The Creemee at Spotty Dog Ice Cream Co. (Photo by Justin Chesney)
Creemee
Spotty Dog Ice Cream Co., 2416 Jefferson Ave.
Available Friday through Sunday, Spotty Dog’s Creemees pay homage to the Vermont-style soft serve that co-owners Hannah Sager and Alex Miller grew up enjoying during family vacations. Higher in butterfat than typical soft serve and decadently creamy, the treats are made from scratch through a multiday process that allows the ice cream maestros to experiment with flavors and deliver the smoothest possible texture. For the full experience, get it covered in chocolate or, if you’re lucky, peanut butter dip, which forms a perfect thin shell around the soft serve. Opt for fun toppings like potato chips, peanut butter crunchities or candied nuts. While the classic pairing of vanilla and chocolate soft serve is a mainstay, Sager is looking forward to showcasing sweet corn, maple (another nod to Vermont) and plenty of peak-summer fruit. —Stephanie Ganz
Parfait
Davvero Gelato, 6931 Lakeside Ave.
Davvero Gelato owner Layne Montgomery has established a following for her inventive vegan gelato flavors and oft-changing parfaits. Her interpretation of the layered dessert — a true display of her skills — consists of gelato and granita (a semifrozen, crystalline dessert) layered with complementary sauces and topped with housemade whipped cream. Montgomery draws inspiration from her travels and the juxtaposition of classic Italian and nostalgic American flavors, plus Turkish influences; tahini and chocolate, olive oil and lemon, and peanut and strawberry are among her favorite combinations. This summer brings flavors such as basil and lavender — the herbs picked from Montgomery's garden — plus melon, peach and berry made with local fruit. —SG
Smetana ice cream with strawberry olive oil drizzle by Ruby Scoops and amaro Braulio at Morty’s (Photo by Patrick Moran)
Signature Ruby Scoops Flavors
Morty’s Market & Deli, 305 W. Brookland Park Blvd.
Before opening their Balkan-inspired restaurant, focacceria and market, co-owners Jay Bayer and Adam Stull got to know their neighbors — including Rabia Kamara, owner of Ruby Scoops ice cream shop. “A collaboration was too good to pass up,” Stull says. “She’s such a good ice-cream maker, but also a really great chef.” Kamara, a culinary school graduate, says, “I love highlighting seasonal produce, and I especially love working with restaurants.” That instinct has shaped flavors such as fig leaf-bergamot and sour cherry-pistachio, reflecting Morty’s Central European focus. For summer, Kamara is taking inspiration from the smetana, or creme fraiche, used in dishes and sandwiches at Morty’s; she churns it into a savory-sweet ice cream topped with a swizzle of olive oil and berry compote, alongside a bright, herby lemon sorbetto. —Eileen Mellon
Sundae
Lafayette Tavern, 1011 Lafayette St.
The vibes are high at the latest Giavos family restaurant, where the scene unfolds like the set of a Scorsese flick, complete with a bright red maraschino cherry-topped sundae. Perfect endings aren’t overlooked, and there may be no more decadent way to finish the meal than a timeless dessert served in a vintage glass chalice by someone in a bow tie. Homestead Creamery vanilla ice cream arrives in a blanket of hot housemade fudge, wet candied walnuts and schlag — a nod to Peter Luger Steak House and its famed German-style whipped cream — along with ribbons of shaved dark chocolate. Lafayette Tavern owner Constantine Giavos says, “The sundae is an American classic. It’s kind of like the scene in ‘Home Alone’ where Kevin orders room service at the Plaza Hotel. Why not just give the people what they want?”—EM
Pistachio-almond kulfi with mango-pistachio mousse (Photo courtesy Lehja)
Kulfi
Lehja, 11800 W. Broad St., Suite 910
As a kid, Sunny Baweja would buy kulfi from street vendors in India. The dessert is often sold from bikes sporting metal baskets on the front filled with molds holding the frozen treat on sticks, and Baweja says it was a core memory of his childhood. “Kulfi is nostalgic to every Indian; it’s like the Blue Bunny truck,” he says. Today, the owner of Lehja translates those formative moments into a range of slow-churned kulfi variations on his menu. Offerings include a pistachio version served in a traditional metal mold, a flower-shaped kulfi layered with rose petal jam, and a bright mango flavor. —EM
Photo courtesy Study Hall
Peanut Butter Oreo Sundae
Study Hall, 4930 Forest Hill Ave., Suite D
Sometimes a special is so special that it earns a rightful place on the menu. Such is the case with Study Hall’s Peanut Butter Oreo Sundae (aka the “PBO”), which combines layers of the shop’s vegan or dairy soft serve (vanilla, chocolate or a twist) with housemade peanut butter sauce and Oreo pieces. Introduced in 2024, the sundae soon became the South Side shop’s bestselling item. “It’s creamy, crunchy, cold, salty and sweet,” says Study Hall co-owner Meryl Hillerson. “We’ve had more adventurous and experimental specials, but this is the crowd-pleaser. We get a lot of ‘Oh, wow’ when we hand it out of the window.” —SG
Pan de Elote
Lolita’s, 2929 W. Cary St.
“Corn is at the heart of Lolita’s,” says co-owner Karina Garcia, “so, we creatively transformed it into dessert. Our pan de elote with house elote ice cream was born from taking something nostalgic and comforting and presenting it playfully and unexpectedly.” The colorful Carytown restaurant makes all its ice cream bases in-house and collaborates with a longstanding neighboring shop, Bev’s Homemade Ice Cream, to bring them to life. For this dish, Lolita’s tops a custardy Mexican-style cornbread known as pan de elote with a corn ice cream, and the result is a dish that’s simultaneously warm, cool, sweet and savory. —SG
A gelato sundae at Lillian (Photo by Justin Chesney)
Gelato
Lillian, 3001 W. Leigh St.; Lost Letter, 2939 W. Clay St.; The Brooklyn, 1616 Summit Ave.
Sibling restaurants Lost Letter, Lillian and The Brooklyn have one thing in common: Their gelato source is co-owner and pastry chef Megan Fitzroy-Phelan. “I’m obsessed with ice cream,” she says, noting she’s currently working on a book about the frozen dessert. “It has always been in our restaurants.” Phelan can often be found out back of Lost Letter, her goggle-wearing silhouette disappearing under cool blooms of liquid nitrogen. When their ice cream machine broke years ago, they adopted the technique as an affordable and time-saving solution, and it’s stuck around. Phelan leans into seasonality and what’s already inside the kitchens, so her gelato lends itself to incredibly singular offerings, including rotating sundaes at Lillian, mint or banana chocolate chip affogatos served in tin cups at The Brooklyn, and a trio of scoops or sorbet spritz at Lost Letter. Next up: floats with housemade sodas at Lillian. —EM
Photo courtesy L’Opossum
Sydney’s Dream Bar
L’Opossum, 626 China St.
Texture lovers have vivid memories of Magic Shell, the chocolate topping that covers ice cream in a crisp lacquer. At Oregon Hill’s French dining lair L’Opossum, it’s the defining element behind pastry chef Sydney Shermer’s vegan Dream Bar. Inspired by vintage ice box cakes, childhood Dairy Queen runs and Strawberry Shortcake bars, the dessert transforms nostalgia into a tongue-in-cheek trompe-l'œil. “The Magic Shell was a real light bulb moment,” Shermer says. Layers of coconut, raspberry and passion fruit liqueur “nice cream”; faux Nilla Wafers; and mango jam are dipped in pink-hued white chocolate Magic Shell, then plated as an “oops, I dropped my cone” scene, complete with toasted coconut, house-puffed crispies and sprinkles. “It’s a perfect marriage between a childhood dream bar and a grown-up restaurant dessert,” she says. —EM
Affogato Tartufo
Alter Ice Cream, 122 W. Tabb St., Petersburg
Five months after opening Alter Ice Cream in Petersburg, co-owner Corey Bullock says their affogato tartufo, inspired by the Italian dessert, is one of the few menu fixtures, thanks to a very vocal contingent of customers who made their devotion clear. The treat enrobes Luxardo cherry-studded vanilla ice cream in a dark chocolate and orange shell that’s finished with a counter-side pour of hot espresso or, for the kids, warm steamed milk. Bullock is interested in tinkering with a white chocolate shell and a fruitier Ethiopian coffee, or even a tea made with foraged botanicals, but assures the classic will reappear. —SG
