While there's absolutely nothing wrong with a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream, or a humble bowl of choc chip, for ice cream month this July why not get a bit more daring? You can find weird and wonderful ice creams all over America, from the rarest of rare ingredients mixed into soft serve to flavors more often found on a dinner plate than in a cone. We've searched out the most peculiar of the lot.
Key lime pie, Kelly's Homemade Ice Cream, Orlando, Florida
There isn't a better summer flavor if you ask me, a tart Key lime cake batter ice cream with ribbons of marshmallow cream and chunks of crispy Graham cracker. Other highlights at Kelly's? Try the blueberry cobbler, summer melon and a host of other rotating varieties. In addition to the brick-and-mortar shop in Orlando's Corrine Drive, five additional locations throughout Florida and stands inside some Foxtail Coffee shops exist.
Firecracker, Clumpies Ice Cream Co, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Pop Rocks-icious has a truly unique profile: It features a tutti frutti ice cream base layered with pop rocks candy that crackle and pop while you eat it. It has become such a sensation at Clumpies, a shop with three Chattanooga locations, that other bizarre flavors may come and go, but Pop Rocks-icious has remained a staple. (The colors of the blue and red ice cream really add to the sensation, too.)
Summer Squash and Cilantro, Sweet Rose Creamery, Santa Monica and LA, California
Sweet Rose Creamery has three branches in LA and one in Santa Monica, and each one is a must-visit shop for trying interesting, seasonal flavours. If you’re feeling adventurous, we recommend the roasted summer squash and cilantro, made using local produce. It’s a cool, green, and herbaceous scoop and surprisingly tasty and fresh, too! We also think the cinnamon cookie oatmeal flavour sounds delish on the standard menu.
Basil honey walnut, Wild Scoops, Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage's Wild Scoops (913 12th Avenue) has earned a reputation for its experimental test kitchen so that you will likely discover some unexpected delicious flavors whenever you go. My current top favorite, "basil honey walnut", features an earth-honey base made with local basil steeped in cream and finishes with a sprinkle of honey-coated walnuts for a surprising, crispy crunch. Another fan favorite from Wild Scoops is the spruce tip, or even root beer.
Krusty the Cone, Sweet Jesus, Ontario, Canada
Every ice cream that Sweet Jesus serves is completely over the top, but perhaps none more so than the Krusty the Cone. While it starts out with a pretty basic vanilla soft serve base, it tops it with a giant swathe of cotton candy, slathers it in cotton candy sauce, and finishes it off with rainbow sprinkles to create the ultimate in unicorn-esque decor. It’s a sugar rush you’ll want to sign up for the next time you’re passing through one of the chain’s many Ontario locations.
Pink Bubblegum, Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams, various locations
Jeni's, the nationwide scoop shop purveyor, is notorious for producing over-the-top ice cream flavors - remember the Everything Bagel, a sweet cream cheese ice cream filled with everything but the sink, i.e. Sesame, poppy seeds, onion and garlic? Pink Bubble Gum remains our favorite. Originally, the team planned a cherry blossom-flavored ice cream but after the idea didn’t work out, the brand created this pink dream with a combination of strawberry jam, cherry blossom cream and caramelized mango, guava and passion fruit for an intoxicating bubblegum effect.
Golden Oreo cookie, The Ice Cream Store, Rehoboth Beach, Delaware
This seasonal scoop shop in summer destination Rehoboth Beach has had some pretty unique creations on tap over the years. They had ghost pepper ice cream, an icy delicacy that needed a waiver and proof of age 18+, and then they had this one, slightly less daunting crowd-pleaser. It starts with a vanilla ice cream dyed in what the shop deems mermaid lilac and swirled with crushed Oreo Golden cookies.
Cookie Monstah, Owowcow, various locations, New Jersey and Pennsylvania
The most iconic sweet, inspired by Cookie Monster—though probably only in name alone. This gelato from Owowcow differs for a delicious reason: no artificial dyes. The cookie monstah naturally colors with organic butterfly pea flowers, then sweetens into a cool ice cream layered with crumbled chocolate chip cookie (made fresh) used to prevent an overabundance.
Olive oil, The Bent Spoon, Princeton, New Jersey
The most iconic sweet, inspired by Cookie Monster—though probably only in name alone. This gelato from O wow cow differs for a delicious reason: no artificial dyes. The cookie monstah naturally colors with organic butterfly pea flowers, then sweetens into a cool ice cream layered with crumbled chocolate chip cookie (made fresh) used to prevent an overabundance.
FAQ's
1. What is the most famous meat-based ice cream in America?
Maine's Lobster Ice Cream is legendary. Shipped nationwide from shops like Ben & Bill’s Chocolate Emporium, it features a buttery vanilla base loaded with actual chopped, butter-poached lobster meat.
2. Are there ice cream flavors so spicy they require a liability waiver?
Yes. Sunny sky’s Homemade Ice Cream in North Carolina offers "Cold Sweat," an intensely hot option brewed with ghost peppers and habaneros. Eaters genuinely have to sign a waiver before taking a scoop.
3. Which brand is known for turning dynamic comfort foods into ice cream?
Brooklyn-born Van Leeuwen frequently breaks the internet with outrageous comfort-food collaborations, most notably turning Kraft Macaroni & Cheese and Pizza (complete with tomato jam and basil crust) into limited-edition pints.
4. How does "Bone Marrow" ice cream actually taste?
Pioneered by artisanal heavyweights like Salt & Straw, Bone Marrow & Smoked Cherries is a hit among foodies. The roasted marrow gives the ice cream a rich, intensely velvety fat profile that mimics a rich custard, perfectly balancing the tart cherries.
5. What is the weirdest breakfast-themed flavor out there?
While bacon ice cream is common, Wisconsin scoop shops serve up a loaded morning cocktail: French Toast, Bacon, and Whiskey ice cream. If you prefer a quick morning bite, California’s Humphry Slocombe is famous for "Secret Breakfast," a cult-favorite flavor made with Bourbon and cornflakes.
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