With the sunshine poking its head out every now and then from behind the clouds, Toronto is gearing up for a few good months of ice cream weather. Be it hard or soft, sandwich or sundae—Toronto has proven that no matter the variation of offering or flavour, we love our ice cream!
Here are five of the best places for ice cream around the city of Toronto (including links to each location) so you can plan out your next afternoon summer delight.
Ed’s Real Scoop
Ed’s Real Scoop has been one of Toronto's go-to ice cream spots for years. With locations in The Beach, Leslieville and Roncesvalles, cups and cones range in price from $2.95 to $5.27. Should you be feeling extra enticed by the waffle cone aroma that envelops you as soon as you walk through the door, you can scoop your delicious Ed’s Burnt Marshmallow into a waffle cone for $1.20 extra. And, if you feel like bringing a bit of Ed’s home with you, pints are available $8. (Multiple locations.)
The Big Chill
Set up like a ’50s’ shake shack, The Big Chill does ice cream proud, offering up an array of delicious flavours (Birthday Cake, Brownie Toffee Crunch, Espresso and more) while also catering to the health conscious with a selection of frozen yogurt. The scoops are sizeable ($3.95 for one scoop, or $5.95 for two scoops), and the homemade waffle cones are a delicious treat onto themselves ($1 extra). Should you be feeling particularly saucy, you could partake in one of their tasty sundaes ($7.50), which come fully loaded with toppings and three scoops of ice cream. Get ready to dig in. (367 Manning Avenue and 566 College Street.)
Bakerbots Baking
This bake shop, a stone's throw from Ossington subway station, is known for their Banana Pudding, but they have recently been serving up summer bake-shop realness with their delightful ice cream sammies. Cute and customizable, the ice cream sandwich rings in at $4 for half, or $7 full. You can select cookies like the Birthday, Oatmeal or Ginger Molasses and pair them with ice cream flavours such as Cinnamon Toast, Sam James Espresso, Burnt Toffee or London Fog. (205 Delaware Avenue.)
Momofuku Milk Bar
It's finally here, Toronto, and it is magical. Momofuku Milk Bar has released two soft-serve ice cream flavours for summer consumption: “Cereal Milk,” which is supposed to taste like — you guessed it — the milk at the bottom of a cereal bowl, and the “Double Double,” which uses espresso beans from much-loved local coffee shop Sam James. The small but mighty cups are $5.25 without the crunchy cornflake topping (which is available for an additional $0.75). You can buy a pint for $8, but availability depends on the day. (190 University Avenue.)
Dutch Dreams
You know that if this ice cream shop gets a stamp of approval from Mr. Toronto himself — Drake — then it's alright. Dutch Dreams recently moved from their home at 78 Vaughan Rd. to larger digs. Specializing in everything Dutch, offerings range from a Banana Split ($8.05) to Waffle Basket Sundae ($8.00), or just some plain ol’ scoops of ice cream like Toasted Coconut, Grapenut or Moose Droppings. The line-ups form quickly at this place, so don’t wait. (36 Vaughan Road.)
