Category Archives: Best Ice Cream In NYC Challenge

il laboratorio del gelato

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Well, my Best Ice Cream In NYC Challenge off of Refinery29’s list continues, and my next stop was il laboratorio del gelato in the Lower East Side. Walking by the busy street of Houston, it’s hard to miss this spot. On the corner, you approach a big, white, open spaced shop, with some blue lights luring you in. 

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Inside, they’re making the finest gelato and sorbets, with a growing flavor list of over 200. But, don’t worry, they’re not all available at once, which makes it only slightly easier to decide on a flavor, since they still do have quite a number to choose from. Some flavors are common, but most are unique and unusual, making use of the whole lab concept. 

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I’ve been here before, but there were flavors that I hadn’t tried, and you can choose two flavors in your serving. I was interestingly dreaming of Thanksgiving, and went for Corn and Sweet Potato. Let’s start with the corn flavor. It certainly did taste like corn, but the flavor was very mild, either making it much more accessible to someone more hesitant toward a corn flavored gelato, or, just having a very mild flavor in general. Consistency wise, the gelato was rich and creamy, with a nice, thick and silky texture. The real star of this duo though, was the sweet potato. This was just like eating a sweet potato in gelato form, which, might now be the only way I’d like to consume my sweet potatoes. Well, ok, aside from sweet potato fries and a casserole for Thanksgiving. Aside from those, the only way. 

The Shorts:
Name: il laboratorio del gelato
Location: 188 Ludlow Street, NYC
The Long and Short: Would I go back? For sure, they’re always putting out new and interesting flavors, and the quality of gelato is amazing. 
Would I recommend it? Yes. Be prepared, on a busy evening, you’ll need to take a number and be willing to wait just a little bit to grab your frozen treat. Also, get the Sweet Potato, maybe skip the Corn. You’re still getting your serving of veggies, right?

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Phin & Phebes

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My Best Ice Cream In NYC Challenge continues off of Refinery29’s list with Phin & Phebes. This Brooklyn based ice cream company uses all-natural ingredients and hormone free dairy from family owned farms across New York, Rhode Island and Massachusetts. They don’t have a storefront, but you can find their pints in a number of retail locations.

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I went to Whole Foods, one of their retailers, where they had four flavors. I’m obsessed with bananas, so went for their Banana Whama (banana pudding ice cream with vanilla wafers). Now, I love banana pudding, hell, I have a Banana Pudding marshmallow that I make, so, I’m pretty particular. I enjoyed the ice cream, but, I felt that the banana flavor fell short a bit, and instead of a rich and creamy texture, it was a bit more of an icy consistency. Their other flavors do sound great, so, I’d be willing to give them a try. However, I’m not sure I can agree with Refinery29 on this one, especially when some other NYC companies with incredible ice cream like OddFellows and Hay Rosie, who weren’t on their list. 

The Shorts:
Name: Phin & Phebes
Location: Retail locations and online
The Long and Short: Would I go back? I’m always down to try another flavor to give something a fighting chance, but I probably won’t be getting the Banana again.
Would I recommend it? Sadly, the Banana Whama, no. But, other flavors exist, so, I’ll have to try them before ruling the company out. And, the only reason I’m being a bit tougher, is because this was put under a “Best” category.