Chinatown Ice Cream Factory

(212) 608-4170

65 Bayard St (nr. Mott St.)
New York, NY 10013 40.7154 -73.9982

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Neighborhoods: Chinatown, Downtown

chinatownicecreamfactory.com

Hours:

Daily 11am-10pm

Price:

$

Last updated 10.17.11

Category:

Restaurants, Grocery Stores, Ice Cream Parlors

Payment Methods:

Cash

Restaurant Special Features:

Local Favorite, Family-Friendly Dining, Cheap Eats

Editor's Tips

What People Are Saying About Chinatown Ice Cream Factory

Featured Review

Contributor

Contributor

At first glance the Chinatown Ice Cream Factory looks just like your typical parlor. Vanilla? Got it. Chocolate? Check. Rocky road? You know it. The not-immediately-apparent secret that sets it apart, however, is its variety of exotic, Asian-inspired flavors. Flavors like green tea, ginger, lychee, mango, almond cookie and taro make for rare, tasty summer treats.

Editor's Tips

Know Before You Go:
There's no seating at this gem, but what better way to enjoy the sights of Chinatown than with green tea, in a cone?
dessert
90.15000343322754% positive
  1. “The Best ice cream in NYC”
  2. “He loves me and I love ice cream!”
  3. “Great unique ice cream shop in downtown NY, right in Chinatown as the name suggests.”
  4. “For anyone who loves ice cream as much as I do, you must try this place.”
  5. “great ice cream!”
  6. “In all honesty, I love ice cream, and I have tried from many different parlors from all over the city and the selection at CIF dominates all.”
  7. “So its TWO reasons why Chinatown ice cream Factory is the best: flavors AND wonderful people”
  8. “What I mean is the Great Tea ice cream was great but it seemed it was more milky than green teaish.”
  9. “best ice cream ever!”
  10. “love Pistachio and chocolate flavors, and would highly recommend it to anybody and everybody.”
  11. “So to all of you who are planning to order a cake from there, beware of the store's incompetence and the poor customer service.”
  12. “Great walk to get ice cream”
  13. “love coming here because the ice cream is absolutely DELICIOUS.”
  14. “love chocolate ice cream but when I come to the Chinatown ice cream Factory I'm not even tempted.”
  15. “For those a little less adventurous, the cookies and cream is the best I've ever tasted.”
  16. “THE BEST ice cream EVER!”
  17. “dont even like ice cream”
  18. “The best ice cream award to these guys are well deserved!”
  19. “I'll make the trek any day just to get my favorite almond cookie ice cream.”
  20. “love their ice cream, especially the zen butter, which is made of tosted sesame with penut butter.”
  21. “Experiment, have a good time and enjoy great tasting ice cream.”
  22. “great place with yummy ice cream and a great walk to get there.”
  23. “The owner was a great help after he had to tell me he ran out of the ice cream I walked 3 miles for.”
  24. “The service is great and you can really taste the love they put into making their ice cream.”
  25. “the customer service was great, great attitude and ice cream.”
  26. “They have some unique chinese deserts that you won't.”
  27. “was suprised to find that the very friendly workers provided tastes of the ice cream (something free in chinatown?”
  28. “love the ice cream at this place.”
  29. “love the exotic flavors that Chinatown ice cream factory provides.”
  30. “Still damn good ice cream.”
  31. “do not hesitate to assert that Chinatown ice cream Factory has the best ice cream in NYC, and probably in the world.”
  32. “the ice cream is so great.”
  33. “Great ice cream!”
  34. “you would never know that this place served such delicious homemade ice cream!”
  35. “The ice cream is SO GOOD!”
  36. “Despite the reviews from other customers praising it's green tea ice-cream, the experience is quite disappointing.”
  37. “It had great different flavors compared to generic ice cream stores.”
  38. “This place definitely has the best ice cream I have ever tasted and no wonder they won the Citysearch award.”
  39. “best ice cream in nyc”
  40. “My fav flavors are even often sold out by the end of the day, I highly recommend the pistachio and almond cookie.”
  41. “just got engaged and my fiancee got me a beautiful heart shaped cake from the Chinatown ice cream Factory to celebrate.”
  42. “love Chinatown ice cream factory cus I love the Green tea, lychee, and mango flavors.”
  43. “With friendly service and an amazing selection of delicious ice cream, you cannot go wrong with Chinatown ice cream at all.”
  44. “love the ginger ice cream.”
  45. “The best ice cream.”
  46. “Their PISTACHIO ice cream is sooo good!”
  47. “It's only fitting that he get me a cake with my favorite flavors!”
  48. “This place has some amazing flavors of ice cream.”
  49. “hands down the best ice cream ive ever had!”
  50. “The ice cream was absolutely awesome.”
  51. “Another plus is that I know that I am getting a quality prouct because it is a family run business and one member of the family is always there making sure that the quality of their ice cream and service is never less than perfect.”
  52. “The cakes are great too.”
  53. “Other than that, the ice cream is good and is technically cheaper than that ridiculous Haagen-Dazs right around the corner.”
  54. “This is the best ice cream it's always made fresh.”
  55. “So, i used to pass this place, snickering at the fools standing in line, not believing that this place could possibly warrant the rave reviews, particularly since i don't usually like ice cream.”
  56. “The Best ice cream in the world.”
  57. “For good chowing, have some dumplings at Dumpling House on Eldridge St., then pop on over here for dessert.”
  58. “This is my absolute favorite ice cream, ever, I can't get enough of it.”
  59. “Great ice cream for a fair price.”
  60. “love the mango ice cream.”
  61. “The ice cream and the great service are excellent reasons to go to chinatown ice cream factory.”
  62. “They have unique flavors such as almond cake and red bean, which is my favo.”
  63. “Disappointing green tea ice cream”
  64. “Fantastic ice cream!”
  65. “Chinatown ice cream Factory produces some of the best ice cream in New York and has been for quite a while.”
  66. “If you want yummy FRESH & NATURAL ice cream, with interesting flavors such as LICHEE & TARO, it is worth to pay a visit to this tiny store located in the heart of Chinatown.”
drinks
50.0% positive
  1. “My particular favorite is the ginger, but others like the green tea.”
  2. “Disappointing green tea ice cream”
  3. “Despite the reviews from other customers praising it's green tea ice-cream, the experience is quite disappointing.”
  4. “love Chinatown ice cream factory cus I love the Green tea, lychee, and mango flavors.”
food quality
88.88999938964844% positive
  1. “With friendly service and an amazing selection of delicious ice cream, you cannot go wrong with Chinatown ice cream at all.”
  2. “All these flavors are so unique and so tasty.”
  3. “great place with yummy ice cream and a great walk to get there.”
  4. “have to say I had no idea Pistachio could be this tasty!”
  5. “you would never know that this place served such delicious homemade ice cream!”
  6. “This is the best ice cream it's always made fresh.”
  7. “like chinese food very very much and so I naturally wanted to give this place a try.”
  8. “If you want yummy FRESH & NATURAL ice cream, with interesting flavors such as LICHEE & TARO, it is worth to pay a visit to this tiny store located in the heart of Chinatown.”
  9. “i had the lychee: more lychee than the fresh fruit from a grove in calcutta.”
menu variety
100.0% positive
  1. “In all honesty, I love ice cream, and I have tried from many different parlors from all over the city and the selection at CIF dominates all.”
  2. “With friendly service and an amazing selection of delicious ice cream, you cannot go wrong with Chinatown ice cream at all.”
overall
100.0% positive
  1. “great place with yummy ice cream and a great walk to get there.”
  2. “It had great different flavors compared to generic ice cream stores.”
  3. “Their service is good, but be prepared to wait on a long line after dinner time on the weekend, the place is small and people flood in.”
service
92.11000442504883% positive
  1. “The people there are so nice and they recognize us because we are regulars.”
  2. “The service was great as well.”
  3. “The service is great and this spot is always a must when I'm in Chinatown.”
  4. “and the employee there are are really friendly and nice.”
  5. “But overall, the quality is great and the staff is friendly.”
  6. “The kids that work there are always friendly and attentive.”
  7. “even on a busy night the staff was polite and helpful in choosing a flavor.”
  8. “Another plus is that I know that I am getting a quality prouct because it is a family run business and one member of the family is always there making sure that the quality of their ice cream and service is never less than perfect.”
  9. “Their service is good, but be prepared to wait on a long line after dinner time on the weekend, the place is small and people flood in.”
  10. “So to all of you who are planning to order a cake from there, beware of the store's incompetence and the poor customer service.”
  11. “However, the poor customer service left us all feeling extremely unsatisfied and angry.”
  12. “With friendly service and an amazing selection of delicious ice cream, you cannot go wrong with Chinatown ice cream at all.”
  13. “The workers are also extremely friendly,not to mention very good looking.”
  14. “the service was excellent.”
  15. “The ice cream and the great service are excellent reasons to go to chinatown ice cream factory.”
  16. “the customer service was great, great attitude and ice cream.”
  17. “was suprised to find that the very friendly workers provided tastes of the ice cream (something free in chinatown?”
  18. “So its TWO reasons why Chinatown ice cream Factory is the best: flavors AND wonderful people”
  19. “The service is great and you can really taste the love they put into making their ice cream.”
value
100.0% positive
  1. “And the price is good too!”
  2. “Great ice cream for a fair price.”
  3. “For the amount that you spend($2.30), the scoop portions are decent.”
  4. “The chinese fruit flavors are unique and well worth a try.”
  5. “Service has been very helpful, however, the prices have slowly creeped up in the last few years.”
  6. “If you want yummy FRESH & NATURAL ice cream, with interesting flavors such as LICHEE & TARO, it is worth to pay a visit to this tiny store located in the heart of Chinatown.”
wait time
100.0% positive
  1. “Their service is good, but be prepared to wait on a long line after dinner time on the weekend, the place is small and people flood in.”
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/24/11

A must for Ice Cream Junkies everywhere!

by DanDann at Citysearch

Before coming here, I had no idea that such an array of ice cream flavors even existed! China town isn't exactly famous for its ice cream, but after being intensely nagged bout it by my friends, I could not help myself.

Although I felt like an explorer with no map trying to find the place, the trip was well worth it. Since I went through so much trouble finding it, I wanted to experience the most exotic and bizarre flavors I could find; flavors like vanilla and chocolate would not make it on my plate today.

My crave for exotica was not only met, but surpassed by a mile. I asked the clerk what he recommended and he gave me a combination of black sesame with zen butter ice cream.

As soon as I put the small plastic spoon to my mouth, I was instantly delighted. I do not think I had ever eaten anything to quickly before in my life.

Just as I was about to leave, my eye noticed something called Wasabi ice cream. I was taken back because I was puzzled how it would possibly make it on the menu due to the bitter and spicy nature of Wasabi.Nevertheless, I wasn't about to chicken out now; and it was a good thing I didn't.

I don't know how they did it, but they managed to capture the beautiful and invigorating flavor of Wasabi and infuse it with sugar, without any of the bitter kick.

If there's an ice cream anonymous out there, I think after visiting this place, I am definitely going to end up there pretty soon!

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

01/31/11

Best flavorful ice cream

by clairelin at Citysearch

Why don't they have their ice cream sold at local supermarkets? I think their business would triple at least, and I could quench my cravings more easily.

Their ice cream is flavorful, dense, not overly sweet and high quality.

Every bite I have in lychee, black sesame, green tea, pineapple, taro and mango, I could taste the tiny chunks of the real food. Each of them are all distinct flavor and so tasty and addictive.

On my target list: Almond cookie, zen butter and red bean. I am coming!

Hands down the best ice cream in the whole city. Sorry fancy gelato, costing more $$ doesn't mean better taste.

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/09/10

Small store, big flavors

by Evanismo , Citysearch Contributor at Citysearch

Housed in a tiny Chinatown storefront, CICF brings together two greats in American cuisine: ice cream and Chinese food. Though you probably won’t be seeing chicken and broccoli any time soon, such mouth-watering flavors as almond, red bean, ginger, lychee, and green tea are sure to suffice. Ice cream is all about choosing the flavor profile that fits your mood. I went with the new zen butter: like peanut butter, but with a hint of inner peace. My inner peace was slightly shattered by the frantic pace and long line stretching out the door, but this is Chinatown. Still damn good ice cream.

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/24/09

Hard to Find Ice Cream Flavors

by Semera at Citysearch

Ice cream is part of my life. I love eating ice cream. It's my passion and it's my hobby. A perfect day would be if I have an ice cream from Chinatown Ice Cream Factory. I don't know how they do it, but I love all their flavors. It's so good I can't stop myself from eating half gallons!! For real. Like, it's ice cream I've never had before. I will never find another ice cream parlor that will replace CICF in my heart. Some of the tropical flavors are: Almond, Lychee, Mango, Pandan, Durian, Banana, Green Tea, Peach and Coconut. Some of the exotic flavors they have that I couldn't find anywhere else are: Coffee Brandy, Wasabi and Pumpkin Pie.

I still have a lot to go to try all of their flavors. I'm telling you, every trip to this place is worth it because I leave happy and stress-free.

  • Pros: Best Exotic ice cream flavors and ice cream cakes
  • Cons: What are the drawbacks?
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/15/09

BEST ICE CREAM EVER!

by Hon at Citysearch

I've never had so much fun eating ice cream until I had an ice cream from this place. Wow, so incredible. I love the mango ice cream. De-lish! I always order it whenever I'm in the neighborhood. I brought my sister there and she loves it to death! We both are obsessed of the mango ice cream. We love it so much we decided to bring some home in Jersey. My parents loved them so much too! In a way, Chinatown Ice Cream Factory brought my family together.

It's so awesome!!!!!

  • Pros: Most awesome ice cream flavors in New York City
  • Cons: What are the drawbacks?

The Details on Chinatown Ice Cream Factory

Place Categories:

  • best pistachio ice cream
  • great service
  • great place
  • favorite cherry pistachio
  • love lychee
  • never delicious green tea ice cream
  • helpful staff
  • favorite watermelon sorbet
  • like green tea
  • favorite black sesame
  • damn good wonder
  • poor customer service
  • great unique ice cream shop
  • wonderful people
  • like ube
  • extremely friendly workers
  • great quality
  • always friendly kids
  • great cake
  • great attitude
  • best ice cream ever
  • amazing taste
  • best ice cream award
  • favorite chinese fruit flavors
  • nice employee

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