ice cream season roundup
a couple of local scoops and suggestions as school gets out and summer approaches...
attention oakland: the classic, original loard's flagship ice cream parlor, founded in 1950 at 2825 macarthur in the dimond district, just reopened june 1, after a long closure and remodel. expect scoops for now and additional menu items such as sandwiches to come.
in castro valley, loard's castro valley at 3389 village drive, inside the castro village shopping center, has also recently reopened after a five-month refresh, keeping the old-fashioned, nostalgic parlor vibe intact.
also new(ish) this season, walnut creek gained the latest location for local, dairy-free creamery mr. dewie's at 1521 cypress street.
meanwhile, a few reminders and tips for berkeley spots for frozen treats:
along with stellar seasonal cones, iscream on solano avenue and fourth street sells fresh ice cream cakes; lexie's frozen custard at 2010 addison street has a scoop du jour menu that's worth bookmarking; sparkly newcomer roast & toast cafe at 1746 shattuck avenue has an intriguing booza counter; of all places at 1841 solano avenue has pints of oakland small-batch faves bad walter's and curbside creamery in their ice box; and a little milkshake tip, fatapples at 1346 martin luther king, jr. way blends heaping shakes to go with those visits to mr. mopps'. (we hope to do a larger local milkshake roundup soon.)
and while everyone waits patiently for melt me scoop shop to open at 1918 martin luther king, jr. way, remember that menchie's, almare and caravaggio are all nearby, milkbomb might be open (their hours are always tricky and updated on yelp), or you can head to college avenue in berkeley for fresh, organic, small-batch flavors at tara's organic ice cream, and/or eclectic, sassy flavors at humphry slocombe.
lastly, it's worth mentioning that east bay native zendaya has been spotted more than once at berkeley classic yogurt park, because she knows what's good. don't forget the rainbow sprinkles.
got a little scoop? feel free to send to berkeleyeats8888@gmail.com.
june 3, 2025