when you want, where you want.
Go Eat an Ice-Cream Sandwich
Photo: Hugo Yu/
Not so long ago, innovation in ice-cream sandwiching amounted to stuffing a brioche bun with some gelato. But now? During peak season? A million different bakeries and scoop shops are vying for our attention (and our much-coveted attention on TikTok), so straightforward sandwiches just won’t cut it. A cookie is never just a cookie, anything can become an ice-cream flavor. Here are ten new ideas to keep us covered through the summer.
1. A New Use for Croissants
Somedays Bakery, multiple locations
Slabs of banana-walnut croissant bread pudding are thinly sliced and crisped up in order to hold chocolate soft serve for a special that will start in August.
2. Tons of Color …
Bibble & Sip, 253 W. 51st St.
Sunshine-yellow corn cookies sandwich two stripes of ice cream: one bright pink (strawberry), the other deep green (matcha).
3. … Or Tons of Babka
Thea Bakery, 17 Greene Ave., Fort Greene
It’s twice-baked babka sandwiching babka ice-cream swirled with babka crumble, all rolled in salty babka brittle. It’s also available only on weekends and — as you might guess — tends to sell out fast.
4. A Perfect It’s-It Dupe
Julia Jean’s, 202 Clinton St.
An East Coast ode to San Francisco’s famous frozen dessert: Ayanna Quint worked on her recipe for over a decade. And she nailed it. The nubby chewiness of the oatmeal cookies and her bittersweet chocolate dip are just right.
5. A Sandwich That’s “Everything”
The Pastry Box, 515 E. 12th St.
Sour-cream cookies support cream-cheese ice cream rimmed with everything-bagel spices. Sweet, salty, perfect.
Photo: Hugo Yu; Food Styling: Jamie Kimm
6. A Collab We Can Get Behind
Heap’s, 171 Seventh Ave., Park Slope
The strawberries-and-cream ice cream at Brownstone Brooklyn’s favorite new scoop shop is churned in the Hudson Valley. The semolina-pistachio-rosewater-and-orange-zest cookies come from Sawa, another neighborhood jewel.
7. Black & White (& Purple)
Supermoon Bakehouse, 120 Rivington St.
The color-loving, rainbow-everything LES bakery goes two-tone for an ode to black-and-white cookies with alternating layers of brownie, vanilla cookie ice cream, chocolate cookie ice cream, and a blondie. Or, go vibrant and get the ube-pandan option.
8. A Better Good Humor Strawberry-Shortcake Bar
Noona’s, 304 E. 5th St.
Yuzu “dreamsicle” ice cream is swirled with the same strawberry jam that slicks this sandwich’s brown-butter cookies. Crumbs from those cookies and freeze-dried berries are the crunchies coating the outside.
9. Homemade Cosmic Brownies!
Comfortland, multiple locations
Montana Barbieri has baked her version of the sprinkle-topped Little Debbie favorites for 15 years. Now she’s using them to cradle vanilla soft serve made by the chainlet’s ice-cream maestro, Andrew O’Neill.
10. The Gracie
The Screen Door, 145 Driggs Ave., Greenpoint
Maine Camp Coffee ice cream arrives between triple-chip cookies — chocolate chunks, white-chocolate chunks, and salty white-chocolate pieces — that are supplied by, and named for, internet favorite Gracie Baked.
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