Skip to main content

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

8 of the Coolest Ice Cream Parlors in the World

Calling it ice cream is cute, but these sorbet, gelato, and nitrogen laboratories around the world are turning simple soft serve into flavorful masterpieces. Not only are the scoops wild, but the cones are larger than life and the shops are designed like modern galleries.

Hope you don’t have a sweet tooth – we recommend having a box of Daiya plant-based dessert bars on hand because you will need ice cream after this.

Recommended Videos

Prossima Fermata

Milan, Italy

Prossima Fermata
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The clean, quaint ice cream laboratory that is Prossima Fermata combines a parlor sales space with a scientific ice cream work area. Designed around three basic materials: linoleum, stone, and wood, this minimalist ice cream shop is obsessed with fresh, delicious flavors based around seasonal fruit. Its cool desserts include fig granita, blood orange sorbet, and tiramisu gelato.

Ice Scream

New York City, New York

Ice Scream
Image used with permission by copyright holder

You scream, we all scream for this liquid nitrogen ice cream bar that does away with freezer space and wait time, since customers get freshly frozen scoops on the double. Freezing at -321 degrees, the ice cream has less crystals and air, meaning the taste is dense and creamy. Ice Scream isn’t complete without a mess of toppings, from caramel de leche to fluffy whipped cream. Dine in because the 80s interior design by Asthetique is, like, totally bitchin’.

Sweet Salvation

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Sweet Salvation
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The boldest minds of history (and ice cream creation) rely on experimentation. Toronto-born and Dubai-based, Sweet Salvation is a mind-bending ice cream shop serving tall swirls of vanilla or chocolate ice cream topped with icing, cake crumbles, sauce, or cotton candy. Yes, these ice cream cones are our saviors. Pair with a cold brew and enjoy on the sunlit turquoise barstool.

Glam Air

Taiwan

Glam Air
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Hidden in the basement of a shopping mall in Taipei is the playful ice cream counter Glam Air. Famous for making cups of overflowing cotton candy atop soft serve, Glam Air shapes cute Chinese creatures out of cotton candy for a dessert that earns a spot on your Instagram … even if you hate food pics. (Want some pro tips for your photos?)

Milk Train

London, England

Milk Train
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Candy floss, popcorn, and (duh) ice cream are a few of the funky sweets invented at London’s Milk Train. A common cone here includes a cloud of cotton candy surrounding a mountain of soft serve and sprinkled with wild candies. Milk Train’s modern Covent Garden storefront is designed to look like a train station, and their ice cream creations are almost (almost) too good to eat.

Soft Touch

Medellín, Colombia

Soft Touch
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Bring your sweet tooth to Colombia’s Soft Touch ice cream shop. Flushed with bright colors, the popular salon welcomes you in with pink neon signs and pastel wire chairs — a modern and lively space designed by Plasma Nodo — before absolutely demolishing your sugar cravings. Try an ice cream sandwich, shake, sundae, or fudge-infused brownie topped with ice cream. Drool over their Instagram … but only if you’re prepared to jump on a flight.

CoolN2

Toronto, Canada

CoolN2
Image used with permission by copyright holder

When you see an ice cream stabbed with a flavor syringe, you know that ice cream is legit. CoolN2 is a Toronto-based nitrogen ice cream lab with one simple counter and an easily identifiable tiger sign beckoning us to a willful brain freeze. The flavors are wildly unique and made from scratch (cream, fresh fruit, sugar, nitrogen, BOOM.) There’s almost always a line but it’s so worth it. They also serve dragon breath.

Ice & Vice

New York City, New York

Ice & Vice
Ice & Vice

If your biggest weakness is ice cream, embrace your vice with bougie flare in the Lower East Side ice cream parlor Ice & Vice. Largely inspired by Mexican flavors and spins, opt for an ice cream taco instead of a cone, and satiate your palate with scoops of ghost peppers, Vietnamese coffee, prickly pear, or cheddar and peach ice cream. Want a slice of pie thrown on top? Cool with them. Calling it ice cream is an understatement.

Jahla Seppanen
Former Former Digital Trends Contributor, The Manual
Born and raised off-the-grid in New Mexico, Jahla Seppanen is currently a sports, fitness, spirits, and culture writer in…
A Michelin-starred chef guides us on pairing wine and pasta
pasta courses at Massara NYC

Enjoying a nice bowl of fresh pasta? While steak and wine are often touted as the perfect pairing, pasta is also a complex pairing for wine. But with so many pasta types, cooking styles, and sauces, pairing pasta with wine is a complex task. We decided to try out the new pasta-tasting menu at Massara, a Southern Italian restaurant in New York helmed by Chef Stefano Secchi of Rezdôra (a one Michelin-starred restaurant).

"Michael Duffy and the somm team has done well in the pairing," said Chef Stefano Secchi. "Luckily, the wines on our list pair well with the food eaten in the region…a strong ethos and throughline of our restaurants."  

Read more
I tried the Kamado Joe Konnected Joe—here’s how it handled real recipes
Even if you make mistakes you can create crowd-pleasing meals with Kamado Joe Konnected Joe
Pre-heating the Kamado Joe Konnected Joe guarded by with Happy.

I jumped at the chance to test the Kamado Joe's Konnected Joe Digital Grill and Smoker. Like most members of our extended family of avid cooks and eager eaters, I enjoy grilling year-round. Still, my experience has been limited to conventional charcoal grills and three-burner propane grills. I was curious about what it would be like to cook with a ceramic grill, and grew even more excited by the prospect of precise temperature control promised by the Konnected Joe.
Why cook with a kamado-style grill

Kamado-style ovens, stoves, and grills use heated stone or ceramic to provide radiant heat that cooks the food. The Kamado Joe brand of kamado grills cooks with radiant heat, with thick ceramic sections in the cooker. It can take some time to reach the desired temperature, but the grill's heavy insulation retains the heat for a long time.

Read more
How I upgraded my De’Longhi Rivelia to make incredible cold espresso drinks
How to unlock six new cold foam recipes
De'Longhi Rivelia

I first started using the De'Longhi Rivelia espresso machine, the brand's newest fully automatic, innovative, and touchscreen espresso maker for home use. I was instantly impressed with how easy this espresso maker was to use and how quickly it made it possible to prepare all my favorite espresso-based beverages.

Ironically, I was so caught up in learning how to use the machine to make hot coffee drinks that I forgot it could also make cold coffee drinks. Once I upgraded with the De'Longhi LatteCrema Cool kit, I unlocked a whole new world of possibilities for cold coffee drinks, from an iced white flat to an iced cappuccino. This tiny upgrade changed the game, solidifying just how much I love this espresso machine.
De'Longhi Rivelia LatteCrema Cool

Read more