The Seven Best Ice Cream Shops in Chinatown, New York City
Looking for the best ice cream in Chinatown?
Craving some ice cream? You know we are! You may be surprised to find that Chinatown is the place to be for these sweet treats. There are so many interesting ice cream shops scattered throughout the neighborhood. So with everything from towering sundaes to durian flavored ice cream, here are the seven best ice cream shops in Chinatown, New York City. Join us on our Chinatown and Little Italy food tour for even more fun foodie finds!
Chinatown Ice Cream Factory – 65 Bayard St
P.C.: yelp, Tea N.
Chinatown Ice Cream Factory is the oldest and probably the most popular ice cream shop in Chinatown. They are renowned for their creative Asian flavors like red bean, lychee, almond cookie and even durian. It is a neighborhood staple for locals and visitors alike. Plus if you think the lines are just too long, they now have another location, the Lower East Side Ice Cream Factory (115 Delancey St) at the Essex Market.
Minus Celsius Ice Cream – 302 Grand St Ste D
P.C.: yelp, Andrew L.
Thai rolled ice cream is still quite popular and Minus Celsius is still in our opinion the best ice cream shop for them. With a bunch of flavors and toppings to choose from, they have a lot of tempting ways to customize your order. It is also quite fun seeing them make your sweet and delicious concoctions right in front of you.
Taiyaki NYC – 119 Baxter St
P.C.: yelp, Albert H.
Taiyaki is a fish shaped cake, popular in Japan. So if given a choice between a cup or fish shaped cone, we feel it is a no brainer. You have to get this special cone from Taiyaki NYC! You can even paired it with Asian inspired ice cream flavors and toppings. The line can be long at times but it always seems to move fast.
Soft Swerve – 85B Bayard St & 85B Allen St
Soft Swerve is another ice cream spot with a ton of fun Asian inspired soft serve ice cream. Our go to flavors here are their black sesame and almond cookie. They have a lot of choices for toppings to pair it with like crushed almonds, fruity pebbles, cereal marshmallows and crushed vanilla cookies and fun cone options like chocolate and red velvet. Their ice cream both look amazing and taste amazing!
Aoko Matcha – 81 Chrystie St
P.C.: yelp, Bea R.
When it comes to Asian inspired desserts, one of the most popular flavors is matcha and Aoko specializes in just that. We highly recommend their matcha soft serve ice cream or gelato. We love to get the soft serve in cup with some mochi and red beans and we usually get the gelato piled high in waffle cone. They also have other fun matcha themed desserts like parfaits, mille crepes and cheesecakes too.
Smoove Ice Cream – 279 Grand St
P.C.: yelp, Kristin C.
If you are looking for something more unusual and unique in Chinatown, we suggest the ice cream boba floats from Smoove Ice Cream. Ube is probably their most popular flavor but they also have flavors like strawberry, matcha and Thai milk tea. It just hits the spot even on the hottest days.
Mixue – 266 Canal St & Other Locations
P.C.: yelp, Nancy A.
Finally, we are so happy that Mixue finally open locations across New York City including one in Chinatown. They are best known for their unbeatable deal, vanilla or chocolate soft serve in a cone for just $1.19. You also can’t go wrong with their sweet strawberry sundaes and matcha soft serve.