Vegan Ice Cream in the Twin Cities
The Twin Cities has many vegan ice cream options at locally owned shops, so make sure to check them all out.
Bebe Zito
I visited Bebe Zito’s location inside Malcolm Yards Market, and they also have a location in Uptown. Their vegan options rotate, and when I was there I tried Sugarloaf Mountain Sorbet (pictured) with passionfruit, orange, lime, and a splash of rum, as well as Coconut Caipirinha with coconut milk, salted lime, and a splash of Cachaça. The sorbet was nice and tart but tough to eat a whole scoop of, and the coconut ice cream had a weird, fine grainy texture that I didn’t like. I’ve since tried their Marvelous Mrs Hazel chocolate hazelnut ice cream, and it was creamy, and rich, and delicious, and perfect.
Milkjam Creamery
Milkjam Creamery offers multiple vegan ice cream options, and it’s delicious! Find them next to World Street Kitchen in Uptown (you can even walk between the two without going outside). I love the Indian Elvis (curry peanut butter banana) and the Black (the darkest coco) topped with curried peanuts. It’s creamy, flavorful and amazing. They rotate the flavors frequently, so it seems there’s always something new to try.
Sebastian Joe's
Sebastian Joe’s in Minneapolis is been known for their fun, creative dairy ice cream flavors. They have rich and creamy vegan ice cream options, though you may not get fun flavors like with the dairy options.
Nellie’s Ice Cream
Nellie's Ice Cream occupies the spot in Saint Paul where Izzy's used to be. Their menu offers a "rotating vegan flavor," and on the day I visited, it happened to be dark chocolate with a coconut milk base. I asked about vegan cones, and the employee said the dark chocolate cone is vegan. Two huge scoops with the cone was $5.75 (cash only!), so the prices are very reasonable. And the ice cream is creamy and rich; two of us couldn't even finish it in one sitting. Note that one of their signature things is to top your ice cream with a mini cookie, so you may have to remind them to hold off.
MN Nice Cream
MN Nice Cream started as a food truck, though they never appear to offer vegan ice cream when they take it to events. So you can visit their brick and mortar locations in NE Minneapolis and Stillwater. They have vegan soft serve with several toppings options.
Minnehaha Scoop
Minnehaha Scoop offers soy-based, rich and creamy ice cream with rotating flavors. I tried both the Vanilla Chocolate Chip Soy and Espresso Oreo Soy. The two employees seemed pretty clueless and didn't know if the cones are vegan. Through messaging them on Facebook, I learned that they purchase from Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream and you can view the list of ingredients on their website.
La La Homemade Ice Cream
La La Homemade Ice Cream is nestled in a cute little space in Uptown, and they have a couple vegan flavors. The Raspberry sorbet is pretty straightforward, but I’m impressed with the silkiness of the Dark Chocolate sorbet. I would eat a pint of that in a heartbeat. They also have a Banana Coconut but I’m not a fan of coconut. The shop is very bright and welcoming.
J. Selby's and Herbie Butcher’s Fried Chicken
While they’re not ice cream shops, I’d be remiss not to mention J. Selby’s and Herbie Butcher's Fried Chicken who are all vegan and have shakes, malts, and more with a nice variety of mix-ins and toppings.
Wonders Ice Cream
Wonders Ice Cream has several locations around the Twin Cities and can make almost any flavor vegan. Their rolled ice cream is a fun change from your typical scoop and therefore a good one for the gram. I got chocolate and peanut butter, and unfortunately they were both pretty weak. The ingredients seem fairly low quality, so I don’t recommend them.
Pumphouse Creamery
I’ve tried Pumphouse Creamery a couple times, and their ice cream is too icy for me. Also, they started adding honey to some of their vegan options, so double check ingredients if you go.