Sumac
Ala, 1320 19th St., NW
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This Middle Eastern–inspired ice cream gets its poppy-pink hue from powdered sumac berries and pomegranate molasses.
Candy Cap Mushrooms
The Bazaar by José Andrés, in the Waldorf Astoria, 1100 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
At José Andrés’s modernist playground, sweet mushrooms go into an umami-rich ice cream that’s paired with espresso meringue.
Smoke
Dolci Gelati in Shaw, Alexandria, and Takoma Park
A smoker from Home Depot is fired up for four hours atop a bowl of vanilla-gelato base to create this evocative flavor, available by special order.
Szechuan Peppercorns
Mimi’s Handmade Ice Cream, 1201 S. Joyce St., Arlington
Owner Rollin Amore loves crafting unexpected flavors (think grilled beets or wasabi), and this spicy-salty homage to Sichuan, China, is made with tongue-numbing peppercorns, peanuts, and chili oil.
Balsamic Vinegar
Modena, 1199 H St., NW
By combining basic balsamic with a 12-year-aged varietal, chef Benjamin Lambert adds acidic punch and deep sweetness to an ice cream served with a warm Parmesan cake.
Elote
Vera, 2002 Fenwick St., NE
This Lebanese Mexican newcomer in Ivy City turned to the gelato makers at Dolcezza for a custom-made flavor that blends roasted corn and cinnamon to evoke the popular Mexican street snack.
Uni
Yume Sushi, 2121 N. Westmoreland St., Arlington
You’ve probably never had gelato like this seasonal special laced with briny-sweet Hokkaido sea urchin. It’s paired with tart yuzu ice, caviar, and edible gold.
This article appears in the July 2023 issue of Washingtonian.
Nevin Martell is a parenting, food, and travel writer whose work has appeared in the Washington Post, New York Times, Saveur, Men’s Journal, Fortune, Travel + Leisure, Runner’s World, and many other publications. He is author of eight books, including It’s So Good: 100 Real Food Recipes for Kids, Red Truck Bakery Cookbook: Gold-Standard Recipes from America’s Favorite Rural Bakery, and the small-press smash Looking for Calvin and Hobbes: The Unconventional Story of Bill Watterson and His Revolutionary Comic Strip. When he isn’t working, he loves spending time with his wife and their six-year-old son, who already runs faster than he does.
