From rolled ice cream to vegan options piled high with one-of-a-kind toppings, these places are sure to satisfy your sweet tooth.
Happy Sundae
Toronto entrepreneur Angela Phung took ice cream season to the next level with her venture, Happy Sundae. Phung, who also operates aka.the store, is serving up farm-to-table scoops with fresh and unique toppings. “Happy Sundae is a little happy place located at 85 Portland St. Toronto,” the website reads. “Aka, King West’s newest ice cream dessert heaven, specializing in soft-serve ice cream and a wide range of toppings. Whether it’s in a cone or cup, our Sweet Artists are ready to create your next dessert masterpiece because everyday [sic] is a Happy Sundae.” Of course, in typical Phung fashion, the shop is nothing if not trendy, complete with a graffiti wall and Instagram-worthy floral accents. The decorations serve as the perfect backdrop to each Sweet Art of the Day creation, crafted in sundaes or colourful flavoured cones in flavours like s’mores sundae and orange Creamsicle. 85 Portland St.
Death in Venice
Just like the main character’s obsession in the Italian-French drama and novella this gelato shop is named for, Death by Venice is to die for. In 2015, owner Kaya was the winner of Chopped Canada with an original ricotta, lemon and rosemary ice cream. With the winnings, he purchased an Italian Carpigiani gelato machine and the rest is history. The rotating menu at Death in Venice features inventively fruity flavours like the vegan beetroot rosewater and lime, and the mango coconut lime leaf. For chocolate-loving sweet tooths, Death in Venice offers a decadent hay honey caramel flavour, and a delicious Nutella and cookies. These one-of-a-kind flavours are available both in scoops and pints. The Dundas Street shop is decorated with a gelato lab, large front windows and spacious community tables. What better way is there to spend a hot summer day? 1418 Dundas St W.
Ice Creamonology
The 500-square-foot ice cream shop is run by owner Onur Yilmaz, who trained and worked as a chef in Turkey before immigrating to Canada and studying culinary management at George Brown College. “My wife and I come from southern Turkey, where we have at least eight months of summer, and ice cream is one thing you need to eat every day or you’ll never cool down!” Yilmaz says with a laugh. “We have so many good memories of eating ice cream, and I love to make it. I combine my culinary skills with making ice cream, and that’s one of the reasons it’s pretty popular — my flavour combinations are unique.” There are eight classic flavours that are a permanent fixture, including Turkish coffee, Turkish pistachio, roasted hazelnut, chocolate fudge brownies, Tahitian vanilla, blueberry and white chocolate cheesecake, coconut cream and mango sorbet (which are both vegan) and the most popular flavour, Black Sea tea, which packs an aromatic punch that’s similar to Earl Grey. 250 Queens Quay W.
Roll Me Up Ice Cream
Ice cream takes on a whole new persona at this dessert shop where ice cream is — you guessed it — rolled. Offerings include pre-selected combinations like blueberry cheesecake and birthday cake, but create-your-own options are also available with bases like pistachio, mango and coffee and a huge array of toppings from fresh fruit to coconut shavings to condensed milk. The concept of rolling ice cream is also called stir-fried ice cream and has roots in Thailand, where it’s typically sold by street vendors. It’s laid out very thinly on a metal, plate-like surface and then scraped into rolls, and the process makes each bite just a bit creamier than traditionally scooped ice cream. Milkshakes and bubble-rolled waffles are also on the menu. 75 Main St. N. Unit 1B, Markham