Big Kid Ice Cream is channelling our nostalgia for the Mr Whippy trucks of our childhoods into Whippies, a new soft serve bar opening in Covent Garden’s Seven Dials Market next month. Whippies opens less than a mile from Big Kid’s Soho scoop shop, where founder Harry Webb has built a reputation for offbeat flavours like olive oil baklava, Marmite and blueberry ube. “Your local Mr Whippy just got a whole lot sexier,” Webb said in a statement.
Sexier how? Whippies will start with premium soft serve, made with organic milk, brown butter and Madagascan vanilla, which will be the base for sundaes, 99 Flakes – which will be 99p on August 8 and 9 – and ice-cream floats. Sundaes will include the Solero Knickerbocker – peaches, mango and passionfruit swirled with soft-serve, and topped with charred pineapple, glacé cherry and house-made whipped cream.
Other sundae stars will include the chocolate-fudge sundae with hot fudge sauce and crushed Oreos, finished with whipped cream, toasted hazelnut and a cookies and cream flake, and Webb’s take on a banana split: brûléed banana with a choice of toppings (chocolate fudge; peach, mango and passionfruit ripple; or peanut caramel), plus roasted peanuts, banana chips and charred pineapple.
There’ll also be a house version of a slush puppy made with fresh fruit, which can be topped with soft serve to make an ice-cream float, as well as cocktail iced lollies.
Beyond the staples, Webb will use the space to collaborate with chefs and brands, and to create limited-edition treats.
Whippies opens in Seven Dials Market on August 8.
