Ice cream tastes amazingly good, but it can also be imaginative, artisanal and even healthy too. Here are 13 amazing ice creams you’ve got to get your hands on.
Durban
1. Eggloo South Africa
Address: Mozart Ice Cream at Cornubia Shopping Mall in Mount Edgecombe and Ballito Junction Regional Mall.
Contact: Eggloo Bubble Waffle.
Egg waffles can come in different flavours such as green tea, cheese, chocolate, ginger or sweet potato. Photo by Eggloo South Africa.
The egg waffle is an Instagram sensation that originated from the Hong Kong street food scene. It was invented (by accident) in the 1950s and is called gai daan jai or ‘eggies’ in Cantonese.
Eggloo South Africa is part of a new franchise from Chinatown, New York that was brought to Durban by egg waffle-loving South Africans. The bubble waffle essentially replaces the cone and once filled with ice cream can be enjoyed with various toppings.
Eggloo South Africa also has a pop-up at Charlie’s Cafe & Bistro every Sunday from 12:00 to 18:00. Follow them on Facebook to find out more.
2. Plan B Dessertery
Address: 41 Mackeurtan Avenue
Contact: Plan B Dessertery, or call 0315631173.
The founders of Plan B Dessertery also own Four15 Burrito District, a South African Burrito bar. Photo by Plan B Dessertery.
Gone are the days of Durban being in the shadows of Cape Town and Joburg, at least when it comes to ice cream. Plan B Dessertery is inspired by the street food movement and Mexican cuisine. You have to try their dessert tacos.
Choose from the Sunbow (vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, mini astros and rainbow sparkles ) for R38, Banana Split (vanilla ice cream, banana chunks, chocolate sauce, candied nuts, cream and cherries) for R45 or Caramello (double caramel ice cream, candied nuts, caramel sauce and toasted marshmallow meringue), which is R48.
If you can’t get enough, Plan B Dessertery also has a selection of the aforementioned bubble waffles and ice cream cones.
3. Yumi Bowl
Address: 4 Lagoon Drive, Umhlanga Rocks
Contact: Yumi Bowl, call 0315611237.
Also known as stir-fried ice cream, Thai rolled ice cream takes two minutes to make and is also sold by street vendors Malaysia, Cambodia and the Philippines. Photo by Yumi Bowl
This Thai handcrafted rolled ice cream has many fans and with a new creation each week, it’s not hard to see why. The gourmet ice cream selection includes ‘Death by Chocolate Brownie’ and ‘Absolutely Malvalous’ which are R59. You could also simply go for a vanilla, chocolate or peppermint and orange ice cream with syrup (either chocolate, banoffee, strawberry or pineapple) which is R39. Their non-dairy options include sorbets (avoberry and banango) which are R49.
Past creations of the week have been double donut delight and strawberry and rice cakes. The ‘Creation of the Week’ is between R59 and R69.
4. Eish Kream
Address: Eish Kream is stocked at five stores in Durban and eleven in Joburg.
Contact: The best way to know where they’ll be next is through their social media.
Eish Kream is stocked by outlets in Durban and Johannesburg and will soon be in Cape Town too. Photo by Eish Kream
The name sounds like something that shouldn’t be eaten, but if Eish Kream‘s popularity is anything to go by, you definitely should! It takes after the European trend of spaghetti gelato and this cold-press product means that each strand is chilled to perfection. Creator, Yaseera Essack Carrim has a range of 12 to 14 flavours such as sweet cream and lime, chocochino and unicorn tears, a purple cotton candy flavour. A vegan flavour will also launch in 2018 so watch this space.
Eish Kream uses organic milk and cream and as much natural flavouring as possible. You can eat it from an (edible) cup, sugar cone or taco and the boxes are recyclable. They’ve recently introduced summer mango which has been made using real mangoes.
Port Elizabeth
5. Han-Made
Address: Various stockists in Port Elizabeth also supply Han-Made ice creams.
Contact: hanmade.co.za, info@hanmade.co.za or call 0832914171.
Han-Made also serves from her factory at Chicky’s Yard for Food Truck Fridays, every second Friday of the month. Photo by Han-Made
Former high school teacher, Hannah McClean is the creator of this ice cream brand that you can find at markets such as The Valley and Goodnight Markets. There’s also the option of ordering straight from the maker herself (tubs are R30 to R40) or visiting the factory.
There are ice creams for all taste buds that want something new. Try Han-Made’s craft beer with dark chocolate and citrus peel flavour for something different. Their regulars include mint chocolate chip, salted caramel, biscuit crumble, vanilla and top-seller, peanut butter. The deluxe option includes a collaboration with Tea Merchant with flavours using loose leaf teas such as matcha and coconut, rose garden and star dust. Another deluxe flavour is Turkish Delight.
6. Il Gelato
Address: Find the factory in Leadwood Crescent.
Contact: Email info@ilgelato.co.za or call 0413682367.
il Gelato’s the only ice cream made in the Eastern Cape that contains 100% dairy. This means their ice cream doesn’t have hydrogenated fats and oils like other brands. Photo by il Gelato
il Gelato promises all of the good stuff if you want the joy of ice cream. Their gelato has half the fat content of normal ice cream and they don’t use vegetable fat. Their milk and cream is also organic and local. il Gelato’s flavours are made from fresh fruit and whole ingredients that they bake, squeeze, crush, chop or blend themselves.
Make your freezer smile by adding a 200 gram tub for R25 or a 500 gram tub for R45 from their factory. Orders need to made 24 hours in advance because the gelato is made from scratch. Some of their flavours are strawberry cheesecake, cookies and cream, salted caramel and milk tart to name a few.
Joburg
7. Yococo
Address: Find them at different markets such as Market at the Sheds in Pretoria, Market on Main Night Market, LoCrate Market and Farm Table and Selina’s Farm Fresh in Parkhurst.
Contact: Yococoa, email info@yococo.co.za or order via Instagram.
Yococo has a loyalty card program where your 10th scoop is free. Photo by Yococo
Started by vegan and ice cream lover, Sine Ndlela, Yococo is the answer to your plant-based diet and your sweet tooth. If you’re vegan, you no longer have to be limited to sorbets and frozen yoghurts. Yococo ice creams are dairy-free and nut milks are used as the base.
Try their best-selling granadilla and chocolate or their other flavours like apple pie, rooibos and cookies, dragon fruit, golden milk, lavender grey or beetroot choc. Sine is always trying new combinations so follow her social media to see what she comes up with next. You can also order 500 ml tubs for R100 (R90 if you order more than one).
8. La Cremosa
Address: Dainfern Square Shopping Centre
Contact: gelatolacremosa.com or call 0842293994.
Gelato contains less air than ice cream which makes it denser. It is also served at a warmer temperature. Photo by La Cremosa
La Cremosa’s gelato is inspired by traditional family recipes from Rome and there are more than 20 flavours of ice creams and sorbets. Their creme is gluten-free and some of the ingredients of their flavours come from Italy like the black cherries in their Amarena flavour and the hazelnuts. The fruit sorbets are available in flavours such as melon, pineapple and blueberry, perfect for a summer’s day.
La Cremosa’s baby cup is R30 and their small cup is R45. Their medium is R60 and a large cup is R75. A 500 millilitre container is R115 and one litre is R230.
9. Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream
Address: Paul’s Homemade delivers in Sandton, Johannesburg, Centurion and Pretoria on their ice cream tuk tuk. Otherwise visit their stores outside the Gautrain Station, Hyde Park Shopping Centre, The Zone at Rosebank, Orange Grove and 4th Avenue, Parkhurst.
Contact: paulshomemade.com,
Owner, Paul Ballen received an ice cream machine for his birthday and early trials involved milk chocolate with Nutella and Oreos. Photo by Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream
What started as experiments with an ice cream machine has blossomed into Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream – a gourmet, artisanal ice cream business that uses local produce. Customers can either pick standard flavours or treat themselves to the ‘Flavour of the Month’. There are also seasonal flavours and a range of special flavours that rotate at stores each month (think cardamom and white chocolate or maple syrup and candied pecan).
If you’re feeling creative you can make up to five litres of your own ice cream. Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream They also has kosher and ice cream cake options. While their health flavours include health chai tea or health lemon cheesecake.
10. Pete’s Super Natural Ice Cream
Address: Find it at Impala Fruit & Flowers in Craighall Park, Jacksons Real Food Market, Oaklands Fruit, Farm Table in Linden and The Leopard at 44 Stanley. Pete’s Super Natural Ice Cream is on the menu at some restaurants like Voodoo Lily Cafe and Big Mouth Sushi and Grill.
Contact: Pete’s Super Natural Ice Cream.
This flavour was inspired by Marrakech where the Moroccan city’s pink buildings look red at sunset. Photo by Pete’s Super Natural Ice Cream.
All of nature can be found in a scoop of Peta Frysh’s ice cream. There are magical creations such as popcorn cream with torched marshmallows and honeycomb, peanut brittle and ginger biscuit which is laced with citrus. If you care about where your food comes from, Pete’s Super Natural Ice Cream mostly contains locally sourced ingredients and there are no artificial flavours and colours.
Cape Town
11. Sorbetiere
Address: 48 Albert Road.
Contact: wsorbetiere.co.za or call 0790855607.
Sorbetiere’s new flavour for summer 2018 is cardamom and rose ice cream. Photo by Sorbetiere
The name says it all with this frozen dessert establishment, but you can still get ice cream if that’s what you’re after. Their sorbets are water-based with 70 to 80-percent of fresh fruit as the main ingredient (it’s also vegan and dairy-free). Sorbetiere’s popular flavours are apple and rooibos, strawberry and mint and wait for it… gin and tonic. Their fresh milk ice cream also includes favourites such as Salted Caramel, Fresh Mint and Chocolate Chips , Roasted Peanut and Valrhona Chocolate.
12. Moro Gelato
Address: 165 Long Street
Contact: morogelato.co.za.
A combination of pear and chocolate with complimentary Belgian chocolate. Photo by Moro Gelato
For classic gelato, look no further than Moro Gelato. It’s an invitation to the childhood of one of its founders who watched his Italian grandmother make gelato from scratch. Their flavours rotate every two weeks, but they always have cioccolato, pistacchio, marchese (vanilla, macadamia nuts and almonds), tiramisu and caffe (coffee gelato) . Prices are from R35 to R65. Don’t miss their Italian manufactured cart at Oranjezicht City Farm.
13. Unframed
Address: 45C Kloof Street
Contact: unframed.co.za, call 0636010287.
Unframed ice cream topped with toasted coconut, macaroons and date syrup. Photo by Unframed
You won’t feel bad about consuming this art because, well, that’s the whole point. Unframed Ice Cream have dairy, fruit, almond milk and coconut cream-based creations, which you can top with tasty bits like raw macaroons, toasted coconut chips and caramelised cashew nuts. They have 10 flavours that change depending on the season, but two of these are always sorbets and three are vegan options.
They have a lemon, lime and basil sorbet at the moment and a turmeric latte flavour. It’s R35 for one scoop and R58 for two scoops. Three scoops are R69. Unframed also have a tasting option, with five flavours for R79. It’s R10 per topping and a litre tub is from R195.
Any we missed? Tell us where to find the best ice creams this summer.
This article, 13 unusual ice creams for summer & where to find them, was originally posted on the Getaway Blog by Nandi Majola.