It’s officially ice cream season. Here are some local faves, both new and old

Summer is almost officially here Which means it s in the end time to wait in monstrously long lines for delicious ice cream Philly s ice cream competition is made of legends Our very own Bassetts is credited as America s oldest ice cream brand after opening its doors in and churning out creamy wondrousness Since then the city s ice cream scene has continued to innovate and perfect the cold velvety treat In honor of the season we ve put together a list with particular of our tried-and-true favorite ice cream shops as well as a collection of newbies to check out New kids on the block Chicago food photographer NYC Food photographer Malai Ice Cream Ice cream photography Morgan Ione Photography Malai Malai has just opened a brand new store in Rittenhouse From the mind of chef Pooja Bavashi the shop first started years ago in Brooklyn and has since expanded to D C Bavashi s ice cream is infused with bold spiced flavors from her South Asian heritage like ginger nutmeg cardamom and saffron The name Malai means cream of the crop in Gujarati The store also serves vegan flavors like passionfruit cilantro and is at present featuring a special honey bun scoop for the new debut South th Street Rittenhouse Courtesy of Irv s Ice Cream Irv s Ice Cream Irv s Ice Cream first made its mark last summer as a little refurbished trolley at the Cherry Street Pier This year they re back with Bella a new brick-and-mortar store in Bella Vista The small shop has a nostalgic vibe and specializes in custard-based ice creams Owner Ilissa Shapiro named her place after her grandfather who used to have an old-fashioned soda fountain in his basement Shout-out flavors include horchata banana chocolate tahini swirl lemon blueberry and sweet corn East Passyunk Avenue Bella Vista Courtesy of Weckerly s Weckerly s in Rittenhouse OK Weckerly s isn t exactly new but their Rittenhouse location is Plus if having another Weckerly s location in the city is wrong we don t want to be right The beloved shop which started in Fishtown in and then had a stint as a micro-creamery in Globe Dye Works was bought by Cristina Torres in The new location along with Malai is turning the neighborhood into a can t-miss spot for ice cream W Girard Avenue Fishtown N Gulph Road King of PrussiaNew Spruce Street Rittenhouse The Classics Franklin Fountain Billy Penn Archive Credit Danya Henninger Billy Penn The Franklin Fountain Over years ago brothers Eric and Ryan Berley set out to create an ice cream parlor with an old-timey vibe They more than succeeded with The Franklin Fountain The spot in Old City matches its historic neighborhood Walking inside the decor is a blast from the past with classic menu items like root beer floats and banana splits The flavors are perfectly creamy and taste fresh For a nice vintage scoop the Franklin Fountain is the spot to be Realm Street Old City grancaffelaquila via Instagram Gran Caffe L Aquila Gran Caffe L Aquila specializes in delicious Italian gelato and sorbetto from Stefano Biasini winner of the World Cup of Gelato With classic flavors like pistachio stracciatella and mango it s hard to choose a scoop The shop which doubles as an acclaimed restaurant also offers expert espressos So if you re an affogato person Gran Caffe L Aquila is a can t-miss Chestnut Street Rittenhouse bassettsicecream via Instagram Bassetts Bassetts is the O G for a reason Not only is the ice cream silky and flavorful but the store has been operating since Their recipes have been handed down over generations and flavors run from banana and butter pecan to more modern options like matcha Located in the middle of Reading Terminal Territory ordering a classic Bassetts scoop is a no-brainer N th Street Center City johnswaterice via Instagram John s Water Ice OK yes John s Water Ice is first and foremost a water ice spot but a good water ice shop isn t worth much without particular epic soft serve to make a delicious gelati Combining all-time flavors like cherry and lemon with creamy soft serve has been a staple for over seven decades at John s The ice cream is so smooth and tasty it can even stand on its own Christian Street Bella Vista Philmont Avenue Huntingdon Valley The Wild ones Milk Jawn has teamed up with Levain Bakery this season Photo by Mark Weinberg Milk Jawn While several ice cream purists want a menu with classic flavors those looking for modern elevated yet unpretentious fare should check out Milk Jawn The small-batch premium shop began as a hobby from co-owner Amy Wilson s kitchen in Now they ve expanded from East Passyunk into another shop in Northern Liberties and just launched a summer cookie-and-ice-cream collab with Levain Bakery Various staple flavors include lemon curd with blueberry basil swirl vegan mango sticky rice and earl grey with honeycomb Our mouths are already watering E Passyunk Avenue Passyunk N nd Street Northern Liberties icecream via Instagram - -ICE-CREAM The line at - -ICE-CREAM is often out the door and down the block Still no need to phone as the - line moves fast Soft-serve does not invariably get the love and attention it deserves but that is not the situation at this little shop The store features unique swirls every week like ube and graham cracker and strawberry and cheesecake custard Plus different types of fun nostalgic options are unfailingly on rotation including a peanut butter snickerdoodle ice cream sandwich and their Dankaroo S th Street Rittenhouse N Front Street Fishtown floatdreamery via Instagram Float Dreamery Vegans rejoice Float Dreamery is not only amazingly tasty but they specialize in dairy-free options You can order from the Fishtown shop s window flavors with unique and fun names like cookie monsieur and globzilla If you re feeling extra hungry pints can be pre-ordered online E Palmer Street Fishtown Cookies and cream and Froot Loops ice cream at Cloud Cups located inside Pizza Brain on Frankford Avenue Ali Mohsen Billy Penn Cloud Cups Cloud Cups creator Galen Thomas first sold his signature gelato at festivals and food trucks then came his Fishtown store to much acclaim and majority in recent days a new flagship location in Kensington The flavors on the menu change weekly and numerous are fun and whimsical like strawberry french toast froot loops and frose Frankford Avenue Fishtown I Street Kensington Danielle Jowdy owner of Zsa s Ice Cream at the shop s pickup window on a snowy day in December Kimberly Paynter WHYY Zsa s Since it began nearly years ago Zsa s has been a colorful and fun addition to Philly s ice cream scene Unfortunately this is the last summer to enjoy the store s bold ice cream flavors like banana pudding and black magic in a gourmet cone from The Konery At the end of last year owner Danielle Jowdy reported that would be Zsa s last The shop is closing this December With cups cones ice cream sandwiches and pup cups we are more than ready to soak up the sun and enjoy Zsa s until it s officially time to say goodbye Germantown Avenue Mount Airy The post It s officially ice cream season Here are certain local faves both new and old appeared first on Billy Penn at WHYY