Although we're already in September, summer doesn't seem to be over any time soon! The heatwaves just keep on coming, and I long for the days where I can finally curl up in a comfy blanket, with a hot chocolate and read a book or watch a movie. It's always so hot and humid outside that I struggle to picture that day ever coming.
On the other hand, a hot summer day is the perfect excuse to go out and eat an ice cream cone! Ice cream is my all time favorite dessert: it's cold, refreshing, sweet, creamy and so versatile! I spent a good part of summer trying new places and coming back to some personal favorites, so I thought I could share my top 5 ice cream places of choice!
Don't they all look beautiful and delicious? Making good ice cream really is not as easy as one would believe. There are countless ice cream parlors out there but only a select few focus on originality, both flavor-wise and presentation-wise, and succeed! So, with no further ado, here are my top 5 favorite ice cream places so far, in no particular order. I would never be able to rank them!
Kem CoBa
Kem CoBa: 60, av. Fairmount Ouest
Kem CoBa is a Mile-End favorite. They offer a generous choice of special and/or exotic flavors such as pandan tree leaf, salted butter, corn flakes and Vietnamese coffee ice cream, but the highlight, in my opinion, is what they call the "twist": a soft-serve, half ice cream half sorbet, combining 2 different flavors into one magnificent and distinct taste. The Twist's flavors change every 2 weeks so you really have to go there regularly over the course of the summer in order to try them all out! My personal favorite is La Québécoise (blueberry and honey), although La Cocotte (coconut and strawberry) is also pretty awesome !
Monsieur Crémeux
Monsieur Crémeux: 43 Rue Beaubien E.
Monsieur Crémeux opened its doors a few years ago and at first, I wasn't a big fan. I'm not sure if it was because of the decor (the place was a bit barren, hot and depressing) but they have renovated since my last visit and turned their place into a cool order-at-the-window parlor, with an eye-catching giant menu on the side of the building. I came back this summer and they have new items on the menu, including vanilla soft-serve topped with candied cherries and lemon crumble, or vanilla soft-serve topped with caramel coulis and salty peanuts and pretzels. Both are delicious! They also serve slushies, floats and hard ice creams but their soft serve ice creams are, in my opinion, their main feature!
Gema pizzeria
Gema pizzeria: 6827, rue St-Dominique
Gema pizzeria serves one of the best pizzas in Montreal and also one the best soft-serve ice creams! You could either go inside the restaurant and treat yourself to a delicious pizza before ordering dessert, or, you could simply go to the side of the building and order your ice cream directly at the window (you can also order a pizza to go at the same window. How awesome is that?). What's special about Gema is that they serve frozen custard. That means that their soft-serve is creamier, thicker and smoother than regular ice cream. They usually have a flavor of the moment (my absolute favorite is vanilla/pistachio) but you could also order the regular vanilla or chocolate soft-serve with a topping of your choice. If you are in the restaurant, I would seriously recommend the affogato. If you order at the window, I would recommend either the flavor of the moment, which ever it is (they're all good!), or vanilla with nuts or chocolate sauce.
Kamehameha snack bar
Kamehameha snack bar: 1190 St-Catherine Est
From the amazing geniuses behind The Red Tiger, this cool hawaiian snack bar opened just last year in the Village. Kamehameha serves a pretty fish-shaped cone filled with a choice of Nutella, custard or red beans, topped with a delicious soft-serve. The flavor changes every now and then. When I went there, the flavor was coconut/Nutella. It was so hot and humid outside that day that I was a bit concerned that coconut/nutella might be a bit too heavy, but it wasn't! It was actually very light and refreshing! What a pleasant surprise! The cone is also topped with shredded coconut and sprinkles, and fruits, which was sooooo pretty! For the filling inside the cone, I would recommend either the nutella or the red beans. The vanilla custard was a bit of a miss, I have to admit. The cone tastes like cinnamon and is chewy with crunchy edges, which is perfect!
Cafe Momo
Cafe Momo: 5525 Monkland
I would call Cafe Momo the discovery of the summer. Their specialty is the bingsoo, a Korean dessert. Though not technically an ice cream, I decided to include the bingsoo in my top 5 because of how refreshing and delicious and mind blowing it is! So what is a bingsoo? It's frozen condensed milk shaved into the lightest, weightless little cloud, with the topping of your choice (my personal favorites are red bean or strawberry). It doesn't look or sound like much but I was hooked since the very first bite! My first bingsoo was with the red bean topping. They added cereal inside the shaved condensed milk and topped the whole thing with a red bean sauce, sliced almonds and mochi cubes. The result is a mixture of tastes and textures like you have never had before! It is addictive! I cannot stop thinking about it. I need it. All the time. The only negative comment I have about cafe Momo is that it is so damn far from where I live or work! But the trip is definitely worth it!
Honorable mentions
There are great number of other places you could stop by for a very good ice cream. Here are a few honorable mentions:
- Cremerie Pandan (3504 Notre-Dame St. W)
- Bo-bec (1300 Laurier E.)
- Havre aux glaces (inside Jean-Talon market)
- L'armoire à glaces (6220 St-Hubert)
- Dalla rose (4609, Notre Dame O.)
Up next
There are still a few more places I haven't had the chance to try out yet! Before summer is over, I would like to stop by Ca Lem, Cool&Simple (for their mochi ice creams!) and Chez Rachid aux mille et une saveurs and give their ice cream a taste!