Soft Swerve

It's time for ice cream to meet umami!  Soft Swerve keeps it simple and sweet.  They offer four Asian inspired flavors of soft serve ice cream, Ube Purple Yam, Macapuno Coconut, Matcha Green Tea, and Black Sesame, which can be enjoyed solo or twisted in a cup or cone.  The Swerve Specials menu offers unique and well balanced combinations of ice cream and toppings.   Customers are also welcome to order their own creations.  And boy, do they make it look good.

We walked right in and up to the counter.  The staff was friendly and happy to make alterations to their suggested creations.  They do offer samples (if you are unfamiliar with these flavors and feeling wary, this is a great opportunity to get to know them), but we went straight for our treats.  As soon as we had ordered and collected our dessert a huge line to the door formed.  Clearly word has gotten out about this place.  Sometimes it's all about good timing.   

Photo Credit to my dad, who is tall and could take a picture over the heads of the forming crowd.

What I Got: A modified version of the Broadway Special - Ube and Macapuno Coconut swirled with Fruity Pebbles, and marshmallows in a chocolate cone.

What Greg Got: Brooklyn Bridge - Black Sesame, Skor Toffee, mochi, and caramel drizzle in a cup.

Let me say first that the staff here takes great care in creating their ice cream concoctions.  The ice cream is expertly swirled into a cup or cone so that it looks picture perfect every time.  For my creation, they sprinkled some fruity pebbles into the bottom of my cone before filling it with ice cream so that there was a little extra treat waiting at the end for me.  For Greg's they started by drizzling the caramel into the cup in a pattern, then added the toffee and shook it to have the pieces stick in place.

Ok so it looks pretty, but how does it taste?  Just right.  The ice cream is smooth and creamy and cold enough that it doesn't melt while you enjoy the toppings.  I thoroughly enjoyed the flavor and purple color if the Ube.  If you've never tried it, ube is very similar to taro.  The closest comparison on the American flavor pallet might be red velvet, in the sense that there is a flavor that reminds you a bit of chocolate, but isn't.  Try it.  The coconut flavor got a little lost the sweetness of my toppings.  I did not realize when I placed my order that the marshmallows were Lucky Charms.  I don't typically eat sugary cereals, but this was a fun way to have an ice cream.  There was a crunch from the Fruity Pebbles that was really satisfying.  Everything about my dessert, down to the chocolate cone with its subtle flavor was full of joy.

Greg's treat was on the more sophisticated side.  Black Sesame has a gentle sweet flavor with a slight woodiness that comes out of the seeds when they are roasted.  The toppings just kept lifting that flavor up with the sauce and toffee bringing caramel and chocolate to the party.  Where the toffee gave a little crunch, there was the delightful smoothness of the mochi pieces.  Mochi is a rice paste treat that is a bit like a gummy but softer, and is one of my favorite toppings.

If these flavors inspire you, I highly recommend taking a trip to the Lower East Side.  I will need to make another visit myself to try the Matcha Green Tea.

The Rundown:
Where: Soft Swerve
85B Allen Street
New York, NY 10002
http://www.softswervenyc.com/
What they're known for: Asian inspired soft serve
A single cup or cone: $3.99
Most Extreme Menu Item: Swerve Specials $5.99
Non-ice cream menu options: None - they keep it simple and do it well

Morgenstern's Finest Ice Cream

For the first day of my ice cream adventure I wanted to visit a new-to-me New York City ice cream staple.  Morgenstern's is near the top of any "best ice cream in the city" list you can find.  This warm spring day was the perfect opportunity to give it a try, so Greg and I headed to the Lower East Side to check it out.  Turns out, I wasn't the only person who had that idea.

It was more than worth the wait! The interior has a classic ice cream parlor feel complete with scoop artists in paper hats, stools at the counter and windows, globe lighting fixtures, and a black and white tile floor.  When you get to the ice cream menu, that is where they leave classic behind and break the mold with their contemporary flavors and toppings. 

The Magnificent Menu at Morgenstern's

What I got:  Monster Cone 2 Dips (translation: waffle cone with 2 scoops), Coconut Ash and Edible Schoolyard Mint Chip
What Greg got: Cup 1 Dip, Durian Banana topped with Pickled Pineapple and Toasted Coconut

The most famous item on the Morgenstern's menu is their Coconut Ash ice cream... a pitch black creamy concoction.  I had to try it.  The verdict?  It's worth the hype.  As imposing as the color is, the ice cream has a subtle, delicate taste that is gentle and pleasant.  It is unique flavor that finds a great balance.  I worried with the name that it would be smokey or overpoweringly sweet, but it was simply a great tasting ice cream.  It was fun to watch my mouth turn black with each bite in the mirror behind the counter, but it never stained my tongue or teeth.

Mint is my go-to flavor.  I was taking a big risk on the Coconut Ash and I wanted a familiar friend to be there for me in case I had made a mistake.  It was perfect!  The scoop artist mixed in extra chocolate chips as they scooped it onto the cone.  The mint was light and fresh, with a flavor that suggests it is made with real mint leaves.  The chips added just the right texture.  This is everything I want in a mint chip ice cream.

Greg let me take a taste of his Durian Banana, Pickled Pineapple, and Toasted Coconut cup.  He managed to engineer the perfect tropical concoction. All the flavors worked together brilliantly.  Curious to know what pickled pineapple is?  Me too.  But I can tell you it mellows out the acidity of the pineapple while leaving the sweet, and combined with the other flavors transports you to a beach where the sand is white and the water blue.

Every flavor I encountered was well balanced and well enjoyed.  The staff was friendly, the space nostalgic.  The only downside was that we wound up in line behind a group of loud, vulgar, kind of violent, mid-twenties bros.  They took their ice cream to go, so once we were past the line we got to enjoy our treats in peace.

The Rundown:
Where: Morgenstern's Finest Ice Cream
2 Rivington Street
New York, NY 10002
http://www.morgensternsnyc.com/
What they're known for: Black Coconut Ash ice cream and other exotic flavors and toppings
A single cup or cone: $4.50, with toppings at $.50 each
Most Extreme Menu Item: King Kong Banana Split $20; bananas, 5 scoops, sesame caramel, pickled pineapple, cherry
Non-ice cream menu options: Coffee/hot beverages, avocado toast