Scoops are good but swirls are better
There’s nothing quite like the sound of the ice cream van on a sunny day to stir up some serious nostalgia and have you rummaging in your pocket for change whilst you drool at the prospect of a cone in your hand. But Mr Whippy isn’t the only soft serve in town (and have you seen how much they cost now?) as a whole host of cafes, restaurants and pop-ups are swirling some seriously inventive flavours. Forget the 99 because Siobhan Gunner aka @hotspothunter has rounded up the best soft serve ice cream in London.
Soft & Swirly
This year Sam Lowry and Farah Kezou have moved their soft serve venture, Soft & Swirly, to The Deli Downstairs in Victoria Park Village. The flavours are as creative as ever, with the likes of lemon, honey & cardamom; strawberry & basil; and salted black sesame on rotation.
Fallow
At smart, sustainable-driven restaurant Fallow, chefs Jack Croft and Will Murray transform a classic British combo into a soft, swirly treat. Sweet clover custard soft serve is paired with poached English rhubarb, ginger crumble and topped with rhubarb and raspberry powder.
Rosslyn Coffee
This strong summer hit, served at Rosslyn Coffee, marries Origin Coffee Roasters’ 24-hour cold brew with a silky vanilla-infused Estate Dairy base, and comes with an intense, deeply dark cocoa powder dusting courtesy of Melbourne’s pioneering hot-chocolate makers, Mörk.
NOLA
South London’s neighourhood coffee shop NOLA is swirling Happy Endings soft serve with different flavours, like milk and honeycomb, on each week.
Forza Wine
Forza Wine is an Italian restaurant and rooftop bar in Peckham, which is famous for its custardo dessert (an espresso made with custard which is as good as it sounds) but you won’t want to sleep on its soft serve, especially when there are flavours like lemon meringue pie (complete with crushed Hobnobs) on offer.
Bake St
Every week, Bake St unveils a new soft serve flavour, usually (but not limited to) seasonal fruits, like Kesar mango or guava and blueberry. Whatever it is though, you can expect punchy flavours and some seriously impressive swirls.
Le Choux
French-British pastry chef Abigail Scheuer puts a luxurious patisserie twist on soft serve at her sleek glass-fronted shop, Le Choux, set on Ladbroke Grove. You can pimp the creamy soft serve with chocolate cookies and salted caramel, or go for the frankly ingenious eclair filled with soft serve and finished with dark Valhrona chocolate sauce.
Happy Endings x STEREO
Having supplied the base for many of London’s outstanding soft serves, Happy Endings is doing its own cocktail-inspired creations this summer in partnership with STEREO in Covent Garden. Choose from The Sassy One (Select Aperitivo, Fair Passion Fruit Liqueur, White Wine & Bob’s Vanilla Bitters) or the Elderflower 77 (STEREO Gin, St Germain Liqueur, Elderflower, Lime & Cucumber).
Chin Chin Ice Cream
Ice cream with caviar? Oh it’s a thing alright but if you’re not totally sold on the idea, you can get a little taster of the sweet and salty combo by picking up a Caviar Cone from the Chin Chin truck outside Selfridges. The waffle cone is filled with vanilla soft serve, veggie vanilla bean caviar, strawberry sauce (so not actual fish eggs) and shortbread cookie.
The Laundry
Brixton’s The Laundry is doing soft serve across the summer with regularly changing flavours (lamington and affogato are just two in the works) and Kiwi and Aussie toppings like Tim Tam smash, pavlova, hokey pokey, Anzac praline and homemade Ice Magic for you to load onto your swirl.