London is not short of hyper-creative ice-cream parlours, gelaterias and savvy restaurants serving supreme swirls and scoops. And now, more than ever, an increasing number of them are dabbling with more savoury flavour combinations designed to test and challenge our taste buds, with everything from marmite to mustard finding its way into the deep freeze.
Curious? These are the quirky savoury-inspired ice-creams appearing on menus across the city. Whether or not you can handle a second helping is entirely up to you.
Tunworth ice-cream at Aulis, Soho
At Simon Rogan’s Michelin-starred chef’s table, Aulis, head chef Charlie Tayler has been transforming Tunworth – the British Camembert-style cheese made in Hampshire – into a rich, tangy ice-cream for the fine dining restaurant’s tasting menu for some time. A previous version of the dish arrived drizzled with truffle honey and stacked with cobnut crisps, though it tends to change with the seasons. Now, the current scoop is served with malt, forced Yorkshire rhubarb and lemon thyme – and for one day only on Saturday, August 15 you can pop in and try it on its own for £12.
Mango green curry ice-cream at Cakes & Bubbles, Piccadilly
As the former pastry chef at Spain’s lauded (and now closed) El Bulli, Albert Arida is well versed in inventing the weird and wonderful. At Cakes & Bubbles, within the Hotel Cafe Royal on Regent Street, his new summer menu features a mango green curry ice-cream: a bright, aromatic concoction of Alphonso mango, lime, tamarind, galangal, ginger, kaffir lime leaf, coriander and basil served in a tall, freezer-cold glass.
Marmite on toast ice-cream at Big Kid Ice Cream, Soho
As the name suggests, the founder of Big Kid Ice Cream, Harry Webb, likes to get silly with his scoops. At his Kingly Street hatch, the Marmite on Toast flavour uses the famously divisive yeast extract spread to deliver an umami punch. Whether you resolve to love it or hate it, the combination of buttered toast ice-cream with frozen chunks of marmite on toast and a marmite caramel ripple is a great excuse to have dessert for breakfast. Keep an eye out for the even stranger Dill Pickle special – starring cream-cheese ice-cream with candied pickles – which may return at some point due to popular demand.
Queso ice-cream at Mamasons Dirty Ice Cream, Chinatown
Believe it or not, in the Philippines, queso (or keso) ice-cream is as established a flavour as chocolate or vanilla. Typically made with mild cheddar it has a sweet, salty, creamy flavour profile, sometimes with little pieces of cheese folded through it. At Mamasons in Chinatown and Westfield in White City, pair it with a scoop of ube, milo or black buko (coconut ice-cream with charcoal), or enjoy it inside a squishy bilog milk bun.
Tomato soup with Campari ice-cream at Sketch, Mayfair
At the three-Michelin-starred restaurant at Sketch, The Lecture Room & Library, chefs Pierre Gagnaire and Daniel Stucki are constantly dreaming up new savoury ice-creams as part of their tasting menus. Previously known to have served mustard and nasturtium leaf, now they’re currently dishing up Isle of Wight tomato soup with dollop of burrata and Campari gelato to offer creamy coolness in lieu of traditional cream. Also on the menu? Oyster ice-cream sprinkled with plankton powder and served with cucumber gel.
