.
Hackney Gelato – the Hackney Gelato team is scooping ice cream on Stokey High Street by Cafe Z Bar. You can get the likes of peanut butter & chocolate, sea salted caramel, pistachio, and strawberry ice cream, and lemon, mango, coconut, and cherry sorbets.