Where to Eat Ice Cream Around the World

Mitchell's Homemade Ice Cream ★ 4.7

Mitchell's Homemade Ice Cream flagship on West 25th Street, the Ohio City kitchen and shop in a restored old movie theater, hand-crafts every batch.

OrderTwo scoops of the seasonal flavour the kitchen is leading with, plus the kitchen tour on weekends.

TipTours run by appointment on weekends; weekday afternoons stay quietest. Free Bridge Avenue parking lot behind the building.

Vic's Ice Cream ★ 4.6

Vic's Ice Cream on Riverside Boulevard has been a Sacramento tradition since 1947, making handmade ice cream in small batches alongside diner favorites.

OrderA sundae or a cone of the small-batch ice cream, in the classic Vic's flavors.

TipUnder its new ownership, Vic's cannot honor gift cards or free scoop cards issued before the change.

Jeni's Splendid Scoop ★ 4.6

A single Jeni's scoop at the Columbus North Market original counter runs under $7, the city's icon for cheap dessert at the founded-here brand.

TrySingle ice cream scoop

Fenocchio ★ 4.6

Fenocchio at 2 Place Rossetti is a family ice cream house in Nice, run today by Frédéric, the founders' grandson, who leads the third generation.

TryRegional flavours such as violet, tomato-basil and Swiss chard pie

Eis Christina ★ 4.5

Eis Christina draws queues down Eckenheimer Landstraße, Frankfurt's benchmark Italian gelato counter and the Nordend's standing summer-evening ritual.

TrySpaghettieis and seasonal fruit sorbets

TipThe pavement queue moves faster than it looks; on hot evenings the last scoops of the popular flavours go before 21:00.

Graeter's Ice Cream Easton ★ 4.4

Graeter's at Easton Town Center is the Columbus-edge French-pot ice cream counter, churned in two-gallon copper kettles in Cincinnati since 1870.

OrderA scoop of the black raspberry chocolate chip; it is the Graeter's signature for a reason.

TipEaston fills up on weekend evenings; the Bethel Road and Hilliard locations move faster.

Clumpies Ice Cream Co. ★ 4.4

Clumpies Ice Cream Co. has churned small-batch scoops in Chattanooga since 1999, with the Frazier Avenue shop pulling North Shore queues nightly.

DrinkSeasonal small-batch scoop in a waffle cone

TipNorth Shore and Southside shops remain after the St. Elmo store closed in February 2026; Frazier Avenue scoops to 23:00 on Friday and Saturday.

Mennella Gelateria Vomero ★ 4.4

Mennella is a family company with 18 pastry shops and ice cream shops in Campania; its Via Scarlatti 97 branch in Vomero is one of the gelaterie.

TipMennella makes its gelato from first-choice ingredients, without colorings or chemical additives.

La Golositas ★ 4.3

La Golositas churns gelato without preservatives on Via Cagliari in Alghero and stays open until 01:00 through the summer evenings. An editor pick.

Vampire Penguin ★ 4.3

Vampire Penguin in Old Sacramento serves fluffy shaved snow desserts, with flavor combos like Strawberry Cheesecake and Mexican Candy that change seasonally.

Worth the queueThe Strawberry Cheesecake shaved snow, a staff recommendation, or Walter's Stash to go all out.

Eis Fontanella ★ 4.2

Eis Fontanella scoops Italian gelato on Frankfurt's Kaiserstraße until almost 22:00, the Bahnhofsviertel's sweet counterweight to the street outside.

TryClassic Italian scoops on Kaiserstraße

TipIt stays open later than most German ice parlours; a cone here is the standard finish to a Bahnhofsviertel food crawl.

Gelateria K2 ★ 4.2

Gelateria K2 has scooped gelato under the arcades of Corso Canalgrande in Modena since 1969, its original 1971 shop sign still hanging outside.

TryArtisan gelato

TipThe recipes and equipment date to its founding, so classic flavours outshine the seasonal specials.

Helados Sirvent ★ 4.2

Helados Sirvent has sold ice cream in Benidorm since 1954, a Xixona heladero family now in its third generation, scooping on the Levante promenade.

DrinkA granizado, the house iced slush

TipThe founder, Luis, was born in Xixona in 1926 and sold from street carts; a second parlour faces Poniente beach at Avenida Vicente Llorca Alós 13.

Swoon ★ 4.2

Swoon churns Italian-schooled gelato at Wapping Wharf in Bristol with over 100 Great Taste awards, including a Supreme Champion nod for its hazelnut.

TryArtisan gelato, over 100 Great Taste awards

TipThe hazelnut won the Supreme Champion award; order it in a tub so harbour gulls cannot negotiate.

Casa Mira ★ 4.2

Casa Mira has scooped turrón ice cream and cut nougat in central Málaga since 1890, a fifth-generation counter on the marble of Calle Larios.

DrinkTurrón ice cream and horchata

Antipodean Gelato ★ 4.1

Antipodean Gelato churns small batches on Bornheimer Landstraße, the Nordend's modern answer to Frankfurt's old-school Italian parlours and their queues.

TrySmall-batch gelato in changing experimental flavours

TipFlavours rotate constantly and the board empties from the top; afternoons midweek are the calm window.

Vampire Penguin Old Sacramento ★ 4.0

Vampire Penguin in Old Sacramento serves shaved snow desserts, like fluffy snow cones or eating a cloud, with flavor combos that change with the seasons.

TryThe Strawberry Cheesecake shaved snow, a staff recommendation.

La Princière ★ 4.0

La Princière is an artisan ice-cream parlour and tea room on Place des Corps Saints in Avignon, a house making ice cream, chocolate and sweets since 2012.

DrinkHot chocolate

TipThe parlour trades seven days a week in the summer season, and a separate seasonal counter sells a selection of its ice creams from April to September.

Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory ★ 4.0

Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory is a walk-up ice cream window at 14 Old Fulton Street in Dumbo, Brooklyn, serving classic scoops by the cone, cup or float.

TryClassic scoops in a cone, cup or float

TipThe operator's window schedule runs from March 16 to November 22, 2026, and it warns that hours can change with the weather.

Smoothie House ★ 4.0

Smoothie House calls itself the original Yongkang Street mango snow ice shop; its main store is at No. 15, Yongkang Street, open 11:00 to 21:00.

TipFrom Dongmen MRT exit 5, turn right onto Yongkang Street and walk straight about 100 metres to the main store.

Bloom ★ 3.9

Bloom on Modena's Piazza Mazzini scoops gelato from classic tradition to seasonal fruit, plus semifreddo cakes and viennoiserie pastries daily.

TryArtisan gelato and semifreddo

TipIt runs a loyalty app and monthly themed events, worth checking before a family visit.

Mina Creamery ★ 3.9

Mina Creamery scoops ice cream in weekly-changing flavours such as blueberry earl grey and halwa salted saffron at its first shop in Mina Zayed, Abu Dhabi.

OrderWhichever flavour is new that week, or olive oil with za'atar and halwa salted saffron.

Why locals goA homegrown ice cream brand that began as a delivery operation and opened its first shop in the MiZa district of Mina Zayed, near Barbassi.

TipBest Bites says each week brings a new flavour, with past ones including blueberry earl grey, white choco matcha and a cheeseboard ice cream.

Diecigusti ★ 3.8

Diecigusti scoops artisan gelato near Modena's old centre, using Piedmont hazelnuts, Bronte pistachios and reduced-sugar natural recipes daily.

TryArtisan gelato

TipIt also bakes its own focaccia and takes Glovo orders, so it works for a snack beyond just gelato.

Mary Barragán Helados ★ 3.8

Mary Barragan Helados churns dense helados, paletas and nieves on 16 de Septiembre in El Carmen, Puebla, and keeps going until ten at night.

Worth the queueNieve

TipOpen until ten at night in El Carmen, which makes it the obvious walk after a cemita at the market up the road.

McConnell's Fine Ice Creams ★ 3.8

Founded in Santa Barbara in 1949. French pot method, organic local ingredients, no preservatives. State Street shop is the brand's original home.

SignatureDutchman's Gold vanilla, Eureka lemon and marionberry sherbet, Seasonal small-batch flavours

Cento Gelato ★ 3.7

Cento Gelato scoops Italian gelato from a food truck at Marsana West on Hudayriyat Island, Abu Dhabi, open every day from midday until midnight.

TryItalian gelato

TipThe island's own listing places the truck at Marsana West, and Best Bites names it among Marsana vendors with a BB+ member discount.

Ramchandra Kulfi Bhandar ★ 3.7

Ramchandra Kulfi Bhandar on Tripolia Bazaar in Jaipur sells kulfi near Badi Chaupar until 23:00; Outlook Traveller's writer rates it a rival to Pandit Kulfi.

OrderThe kulfi, then a taste-off against Pandit Kulfi's kesar and rabri flavours.

Why locals goPandit Kulfi near Hawa Mahal gets the headline in Outlook Traveller's guide; its writer says this Tripolia Bazaar shop gives it close competition.

TipThe shop is on Tripolia Bazaar by Badi Chaupar and keeps late hours, so it works as a last stop after an evening walk through the old city.

Mom & Pops ★ 3.6

Mom & Pops sells vegan popsicles made with real fruit from a food truck at Marsana West on Hudayriyat Island, Abu Dhabi, open from 15:00 until 23:45.

TryVegan fruit popsicles

TipThe brand says its popsicles carry no refined sugar or artificial colours and are lactose-free and gluten free, so they suit most diets.