If you’re looking for the best ice cream, Miami is packed with acclaimed newcomers and old frozen favorites.
We love ice cream in all its forms—and all year round. Though we’ll happily partake any time, ice cream, like music festivals, pool days, and beach days. Whether you are a local in the city or traveling through, we have your back. Miami is massive and there are so many great places to eat! If you are having a hard time narrowing down a spot, take a look at this guide to the best ice cream in Miami.
Your guide to the best ice cream shops in Miami
July is National Ice Cream Month, giving you an excuse to eat ice cream every day (Also, July 18 is National Ice Cream Day.) So, there’s a free reason to celebrate the frozen dairy treat. Here, listed in alphabetical order, are the ten best ice cream shops in Miami.
Azucar Ice Cream Company
Azucar ice cream company, located in the heart of miami’s little havana neighborhood, was founded in july 2011 as artisanal ice cream and sorbet boutique. inspired by south florida’s diverse cultures, our hot subtropical climate and a passion for sabor latino, They create their ice cream confections just like abuela used to make, using the highest quality ingredients and a desire to bring smiles to friends faces. Azucar ice cream company makes ice cream and sorbet flavors daily, continuing to challenge our creativity with new tropical flavors and striving to bring delight to our client’s faces.
Dasher and Crank
Dasher & Crank is a craft ice cream shop located in the heart of Wynwood. All of their artisan flavors are made in-house from scratch using local and premium ingredients. Making everything in small-batches allows them to be creative and rotate their menu constantly. In our first year of operation, they have created over 425 flavors and release new flavors each week. Needless to say, you’ll never get sick of Dasher & Crank’s selections, though a few staples do stick around longer, like the Yoko matcha, lavender, chocolate crank and a smattering of non-dairy options, which they always have on rotation.
Fireman Derek’s Bake Shop
Graduating in January 2020 from Penn State University’s Ice Cream School, Fireman Derek Kaplan brought his newfound talents back to Miami. Fireman Derek’s serves a variety of handmade ice cream flavors inspired by bake shop favorites like White Chocolate Guava Cookie Dough, Oreo Cheesecake, Birthday Cake, Red Velvet Cake, Chocolate Brownie with Caramel Swirl and more. Ice cream is served in 5 oz. cups (one scoop) for $4.50 and a 10 oz. cups (two scoops) for $8. Furthering his commitment to no-nonsense ingredients, Fireman Derek’s ice cream flavors are free of artificial flavoring, high fructose corn syrup and made with milk from rBST-free cows. Fireman Derek’s – Coconut Grove is located at 3435 Main Highway; Telephone: (786) 502-2396. Follow Fireman Derek’s on social media: @fdpies. To order online, click HERE; https://firemandereks.com/.
Frohzen
A creative concept by Executive Pastry Chef Salvatore Martone, Frohzen will be popping up in front of the Fendi store in the Miami Design District and handing out complimentary ice cream samples from 1PM until 5PM on July 18, 2021 in celebration of National Ice Cream Day. Guests are invited to visit the store afterward to indulge in other Frohzen signature desserts including ice cream cupcakes, ice cream donuts, macaron sandwiches, cookie ice cream sandwiches, milkshakes and “cakesicles.” In addition to the National Ice Cream Day activation, Le Jardinier’s Beverage Director, J.C. Santana, has worked with Martone to create three festive Ice Cream Cocktails which will be available at Le Jardinier through the month of July (National Ice Cream Month). Priced at $17 each, the cocktails include Bramblino di Bosco with gin, Amaro Montenegro, lemon and a Frutti di Bosco sorbet; My Neighbor’s Tree with Carribean Rums, mint, lime, Mango Passionfruit sorbet and bitters; and Horchata de Coco with tequila blanco, amaretto, Fernet Vallet, rice, cinnamon and Coconut sorbet. Frohzen and Le Jardinier are located at 151 NE 41st Street in the Miami Design District’s Paradise Plaza. www.frohzen-miami.com.
HipPOPs
The story of HipPOPs starts with a charismatic fellow… Anthony (Tony) Fellows that is. With over 30 years of managing, owning and operating frozen dessert businesses, Tony’s passion was to create a premium frozen dessert and deliver it to the world in an uncommon way: handcraft the world’s best gelato, put it on a stick and make it a mobile concept (versus the traditional brick & mortar). After countless months of trial and error, Tony had finally developed the HipPOPs proprietary recipes and “handcrafted awesomeness” was born! Next was creating the POPtruck and no stone was left unturned: from the brand colors, usage of space, operational sequence, functionality, to the elevated customer experience… The World’s Coolest Dessert Truck had emerged. As Tony’s business began to grow, so did Florida’s appetite for his POPtruck and customizable gelato-on-a-stick! Over the next 5 years Tony’s brand of HipPOPs handcrafted gelato bars exploded with POPularity and built an army of loyal POPfans that would consistently follow his truck.
Salt & Straw
The beloved Portland-based ice cream brand, Salt & Straw, will be offering free nationwide shipping of their curiously delicious ice cream on National Ice Cream Day — July 18, 2021. Available online through www.saltandstraw.com, ice cream lovers can choose from a variety of offerings including a Hello Miami Pint Pack featuring the specialty Miami flavors; Cold Ones Pack comprised of flavors made with brewers around the country; Best-Sellers Pint Pack which includes Salt & Straw’s cult classics; and specialty gift and celebration packs for special occasions including Oh, Baby!; Cue The Confetti; and Party Pack, which includes 12 single-serve cups. Customers also have the ability to create their own pack with five flavors of their choice. Orders can be placed online HERE. In addition to the shipping promotion, local Salt & Straw shops in Wynwood and Coconut Grove will be converted into an Ice Cream Believers Jamboree. Guests can expect free swag and handouts, activities and the launch of a specialty 3-pack of enamel pins ($12) with 100% of proceeds benefitting Ice Cream for Change’s fight to dismantle structural and systemic racism. Salt & Straw Wynwood is located at 246 NW 25th Street. Salt & Straw Coconut Grove is located at 3015 Grand Avenue, Unit 145 in CocoWalk. www.saltandstraw.com
Sweet Melody Ice Cream
Mike Romeu and his sweet little girl, Melody, are the adorable team behind this homegrown ice cream business. It got its start selling to local restaurants but now Sweet Melody has several homes of its own, including a ventanita in Kendall and a scoop shop in Palmetto Bay. Romeu is always dreaming up new flavors, like Kooki Monster and Abuela’s Flan, which you can get solo, in a sundae, a shake or whipped into an ice cream cake for special occasions.
Taiyaki
Taiyaki, famous for its fish-shaped cones and exotic-flavored ice creams, has created the most adorable treat known to mankind: unicorn ice cream. Stationed in the 1-800-Lucky courtyard, Taiyaki has taken Miami by storm with the most adorable and photogenic treats known to mankind. The fish-shaped cone is filled with red bean paste and topped with a soft-serve swirl. Top them with everything from sprinkles to candy.
The Frieze Ice Cream Factory
This shop has been a South Beach staple for 30 years, The Frieze Ice Cream was started in the Art Deco District at Fifth Street and Ocean Drive. A “frieze” is an architectural detail or sculpture on the outside of many art deco buildings in South beach and all over the world. In fact, The Frieze’s logo can be seen as a “frieze” if it were featured on a building. Since they still freeze our ice cream and sorbet just a step from art deco’s historic center, what name could be better than “The Frieze”. Their Ice Cream is made with Super Premium, 16% butterfat cream. We never use artificial colors, preservatives or additives. The dozen or so sorbet flavors, made with tempting fruits like watermelon and passionfruit.
Vicky’s House
Located in the heart of Coconut Grove, Vicky’s House is a 12-seat milkshake bar and tasting room named after KUSH Hospitality Group (KHG) mastermind, Matt “Kush” Kuscher’s mother. Vicky’s House is a complete recreation of his mother’s house circa 1986 – since Vicky never threw anything away, he was able to duplicate it using the same cabinets, chandeliers, yellow flower wallpaper and custom-made floor inspired by the retro pattern of the linoleum. An original 1980’s oven serves as storage for the bar’s glassware. A blast from the past and design marvel, an original Galaga arcade cabinet sits in the wood-paneled family room, while an adjacent washing machine stocks frosty cans of beer. In the bathroom, guests will find Kush’s original bedroom dresser and the toys he played with as a child. Aside from milkshakes, the shop also offers floats, scoops of locally-made ice cream by Sweet Melody, two versions of red and white wine— “cheap” and “better”—as well as cans of PBR and local craft beers. Vicky’s House is located at 3190 Commodore Plaza in Coconut Grove. Telephone: (305) 442-3377; kushhospitality.com.
