Gone are the days of chasing the Mr Whippy van around the park. This summer, London's serving soft serve in fish-shaped waffles, spiking scoops with cream cheese and dill pickle, and constructing ice-cream sandwiches between layers of flaky baklava. It's safe to say we're not settling for a Calippo anymore. We are looking for seasonal flavours, texture worth travelling for and serves that stay with us for life. Here are five scoops worth chasing in Central London.
Order: Cream cheese & dill pickle (if you're brave)
Big Kid has become London's unofficial headquarters for ice cream that sounds wrong on paper but absolutely slaps. The tiny Kingly Street hatch is forever dropping cult specials, from cream cheese and dill pickle to Marmite on toast, Black Forest gâteau and olive oil baklava. Come for the curiosity, stay because you'll inevitably end up ordering a second scoop.
Order: Summer Berry Lolly
Marylebone's Sticks & Cones is a go-to for those who believe less is more when it comes to gelato. Everything is churned fresh in small batches without artificial colours or flavours, leaving classics like mint stracciatella, rich chocolate, proper vanilla and fruit-forward lollies to do the talking.
3. Taiyakiya
Order: Matcha soft serve on black sesame taiyaki
You know the fish-shaped waffle cones all over your Instagram feed? This is where they come from. Taiyakiya has added silky soft serve to the mix for summer, pairing vanilla or matcha with freshly baked taiyaki. It's one of those desserts that's almost too pretty to eat. Almost.
4. Santa Nata
Order: The OG soft serve
Pastel de nata season doesn't end when the sun comes out. At Santa Nata, the cult Portuguese bakery has turned its signature custard tart into one of the smartest soft serves in town. Swirls of vanilla are topped with crushed pastel de nata pastry, cinnamon and buttery shards that taste like the best bits of the classic, custardy bake. It's nostalgic, not-too-sweet, and exactly the sort of dessert you'll accidentally queue for twice. Even better, they're doing a 2-4-1 on soft serve on International Ice Cream Day on 19 July.
5. Darlish
Order: Baklava ice-cream sandwich with a sweet cream scoop
Darlish has been quietly serving some of the city's best ice cream for years, taking inspiration from Middle Eastern flavours like Iranian pistachio, molasses and sea salt, and chocolate with halva crumble. But the real reason to go? The baklava ice-cream sandwich. Sticky, flaky, creamy and will probably ruin the supermarket ice cream sandwich for you forever.
Still craving a certain kind of scoop? Or need to find a spot outside Central London? Check out our best ice creams in London guide to discover even more great ice cream emporiums.