No matter how well into adulthood you might be, the promise of ice cream is still the best incentive to get many of us moving. We firmly believe that it's next to impossible to dislike ice creams entirely. From the classic strawberry gelato to a rocky road cup, and from paan to mint chocolate flavours, the options are endless and suffice it to say, none of us are complaining.
When it comes to finding the best of everything, there are a few cities that can compete with Mumbai. And you will find a host of listed spots that will give you what you seek. Probably with a unique twist as the USP.
So applying the same logic here, we've curated a list of the 13 most recommended ice-cream places in Mumbai, yummy enough to make all of us scream with unadulterated joy.
Image Courtesy: Antoine Lewis
With the objective of making world-class gourmet ice creams easier for the masses, Papacream is one of the most common mentions under the best ice cream places in Mumbai. The sheer variety here is staggering and comprises both cherished classics like Belgian Chocolate, and eccentric flavours you can't stop yourself from trying. From the latter category, we'd pick their delish pani puri sorbet (how can anybody say no to that?!), and the nostalgia Horlicks in an ice cream flavour!
Coolest Scoops: Pani Puri Sorbet, Horlicks Ice Cream
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If you take immense pleasure in trying all the latest food fads, this ice cream place in Mumbai deserves to be on your radar. While their menu is full of appetising flavours, and various other dessert options, what keeps us coming back now and then, is the tangy, spicy guava and chilli sorbet. The ice cream flavour is an instant time travel machine, one that will quickly take you back to days of biting into juicy guavas sprinkled with red chilli powder and kaala namak.
Coolest Scoops: Guava & Chilli
Image Courtesy: Apsara
Apsara Icecream has been touted widely and frequently as one of the best ice cream parlours in Mumbai, and one bite of their iconic scoops later, you'll be quick to realise where the reputation comes from. We never tire ourselves from trying their innovative ice cream flavours, packed with a certain Indian quirk, but the two all-time favourites will remain orange apricot (with actual juicy apricot chunks) and blueberry cheese!
Coolest Scoops: Orange Apricot, Blueberry Cheese
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Consider yourself a total chocolate fanatic? Icekraft and you are a match made in ice cream heaven. You know those black waffle cones everybody has been going gaga over [photographing and showing off on Instagram? This place serves those! There are a number of delicious, fascinating flavours up for grabs here, but for chocolate lovers, it doesn't get better than their ultimate choco fantasy ice cream, featuring edible charcoal, and red velvet waffle toppings!
Coolest Scoops: Ultimate Choco Fantasy Friffles
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So, one of our favourite things about this popular ice cream place in Mumbai, is that it treats ice cream making, like the art it is. This is probably why their classic flavours are the best you can find in the entire city. The raspberry sorbet is a perfect, indulgent fruity flavour, while Ferrero Rocher is the best comfort ice cream flavour we've managed to get our hands on till date. We'd also recommend salty caramel if you're feeling flavour frisky.
Coolest Scoops: Fererro Rocher, Raspberry Sorbet
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Filter coffee? In ice cream? Yeah, can you sign me up, please? Yes, for life. If you're skeptical about an adored beverage in the form of a gelato, just take our word for it, it's absolutely mouthwatering. But if we were forced to pick our favourite option from their immensely quirky menu, the ice cream cookie sandwiches are worth dying for. No, we aren't exaggerating one bit. Snickerdoodle and double chocolate chunk have got to be the best we've ever had.
Coolest Scoops: Filer Coffee, Snickerdoodle Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich
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No, you did not read that wrong. This place has quickly risen in popularity in Mumbai for its authentic gelato flavours, and the creamy, luscious texture of their ice creams, is enough to make us drool just at the thought of a bite even before a scoop. The popcorn ice cream is much more appetising than it might sound to some, and tremendously addictive. Chai Biskoot is another eccentric flavour that pleasantly surprised our tastebuds, and we haven't been able to stop visiting ever since.
Coolest Scoops: Popcorn Ice Cream, Chai Biskoot
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Just three words. Alcohol in ice cream. No second thoughts, trust us when we say it's even better than it sounds.
Coolest Scoops: Rum Baba
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K Rustom's is a famous and must-see ice cream parlour in Mumbai. The modest business has been selling delectable ice cream sandwiches for over 60 years—thick slabs of the trademark ice cream flavours between crispy wafer cookies occupy a particular place in Mumbaikars' hearts. Try seasonal flavours like mango and chikoo, or stick to the year-round favourites like choco mint crunch or rum and raisin if you're not in the mood for fruits.
Coolest Scoops: Mango, Chikoo, Choco Mint Crunch
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Pabrai's Fresh & Naturelle is known for its distinctive flavours influenced by a wide range of Indian cuisines and locales. Their menu includes wasabi, five-spice, sandalwood, matcha tea, fennel seed, lemongrass, and Nolen gur (date palm jaggery). Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, and Hillary Clinton are among one of the many people who love this ice cream shop in Mumbai.
Coolest Scoops: Wasabi ice cream
Image Courtesy: TripAdvisor
Another ice cream brand that never fails to impress is Natural's Ice Cream. The brand's USP is that it manufactures ice creams without any chemicals or preservatives using dry fruits and local, seasonal fruits. Mango, jamun, papaya-pineapple, and custard apple are just a few of the summer favourites. The bits of fruits and dry fruits in all their ice creams improve the pleasure of these decadent treats.
Coolest Scoops: Alphonso Mango, Coconut
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This century-old ice cream business, located amid the bylanes of the city's famous Mohammed Ali Road, serves 16 flavours of hand-churned ice creams, including custard apple, mango, strawberry, litchi, and guava. Their advantage is that, like Apsara and Natural’s, they stick to the basic flavours and without the use of any softeners, colours, preservatives, or additives.
Coolest Scoops: Strawberry, Lychee
Bina's Homemade Ice Cream is a well-known brand among ice cream aficionados in South Mumbai, relying solely on word-of-mouth publicity. Bina Doshi, a home-maker, crafted the ice creams, which are purely milk-based rather than cream and come in unusual flavours including chai biscuit, popcorn, Thai red rubies, and lemongrass. Classics such as almonds, chocolate, and fruits are also available.
Coolest Scoops: Almond, Popcorn
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A trip to Girgaum Chowpatty, Mumbai, invariably means stopping by for an ice cream or sandwich at Bachelorr’s, an unassuming but popular roadside eatery, which has been a landmark since the 1930s. Notorious smuggler Haji Mastan is believed to have frequented the place as a youngster in the late 1940s. In the evening, you will see flashy cars parked outside with customers being served sandwiches, pizza, juice and ice-creams by Bachelorr’s staff. From selling fruit-based milkshakes to serving a chilli ice cream, this joint is credited with many firsts.
13 or 30, ice cream solves everything.