Listen to this articleA New York City-born ice cream brand opened its first Long Island scoop shop on Thursday.
Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, which got its start with a yellow scoop truck on the streets of New York City in 2008, is making its Long Island debut with a 750-square-foot store at Roosevelt Field in Garden City. The new scoop shop can be found on the mall’s second floor near the center elevator.
Van Leeuwen features French-style ice cream that’s made with double the amount of egg yolks than traditional ice cream, the company says. The brand, which offers more than 30 signature flavors, is also known for its vegan ice cream and unique collaborations like Hidden Valley Ranch and Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. Van Leeuwen’s other ice cream flavors include Honeycomb, Pistachio, Marionberry Cheesecake, Praline Butter Cake and Earl Grey Tea.
Among its many accolades, Van Leeuwen’s Vanilla Bean was named best vanilla ice cream by The New York Times’ Wirecutter. Its shops also offer sundaes, waffle cones, ice cream sandwiches, root beer floats, milkshakes and pints to go.
Brooklyn-based Van Leeuwen, founded by Ben Van Leeuwen, Pete Van Leeuwen and Laura O’Neill, now has more than 50 stores in New York, California, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Texas. The brand also recently opened its first international scoop shop in Singapore. Pints, ice cream bars and ice cream sandwiches are available in grocery stores across the country, including Stop & Shop and Whole Foods, and can be ordered for nationwide shipping from the company’s website.