The best ice cream in NYC in 2026 is at Morgenstern's Finest Ice Cream on West Houston Street, Van Leeuwen's many scoop shops, Caffè Panna for Italian-style gelato and affogato, Il Laboratorio del Gelato on the Lower East Side and Brooklyn's Ample Hills Creamery.
Nick Morgenstern's inventive, old-fashioned-feeling ice cream parlor.
Morgenstern's serves dozens of flavors, from classic to unusual, plus sundaes, in a retro-style parlor on West Houston Street.
Good to know: Try a sundae rather than a scoop.
88 W Houston St, New York, NY
Rich French-style ice cream that started as a yellow truck.
Van Leeuwen began as an ice cream truck in New York in 2008 and grew into scoop shops across the city, with rich French-style flavors and a big vegan range.
Good to know: Good vegan options.
Italian-style gelato and affogato with a famous line.
Caffè Panna on Irving Place serves Roman-style ice cream, affogato and seasonal flavors, with lines out the door in summer.
Good to know: Order the affogato with whipped cream (panna).
77 Irving Pl, New York, NY
Small-batch gelato and sorbet in hundreds of rotating flavors.
Il Laboratorio del Gelato makes small-batch gelato and sorbetto on Ludlow Street, rotating through a huge range of flavors.
Good to know: Ask for tastes — the flavor list is long.
188 Ludlow St, New York, NY
Playful Brooklyn-born flavors like Ooey Gooey Butter Cake.
Ample Hills started in Brooklyn and is known for whimsical, mix-in-loaded flavors made in its own creamery.
Good to know: Kids love it — great after Brooklyn Bridge Park.
Several shops and many supermarket brands are kosher-certified. Check for a hechsher at each shop, or see our kosher guides.