In sunny and humid Singapore, every day is a good day to have an ice cream. Lactose-intolerant folks have never had it so good as there are now so many vegan and dairy-free flavours to choose from.
These are the places we hightail it to for our scoops even on a rainy day. The diet can wait!
Apiary
84 Neil Road
Online store & delivery available
This ice cream parlour pasteurises all dairy products in its tiny kitchen to produce consistently smooth and creamy textures and rich flavours without the use of any artificial flavour or colouring.
Its eponymous Apiary flavour, made with wildflower honey and loaded with caramelised cocoa nibs is a bestseller. Other crowd favourites are the blue pea flower-infused Blue Milk, hazelnut-based Ferrero Rocher, rich and pure Black Sesame, lavender flower bud- and black goji berry-infused Lavender and Sicilian Pistachio, made with the finest pistachios from Sicily, Italy.
Birds Of Paradise Gelato Boutique
63 East Coast Road • Jewel Changi Airport
Online store temporarily closed
This homegrown gelato boutique makes its gelato in small batches daily using only natural botanical ingredients made from florals, fruits, pods, herbs and spices including basil and blue ginger. Its signature thyme-infused ice-cream cones are made fresh on the spot.
Popular flavours include White Chrysanthemum with bits of cacao nibs, Lychee Raspberry, Mango Sorbet, Midnight Gianduja, Pandan, Peach & Rose Sorbet, Sea Salt Hojicha, Spiced Pear and Strawberry Basil.
Bread & Butterfly
Wisma Atria
Online store & delivery available
Photo: Bread & Butterfly
Opened by the same folks behind affordable French restaurant Saveur, this ice cream parlour offers unique creations that are inspired by the exciting flavours of adventure. Its waffle cone is infused with lavender and made fresh upon order.
Creative flavours include Apple Cucumber, Avocado Coconut, Blue Vanilla with Black Sea Salt, Corn & Caramel, Lavender Blueberry, Pumpkin & Cinnamon, Strawberry Tomato Sorbet and White Chocolate Miso.
Creamier
Blk 131 Toa Payoh Lorong 1 • 78 Yong Siak Street • Gillman Barracks
Online store & delivery available
Photo: Creamier
Creamier has been handcrafting simple but delectable flavours in small batches without using any preservatives since 2011.
Fans flock to the ice-cream parlour for its signatures such as Roasted Pistachio, Sea Salt Gula Melaka, Plain Ole Chocolate, Earl Grey Lavender, Cookies & Cream, Blue Pea Vanilla and Mango Passionfruit Sorbet.
Fatcat Ice Cream Bar
416 Bedok North Avenue 2
Order via Whatsapp, delivery available
This ice-cream bar’s house-made Salted Egg Yolk Sauce, the perfect accompaniment to its Gourmet Charcoal Waffles, may well be more sought-after than its made-from-scratch frozen delights.
But if it’s ice cream you’re after, check out its luscious signatures like Butter Beer, Cheesecake, Cookies & Cream, Dark Chocolate, Earl Grey Lavender, Hay & Honey, Hazelnut, Osmanthus Honey and Watermelon Soju.
Island Creamery
King’s Arcade • ION Orchard
Online store & delivery available
This 17-year-old ice-cream parlour is well-known for its locally inspired creations such as Chendol, Horlicks, Ice Kachang, Kung Pao Cashew, Pineapple Tart, Ping Pong Milo, Pulut Hitam, Soursop, Teh Tarik and Tiger Sorbet.
It also offers ice-cream cakes, with Mudpie, Baked Alaska and Reverso being the all-time favourites.
Kind Kones
Forum The Shopping Mall
Online store & delivery available
Photo: Kind Kones
Come here for vegan ice creams that are free from dairy, egg, refined sugar, soy and artificial additives. The creaminess of the ice creams come from the almond, cashew, coconut or pistachio milks used. Choose from two Waffle Kones – a gluten-free Almond cone made with almond flour, corn flour and flax seeds, and a Wholemeal version made with wholemeal flour and vanilla.
Must-haves include the insta-worthy Blue Planet, coloured blue (to look like Earth) with blue pea flower dye and mixed with bits of matcha cake; Black Forest, swirled with brownie chunks and homemade cherry compote; the refreshing Pink Guava & Lychee Sorbet; and the locally inspired Pandan Gula Melaka.
The Daily Scoop Ice Cream Café
41 Sunset Way • Chip Bee Gardens • Sembawang Cottage • School of the Arts Singapore
Online store & delivery available
Since 2004, this ice cream parlour has been hand-churning an assortment of delightful flavours made with low-fat milk, seasonal fresh fruits, vanilla beans, honey, speciality blend coffee and liqueur.
Bestsellers include Cashew Caramel, Cha Earl Grey, Kookie Monster, Mao Shan Wang, Lychee Martini, Maple Crisp, Salted Mr Brown, Strawberry Shortcake, Simply Chocolate and Surprising Coconut.
Tom’s Palette
51 Middle Road
Online store & delivery available
This 15-year-old ice-cream joint offers some of the most creative gelatos in town (think Nasi Lemak, Chee Cheong Fun and Mango Sticky Rice), all handmade from scratch without any stabilisers, premixes or artificial flavouring.
Crafted in 2011 using real salted egg yolks, its Salted Egg savoury gelato, which was inspired by Hong Kong’s liu sha bao (salted egg yolk custard bun), is still a bestseller today. Other hot choices are Granny’s Favourite, loaded with chocolate chips and chunks of housemade cookie dough; Salted Caramel Cheesecake, layered with housemade salted caramel sauce; and Yuzu, made with yuzu juice from Kochi, Japan.
Udders Ice Cream
17 Lorong Kilat • 246D Upper Thomson Road • 155 Thomson Road • 345 Beach Road • 212 Hougang Street 21
Online store & delivery available
This homegrown brand has served over 15 million scoops (and counting) of ice cream since it opened in 2007. It has won the hearts of many ice-cream lovers with its Asian-inspired and alcohol-infused ice creams that are made without eggs, artificial flavouring, colouring or sweetener.
Highlights include Bailey’s & Bourbon, Champion Chendol, Cookies & Cream, Hazel’s Nuts, Mao Shan Wang, Rum Rum Raisin, Salted Speculoos, Snickers Mars Honeycomb Vanilla and Tira-miss-u. It also offers ice-cream cakes and pies, as well as Nuude Ice Cream, its sister brand which features healthier, lower-fat and lower-calorie ice creams and sorbets.
