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…Because you can get durian flavored ice cream: Chinatown Ice Cream Factory

New York is a fast town, where things come and go almost immediately. And despite the fact that NYC is also a food town, that’s as true of restaurants as anything else. Fortunately, some places are so good, so beloved, that they’re able to stick around for decades, transforming from simple food purveyors into community institutions. And Chinatown Ice Cream Factory is just such a place, serving that neighborhood for more than three decades. Chinatown Ice Cream Factor has also been a pioneer, helping introduce unique ice cream flavors like durian, taro, and sesame to a wide audience, turning them from lesser-known curiosities to iconic desert staples. With that legacy in mind, O.N.S jumped at the recent opportunity to visit Chinatown Ice Cream factory for a bright purple scoop of taro ice cream cone and a chat with co-owner Christina Seid.

Worker at China Town ice Cream Factory wearing a shirt from ONS Clothing

How long has Chinatown Ice Cream factory been around?

Over 40 years.

What are your most popular flavors?

Lychee, green tea , mango, and sesame.

How do you decide when to swap out an ice cream flavor?

Based on demand.

How often do you create an entirely new flavor?

All the time!

Chinatown Ice Cream factory is such a downtown favorite that people really feel connected to. What is about the shop that makes people so dedicated to it?

In New York, there are few places people can feel connected to since shops come and close so quickly. Chinatown Ice Cream Factory is not an Instagram fad. It’s an authentic neighborhood business.

For more on Chinatown Ice Cream Factory, check out its Instagram here.

If you liked this story, check out more in our Urban Transplants issue.


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