The Best Ice Cream to Order Online

This sweet shop famous for its frozen hot chocolate may be synonymous with New York City, but did you know you can have the good stuff delivered? Serendipity sells 10 popular flavors on Gopuff and Amazon, including the iconic Frrrozen Hot Chocolate, Unicorn Bliss Sundae and a Coffee Almond Fudge inspired by the TV show Friends. 

Salt & Straw’s ice cream is crafted in Oregon — built from local and sustainable ingredients — and has become something of a staple on the West Coast. But no matter where you live, you can enjoy weekly shipments of its fun and innovative flavors like honey lavender and strawberry honey balsamic with black pepper. Look for seasonal spins too, like applesauce cake with cream cheese frosting. Create your own selection, or nab one of the precurated packs.

This fifth-generation family-run ice cream business in Cincinnati, Ohio, has been in operation since 1870, so they certainly know a thing or two about the warm weather staple. Flavors here are an ode to that classic nostalgia (think butter pecan and peanut butter chocolate chip), and if you’re getting a shipment, you can create your own pack or choose from an already curated gift selection. Make it a party and throw in a few jars of the housemade raspberry and butterscotch sauces. 

Read more

Van Leeuwen has mastered classic American flavors, eschewing extraneous add-ins for the simple pleasure of an unadorned creamy scoop. The Brooklyn-based company also flaunts a host of vegan flavors, often crafted out of a cashew or oat milk base. Expect flavors like cookies and cream, Earl Grey tea and Sicilian pistachio, squeezed into single colorblocked pints. 

Seasonal and artisanal ice cream is the move at Lick Honest Ice Creams, an Austin, Texas institution. The hip flavors can be delivered nationwide, thanks to Goldbelly, where you can choose from scoops like dark chocolate, olive oil and sea salt, and roasted beets and fresh mint. Looking for something other than scoops? Opt for the ice cream sandwiches, bound by a handmade chocolate cake cookie. You can also order directly from the shop for local delivery.

This Omaha, Nebraska ice cream vendor — a fan favorite on Shark Tank — crafts a slew of bestselling flavors, like mint cookie crunch, sea salt caramel brownie and s’mores, but the company also allows customers to design their own flavor from a slew of bases and mix-ins. Just select your base (gelato, sorbet or ice cream) and flavor, then toss in up to three mix-ins, which includes everything from fruits and nuts to candy and bakery items. 

New York City’s innovative parlor, helmed by ice cream wizard Nicholas Morgenstern, is known for an array of funky and eclectic flavors, from favorites like burnt sage and black licorice to a whole section that’s a study in bananas, boasting flavors like charred banana and banana curry. The menu includes 88 flavors (all available to ship!), and while you’re at it, you can also add ice cream cakes and sandwiches to your cart.   

A Seattle, Washington institution, Frankie & Jo’s specializes in plant-based ice cream — meaning all of the ice cream is 100% vegan. Expect flavors like salty caramel ash, mint brownie and chocolate date, all of which can be shipped across the country if you don’t happen to live near a Seattle scoop shop.

Fan favorite Jeni’s was born in Columbus, Ohio, but the brand now boasts locations in over 10 states. Jeni’s has long dabbled in nationwide shipping, and these times are no different. Orders require a minimum of four pints (that shouldn’t be too hard to maneuver), with flavors running the gamut from gooey butter cake to coffee with cream and sugar — not to mention seasonal flavors like pumpkin cake roll. Know an ice cream fanatic? Sign them up for Jeni’s pint club, a subscription that delivers four pints of Jeni’s, four times a year.  

This third-generation family business (that’s been around for 70 years!) has a number of scoop shops in Southern California, but if you’re not in the area, you can also order the beloved creamy flavors online. Pick pints like eureka lemon and marionberries, sea salt cream and cookies and peppermint stick, and if you really can’t stop throwing pints in your cart, consider opting for a 3-, 6- or 12-month membership.