My last Localwise post actually went up in November....and I seriously have not had time to promote it until now! It's been an insane couple of months, for sure. I also, admittedly, wasn't in a rush to do so because ice cream is the theme and that's not a typical holiday post. But it's January now, and sure, it's still cold, but as my fearless guide for this ice cream tour can tell you, there's always room for ice cream!
Jennifer Ng, author of the Ice Cream Travel Guide.
My friend Jennifer Ng is an ice cream maven, to the point that she's written a whole book, the Ice Cream Travel Guide, about ice cream shops and their owners from all over the globe! For the Localwise post, "Touring the Mission District Scoop by Scoop," I asked her to take me on a tour around her favorite Mission-based ice cream joints, which is a route she's well familiar with as she provides private ice cream tours as well. PRIVATE ICE CREAM TOURS. Rejoice!
As always when I write a post for another site, I end up with a lot more pictures than are used in the article, including that portrait of Jennifer above at The Velvet Scoop, a frozen custard spot we hit up for a change of pace (or rather, a change of milk base!) So I'm sharing with you a few of my faves that got left out. Yes, readers of the Gourmez get the behind-the-scenes experience. 😉
The Velvet Scoop scoop!
That photo is of my seasonal pumpkin spice frozen custard at the Velvet Scoop, which I topped with gummy worms. Together with the colorful countertops, it made for quite a playful shot! Jennifer is enjoying the "Malted Milk 'N Cereal," a regular Velvet Scoop creation, in the previous photo.
I also took an interior look at the ice cream shops, as that can be a huge part of the experience. The giant counter at Mitchell's gives a glimpse of the old-fashioned feel of the store, even with adventurous flavors such as horchata on the menu.
Mitchell's Ice Cream
I think the Fifties-esque diner look of Humphry Slocombe also says plenty about that joint's alternative style. It may look familiar, but a glimpse farther back, or further into the flavors, shows their wild side.
There, we enjoyed a double scoop of the "Harvey Milk + Honey Graham," Humphry Slocombe’s nod to San Francisco’s history; and the "Sugar Daddy" dulce de leche, a limited-time-only special to celebrate the just departed “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” tour.
Are you in the mood to dance your own ice cream groove yet? Our first stop, though final one in this post, offers customization galore! But you have to find it first.
The entrance may be hard to spot, but all the topping options at the Cookies & Cream shop at Tartine Manufactory will leave you reeling....not to mention all the great smells from inside the eatery! It's all soft-serve ice cream here, which makes the ice cream pies they serve up even more of a must for me to try soon. I have tried the ice cream, and let me tell you, toasted spelt makes a pretty good topping, bringing an earthiness you aren't likely to find outside of peanuts at other ice cream joints.
Ok, there is no spelt in that pic—the cup with spelt is in the Localwise post. So is this photo, but as it is the best shot I took that day, I decided it was worth sharing again. Apple pie compote tops grape sorbet swirled with an Italian fior de latte cream flavor. I was most surprised to see the grape sorbet as grape is very rarely found in the ice cream world - yes, sorbet isn't ice cream, but c'mon, it's in the family. And talking about the absence of grape ice cream is fairly common of late (meaning I've read two WHOLE articles on the topic).
That's it! You've now seen all the photos worth sharing that didn't make the Localwise post. Thanks for slurping through this ice cream soup with me. Mmmm, ice cream soup. Don't forget to check out Jennifer's book!
