I love ice cream. I love it so much, I actually have an ice cream maker which I had 50% success rate at making my own ice creams (I blame the recipe).

There are so many places to get ice cream in Singapore. From roadside vendors, to upmarket restaurants, scoop shops to ice cream cafes; In sunny Singapore, it is really everywhere and it is a basic human right to have when the temperature is over 30⁰C. One of the best ice creams I’ve had was an Olive Oil flavoured Gelato from the now defunct La Strada.

There are 2 category of ice cream shops in Singapore; the local home-made ice cream sort (Udders, Island Creamery, Seventh Heaven etc), and the imported franchise ice cream sort (Haagen Dazs, Ben & Jerry’s, Marble Slab etc). I generally prefer the former though I do have personal favourites from international brands. One brand which I really do not like (or rather, just very indifferent to) is Ben & Jerry’s. Their flavours do not appeal to me at all and neither do I like their texture which is sticky and overly rich. I prefer Haagen Dazs anytime.

Hungry Bird’s Top 10 Favourite Ice Cream Flavours

Häagen-Dazs’ Caramel & Biscuits

Tom Palette’s Salted Egg Yolk

Häagen-Dazs’ Green Tea

Udder’s Bailey’s & Bourbon

Udder’s Pistachio

Udder’s Earl Grey

Udder’s Vanilla

Udder’s Hazel’s Nut

Häagen-Dazs’ Macadamia

Tom Palette’s Vanilla

Guide Local Ice Cream Shops in Singapore

I shall judge the ice cream parlours by the quality of their ice cream. A smooth and creamy ice cream makes good texture. I abhor those with specs of ice (think Kings ice cream) or those too sticky like it has a lot of chemical additives. As for flavour, it is pretty straight forward. No one likes their vanilla or strawberry to taste artificial, or low grade.

For imported ice cream parlours, we have: Häagen-Dazs, Ben & Jerry’s, New Zealand Naturals, Movenpick, Andersen’s of Denmark, Gelare, Cold Stone Creamery, Cold Rock, Marble Slab, Azabu Sabo, Swensens, and many more.

Below I am listing the local (mostly unique) ice cream shops, but of course the list is not complete as there are too many. I have included my two cents worth for those which I have tried before.

Seventh Heaven

This shop is not really made to attract young kids as they have a lot of alcoholic flavours. Their ice cream is the creamy and rich sort so it is not for the health conscious. The flavours are generally not bad, and I’ve tried an array of flavours, but none of them were unforgettable enough to leave me an impression.

*****

Texture: 7.5/10 (too creamy)

Variety: 9/10

Flavour: 7/10

*****

Seventh Heaven

112 East Coast Road #02-27

112 Katong

*****

Daily: 11am – 10pm

U.d.d.e.r.s

This ice cream shop is undisputedly the most successful and popular local ice cream shops. They have expanded several outlets all over Singapore. I first tried it when they were still limited to Novena, and it was instant love. The quality of the ice cream is creamy and good (no specs of ice) but isn’t over the top in creaminess. The temperature it is served at is just right too; creamy to scoop but not soft so it doesn’t melt that quickly. The only grouse is that the café is not a good place to hang out as it gets too crowded and you can’t hog seats unless you are unbashed. I have to say that the waffles here are somewhat Belgian type and I REALLY love it! I The prices of the ice cream, however, is evidently higher than their local ice cream counterparts.

Must Try: Earl Grey, Hazel’s Nut, Baileys & Bourbon, Pistachio

*****

Texture: 9/10

Variety: 9/10

Flavour: 9/10

*****

Udders

87 Upper East Coast Road

Singapore 455223

*****

Sunday to Thursday: 12 noon to 11pm

Friday, Saturday and eve of PH: 12 noon to 1am

Scoopz

I have been patronizing their scoop shop at Parkway Parade for many years already. They do not have seats at all. The ice cream there is above average, and is the not so creamy type. I usually have cookies & cream or vanilla there and they have never failed me.

*****

Texture: 7.5/10 (drier)

Variety: 7/10

Flavour: 7/10

*****

Scoopz

80 Marine Parade Road #B1-154

Parkway Parade S(449269)

*****

Daily: 10am – 10pm

Island Creamery

This is one of the first local ice cream shops I knew of that was hyped over. Being located near schools at Serene Centre, it is a popular hangout choice for students. The flavours there are local inspired, like Horlicks or Milo. While the ice cream there was fine, there isn’t any which left an impression. The ice cream texture was just average, not too creamy, not too dry. It seems that they have expanded to have several outlets.

*****

Texture: 7.5/10

Variety: 8/10

Flavour: 7/10

*****

Island Creamery

10 Jalan Serene #01-03

Serene Centre, S(258748)

*****

Sunday to Thursday: 11am to 10pm, Fri, Sat, Eve and Public holiday: 11am to 11pm

Tom’s Palette

Opposite popular Thai eatery Ah Loy Thai, this equally popular ice cream shop is always packed after meal hours (8pm or so) when Ah Loy Thai diners hop over for some dessert. The prices there are relatively cheap too. The texture, however, is more of the choppy type rather than creamy and smooth. They excel in their flavour though.

Must Try: Salted Egg Yolk, Vanilla

*****

Texture: 7.5/10

Variety: 8.5/10

Flavour: 9/10

*****

Tom’s Palette

100 Beach Road #01-25

Shaw Leisure Gallery S(189702)

*****

Monday to Thursday: 12pm -9.30pm, Friday to Saturday: 12pm to 10pm

Sunday: 1pm to 7pm(closed on the last Sunday of the month)

Little Ice Cream Kafe

I have to say this first – the ice cream here is not one of the best. Some of the textures were icy and some of the flavours tasted too artificial to be real. However, the laid back ambience and big shop area makes up for it as it gives a great setting for simply slacking without worrying that you are hogging the place.

*****

Texture: 6.5/10

Variety: 7.5/10

Flavour: 6.5/10

*****

Little Ice Cream Kafe

258 Tanjong Katong Road

Singapore 437046

*****

Sunday to Thursday: 1pm to 11pm, Friday to Saturday: 1pm to 12am

Gelato Art

To be honest, I only ended up here because the nearby The Daily Scoop had a closing time that was too early. It was a random find but actually was rather alright. It was 2 years ago but I remember having the avocado flavour which I quite enjoyed. The texture was typical of gelato, and it was rather smooth and not icy. The flavour, however, was not one that was strong enough to remember.

*****

Texture: 7/10

Variety: 6.5/10

Flavour: 7/10

*****

Gelato Art

Blk 105 Clementi St 12, #01-16

Singapore 120105

*****

Sunday to Thursday: 1pm to 11pm, Friday to Saturday: 1pm to 12am

Ice Cream Gallery

I only had 1 scoop of ice cream from this place before, and it was the avocado and gula Melaka flavour. I quite enjoyed it, but I would prefer it without gula Melaka. The shop looks very ‘foreign’ as it carries some imported products and the shop décor reminds me of Coffee Bean. I wouldn’t mind trying again.

*****

Texture: 8/10

Variety: 7/10

Flavour: 8/10

*****

Ice Cream Gallery

242C Tanjong Katong Road

Singapore 437030

*****

Sunday to Thursday: 12noon to 10:30pm

Friday: 12 noon to 11pm

Saturday: 11:30 am to 11pm

Haato

I had this at a scoop shop at NEX but they have other outlets too. The ice cream here is gelato like, but with Japanese influence. I can’t remember much but it was good.

*****

Texture: 8/10

Variety: 6.5/10

Flavour: 8/10

*****

Haato

6 Eu Tong Sen Street #01-74

The Central @ Clarke Quay

*****

Sunday to Thursday: 11am to 11pm, Friday & Saturday: 11am to 1am

The Daily Scoop

43 Jalan Merah Saga, #01-78 Chip Bee Gardens

Singapore 278115

Scoop of Art

278 Marine Parade Road

Marine Parade Community Centre S(449282)