Ice de Lion

On our way back from Kyoto we were a bit early for our shinkansen, and given how warm the day was, the best solution was clearly to hole up at the nearest icecream store. Luckily, the nearest icecream store happened to be the adorable Mister Donuts icecream brand, Ice de Lion, with a supercute lion mascot. Obviously, I had to order my icecream in the lion wafer sandwich, which has an impression of the lion mascot’s face on top. I picked the ‘passion’ sorbet flavour, which was a blend of mango and raspberry sorbets. The serving was a huge sphere of sorbet and it actually stayed together quite well, considering how slowly I ate it. Both fruit flavours were really true and I’m very glad someone thought of swirling them together, because they went perfectly – the sweetness of the mango really complemented the tartness of the raspberry. We even got to enjoy a live band performance of music from Disney songs coming from the next floor up while we enjoyed our icecream and people-watched.  Oh, and the Ice de Lion lady even gave me a sheet full of cute lion stickers, like the big kid I am when it comes to icecream.

Ice de Lion, Kyoto station (JR), Kyoto  Japan                            https://www.misterdonut.jp/icedelion/

Cold Stone Creamery

A Swiss friend of mine introduced me to Cold Stone in 2009 and I haven’t looked back. It’s very similar to Cold Rock in Australia, where you choose an icecream, load it full of yummy things, and watch while the staff mush it all together (mush being the technical term, of course). Actually, Cold Stone ups the game, offering icecream in waffle bowls (you heard me, waffle bowls) and singing to customers as they prepare your icecream. As if this place didn’t make me happy enough, they also have the best icecream flavour combo ever – peach and raspberry! It’s a spring special called the Peachy Cheeky and includes white peach icecream, raspberries (frozen), peach jelly, peach chunks and whipped cream. In a waffle bowl. Are you sold yet? I first tried this delight in 2009 and was super excited to have it again this year – it didn’t disappoint. The sweet peach and tart raspberry combination is always a winner, and the textural contrast of the fruit pieces, jelly and icecream was magic. I may or may not have devoured the waffle bowl too… Luckily that’s what they’re there for. Check it out, they’ve got locations all around Japan.

Cold Stone Creamery, Shibuya Mark City 4F, Dogenzaka 1-12-13, Shibuya, Tokyo Japan  http://www.coldstonecreamery.co.jp/

Paletas

I’ve recently returned from a holiday in Japan, so, in exciting news, for the next month or so #icecreamthurs will be all from Japan! I had a lovely catch up with a friend of mine who’s studying in Tokyo and we went to a smoothie bar he wanted to try. It turned out to be a gorgeous cafe with fun red, green and natural timber decor – I was hooked even before I saw the icecream display cabinet. To dine in, you had to order a drink not just an icecream (served on a stick), so we both picked one smoothie and one icecream. I started with the Japanese citrus smoothie, which was absolutely delicious! Yes there was lots of ice, but the freshness of the flavours was really surprising, and there was definitely a streak of some kind of berry in there. I’m guessing the citrus in the drink included orange, grapefruit and maybe yuzu, a Japanese citrus. Our icecreams arrived served on frozen plates to keep them from melting in the spring warmth. I chose the earl grey and orange flavour, which was beautifully creamy and had a subdued bergamot flavour that meant it wasn’t overly sweet. The texture had flecks of orange and tea inside – I would love to come back to try more of their nearly 20 icecream flavours!

Paletas Cafe, Tokyo Midtown, 9-7-3 Asakasa, Minato-ku, Tokyo                        http://www.paletas.jp

Frugii Dessert Laboratory

After my last visit to the Frugii Dessert Lab, I couldn’t resist popping in again after lunch at Hopscotch for a palate cleanser. It took me a while to convince my very-full-from-lunch colleagues, but my dedication to #icecreamthurs won out in the end (and I promised they’d get a mention – hi guys!). Frugii had two sorbet flavours on offer, so I hedged my bets and went half-half. First up: green apple sorbet. Yum, yum and yum. This one has such a crisp, clean green apple flavour – it’s not sickly sweet and it perfectly refreshing. I adored the tiny bits of green apple skin throughout, which added so much to the overall flavour (although it unfortunately led to quickly-escalating jokes about chunks – thanks guys!). Definitely one to get again. Underneath was a big scoop of flavour number two: blood plum. Eating sorbet, it turns out, is a good way to learn about unusual fruit. Having never had an actual blood plum before, I can’t tell how accurate the flavour is, but the sorbet has a lovely tart flavour that screamed ‘plum’ to me. I don’t know how they get their flavours so authentic but it really works.

Frugii Dessert Laboratory, 30 Lonsdale Street, Braddon ACT http://www.frugii.com/

Haagen Dazs

Flashback #icecreamthurs! I was in Tokyo during spring last year and one of my most exciting food discoveries was that Haagen Dazs had put together my two favourite flavours in the world. I made this discovery on an unassuming evening visit to the konbini (convenience store), and was so excited I rushed outside to take this photo right away. I mean really – peach AND raspberry??!! How is it no-one has done this before? Showing superhuman self control, I saved the taste test until I got back to the hotel, by which point the icecream had gone slightly mushy, but luckily not all the way through. I took my little spoon (Japanese convenience stores really are the best) and got stuck in. Oh man. This was so, so good. Every mouthful was a beautiful contrast between the sweet, almost frangrant white peach and the tartness of the raspberry flavour. The icecream itself was rich and creamy for a mass-produced brand (even when melted), and the ‘minicup’ (as the size is called) was more than enough for me – I ended up saving half for later. Dear Haagen Dazs: 1. #cometocanberra and 2. please keep making this flavour, it’s really something special.

Haagen Dazs, sold in various locations, http://www.haagen-dazs.co.jp/

Gelato Messina

Upping the anti to gelato cakes this #icecreamthurs! Gelato Messina’s gelato cakes are famous around Australia – that was more than enough motivation to give them a try! The cakes are only available at their Darlinghurst store, so off we went, excited by the creative options. Because one’s eyes are often bigger than one’s tummy, Gelato Messina offers mini gelato cakes as well as the full party size – I couldn’t go past the ‘Dr Evil’s Magic Mushroom’ (who could, with a name like that?). It was a shame to get stuck in because it was so beautifully crafted, but the first mouthful cured me of any further guilt. The top of the mushroom is made from dark chocolate gelato, peanut cookies and silky smooth dulce de leche, the bitter dark chocolate flavour matching the sweet dulce de leche and the cookies adding some crunch. The same flavours continue into the white stem, but the real surprise was in the ‘grass’ – popping candy! The crispiness of the base finishes the dessert off perfectly. Gelato Messina is famous for a reason – give their icecream cakes a try for flavoursome and creative desserts.

Gelato Messina, 1/241 Victoria Street, Darlinghurst NSW                 http://www.gelatomessina.com

Via Dolce

Dolce and Salato has rebranded to become Via Dolce, so of course when Mum and I walked past on a wander through the city, I had to check it out and see if the gelato was as good as I remember it. The range of flavours seems to have remained the same, with several sorbets on offer, much to my delight. We decided to try the mango and got a small cup to share. The sorbet texture wasn’t quite as smooth as I remember, being a little bit icy, but the mango flavour was strong and genuine and didn’t fade the more we ate; a very important criteria for assessing quality gelato/sorbet. We did have an odd moment towards the end of the cup where the flavour changed – it took us a while to realise that it was actually a passionfruit flavour, which must have been on the scoop from before our order, but it was a bit strange expecting mango and suddenly finding passionfruit! Despite the name change and the flavour mix-up, this remains my go-to sorbet place in the city, even now that the weather has cooled down.

Via Dolce, 108 Bunda Street, Civic ACT                                                                viadolce.com.au