Mochi Ice Cream And 8 Other Crazy Ice Cream Trends You Need to Know About

May 16, 2017

Trend Alert!

When we’re not whipping up new flavors and trying to make the world a better place, we like to keep on top of the world’s coolest ice cream trends. And you won’t believe what we’ve been seeing lately. Seriously, there are some wild things happening with our favorite chilly treat.

We’ve gathered up the craziest, tastiest, and most inspired trends taking over ice cream shops and Instagram feeds alike. You have to see these to believe ‘em!

Item number 1
Mochi Ice Cream

These colorful treats hail from Japan, and anyone who’s tried them is sure glad they made the trip to the US. They’re balls of ice cream — usually strawberry, vanilla, or green tea flavored — wrapped in mochi, a sweet rice paste. Ice cream that doesn’t even need a spoon? We’re in!
Item number 2
Cereal Milk Ice Cream

If you’ve been paying attention, you know that we’re pretty pumped about this one. As soon as we heard about cereal milk ice cream, we got right to work concocting our Cereal Splashback flavors, based on all your favorites from childhood. What is it, you ask? It’s an ice cream-ified version of that sweet, sweet milk at the bottom of your cereal bowl. And it’s aaah-mazing.
Item number 3
Alcoholic Ice Cream

A post shared by Dawid (David) Wiacek (@itakemanyphotos) on Apr 24, 2017 at 12:09pm PDT

Ice cream shop? Bar? Why choose! From wine sorbets to cocktail and beer ice cream flavors, this trend has something for everybody (except the under-21 set, that is). This booze packs a real punch — unlike our own Urban Bourbon flavor, which uses real bourbon, but would take a bellyache’s worth to give you even a hint of a buzz.
Item number 4
Crazy Ice Cream Sandwiches

A post shared by Brenda (@mightyvanilla) on May 7, 2017 at 8:43pm PDT

Seen any especially crazy ice cream sandwiches lately? You probably have, because they are so on-trend right now. We’ve seen ice cream sandwiches made from macarons, cupcakes, donuts, croissants, churros, even foie gras. We’ve even taken a stab at getting in on the action ourselves — bacon and Ben & Jerry’s, anyone?
Item number 5
Rolled Ice Cream

This trend rolled right out of Thailand and into the hearts of ice cream lovers the world over. They pour liquid ice cream and all your mix-ins onto a chilled metal surface and chop the mix-ins into the liquid. Once it’s blended and chilled, they scrape it into rolls and serve it up. If that’s not clever, we don’t know what is.
Item number 6
Over-The-Top Sundaes

A post shared by Charis Anwyn (@miss_anwyn) on May 4, 2017 at 1:02pm PDT

We have to assume it’s their ultimate Instagram-ability that has pushed these wild sundaes to the top of the trends lists. Whether they’re covered in candy and toppings, garnished with literal gold, or just really, really big, over-the-top sundaes are taking over.
Item number 7
Creatives Cones

A post shared by Jenny (@jennyp1190) on Apr 29, 2017 at 11:48am PDT

Sure, you can always count on your local Scoop Shop for a top-notch waffle cone or even a waffle cone dipped in chocolate and sprinkles, but you’ll have to travel a little further for a donut cone or a fish-shaped cone if you want to bite into this trend.
Item number 8
Savory Flavors

A post shared by Laura (@laurencijabar) on Apr 26, 2017 at 1:46am PDT

Ice cream’s supposed to be sweet, right? Wouldn’t making a non-sweet ice cream go against the very rules of the dessert universe? Apparently not, according to this trend. Flavors like garlic, rosemary, cheddar cheese, sriracha, and buttered popcorn are popping up everywhere. Consider us bewildered.
Item number 9
Cute, Cute, & More Cute

A post shared by Aliyaah Lahmine 🎀💍🇲🇦❤️ (@aliyaah_lahmine_) on Feb 20, 2017 at 11:30am PST

We know how it goes — you hit up a trendy new ice cream shop with your squad and the first thing you do with your cone is snap a pic for social media. (Don’t worry, we do it, too.) Shops are catching on and making the cutest cones they can to please patrons’ followers. From elephants to cats to chickens and flowers, these cones are almost too cute to eat (almost).