Six frozen treats beyond ice cream for Toronto summer
From dragonfruit soft-serve to artisanal bars, the city's got plenty of ways to beat the heat when the cone gets old.
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Toronto winter was long. Spring was basically winter again. Now that the temperature's finally rising, cravings for something cold are hitting hard — and the city's got way more than just ice cream.
The dragonfruit soft-serve at a Danforth shop plays like Toronto's answer to Disney's Dole Whip. You can get it straight up or float it with Dr. Pepper, root beer, club soda, or 7-Up for an extra kick. It rotates through mango, strawberry, and pineapple too.
A pair of sisters run an artisanal ice cream bar operation now set up for the season at The Lobby by Heaps Estrin in Rosedale. They got their start in Muskoka back in 2022. Handmade bars in rotating flavours, plus traditional scoops.
Armed Jewelry on Dundas West brought back its viral Diet Coke slushies this summer with a full-blown slushy bar operation at the back of the shop. Beyond the internet breaker, they're rotating premium small-batch flavours like pina colada, orange creamsicle, and blueberry matcha.
Trinity Market's serving an Aperol Spritz slush — exactly what it sounds like. The slush element cuts down on the spritz factor, but the icy texture transports you to the Positano seaside even when you're actually on Queen West.
Cabbagetown's Viet Bites makes the Vietnamese dessert banh da lạnh — "sweet soup" — which is decidedly harder to find in Toronto. It comes loaded with coconut milk, jellies, fresh fruit, and crushed ice in flavours like avocado, pomelo, and durian.
Mr. Chaskeros in Oakwood Village stocks paletas — Mexico's answer to Yogen Früz. Frozen yogurt blocks with fresh fruit for a tart, cold treat that works equally well for dessert or just beating the heat.