NYC Icy

The feature of this NYC Icy I found most shocking was that it was open on a day that lends itself to peddling icy treats, unlike the perennially shuttered BK location. A really friendly girl was generous with the samples, doling out tastes of both their sorbet ($ 2.50, $ 3.50, $ 4.50) & cream ices ($ 3 & up). Any of the sizes accommodates 2 flavors, and I wasn’t thrilled with my honey vanilla or that ice tea samples, so I ended up with a small apricot ginger (nice & tangy) and Greek yogurt (very creamy) for 3 bucks, both flavors superior but non-​orgasmic.
God bless ‘em, but beware the «good ol’ NYC ICY» sign in front of Ralph’s Candy Store up the block. (I’ll spare you the Who references; had I not been to Ralph’s previously or checked the address beforehand, I might’ve been duped. The spot is in fact in the front of a Bad Burger outpost)

There’s not much that can break the weight of a 100 degree, 40% humidity day on Avenue A better than a scoop of Bosc Pear NYC Icy.
Relocated to the empty space next door to Westville East, this little icy stand offers freezing cold treats in creative flavors like pistacchio chocolate chip, cotton candy, apple pie and everything in between. The menu changes daily and they are generous with the free samples so taste, savor and buy a big ol’ cup of the super smooth frozen stuff for roughly $ 5.
I hope they stay at this temporary-​looking spot for the rest of the summer since I don’t think I could deal with another heat wave without NYC Icy in hand.

Awesome!
They get the creaminess texture without milk. It just tastes clean and the flavors make it interesting.
You cannot go wrong by getting an NYC ICY. It’s maintained the same look and character since I my first cup 9 years ago.

Only like 5 blocks from L train (1^st ave stop?), right below St. Marks.
Try any flavor w basil! Lemon especially! It will knock your fkn socks off! Woo!

I wish I had some of that icy right now. It’s like italian ice with a grown-​up gourmet twist!!! love the interesting flavors and the smooth icy texture. My favorites are mango basil, thai ice tea and earl grey! Crème brûlée is pretty awesome too!
For full review and pics, please visit my blog

I wanted to like it but NYC Icy underdelivers. My crème brûlée ginger icy tasted fine, but was served in a flimsy paper cup that quickly became wet and limp. It couldn’t hold the icy, which began to spill over. My hands were wet and sticky before I made it even two blocks away.
With $ 3 per small (read: snack size) icy and a completely bare bones storefront, I don’t think I’m asking for too much when I say plastic cups would have been nice, or at least coated paper ones. If they could keep cones in stock, that would have worked too.
Back to the crème brûlée ginger icy: it was okay but they didn’t have any of the other two flavors I asked for. Wipe them off the chalkboard if you don’t have them in stock (isn’t that the point of having a board? being flexible?), it’s so misleading geez. Ice cream usually makes me smile and look how cranky I sound when I think about NYCIcy.
I think this closed after the summer, is that right? New locations coming up around the city next year (I’m pretty sure I read somewhere).

My friends and I came here after trying Lula’s, and boy am I glad we didn’t mix up the order.
We tried the pear, lemon mint, and earl grey, and all were fantastic. Packed with natural flavor, smooth and light consistency, open until 1AM, ahhhh. The flavors must change pretty often, because another time I came here and the menu was completely different. That time I tried the thai iced tea, mango basil, and mexican cocoa. I love them all, but my favorites are the earl grey, mango basil, and mexican cocoa (spicy and rich, delicious!!!).
You can get two flavors per small, and I think 3 – 4 for medium and large. The icy is more water ice, and the creamy is more ice cream (but still lighter).

Tried the Icies (Pear & Lemon Mint) and a Creamy (Earl Grey) at NYC Icy last night, and was very impressed! All the flavors were delicious and perfect for a 96 degree humid night.
I think a cooler logo for this stand would have been:
NYC-​i-​CYN (Ice’en)
I just like symmetry, haha.
NYC Icy will now be a go-​to spot, glad they’re open until 1am!
We tried Lula’s also, but NYC Icy was better, though it has nowhere to sit.

Do you ever walk down to street a see «vice» that you must avoid and cross the street or try not to look at it?
I crossed the street the other day just to avoid NYC ICY on Ave. A but at the corner of 6^th St. I hesitated for a moment, looked back, saw no line and that did me in. My feet crossed back over Ave. A and carried me straight to NYC ICY.
NYC ICY makes it so easy to get some delicious ice cream and yogurt because there are no doors at the location; just walk up and order. This is bad for me and good for them!
OK, the mind said you just ate so only order the small but my mouth smiled said «medium (for 3 scoops)» and the stomach agreed too.
Today’s indigence was «Apple Pie»; lightly flavored with sizable chunks of apples and crust; yummy and really great after eating spicy noodles! That was probably 300+ tasty calories.
Well, I did walk with to the bus stop on 2^nd Ave. to reduce the guilt.

Mmmmm addicted to their NYC Icy Tea. Tea with a couple scoops of their lemon make for a satisfying Arnold Palmer. OR you can create your own unique icy drink. This totally hits the spot when I am sweating like a pig in the NYC summer heat.
I do agree with Michelle Y. Their flavors do leave a strange taste in your mouth. I try to avoid just getting plain scoops and sticking to the iced tea drink.

I was SO happy to see that NYC Icy is back in business, I had totally missed it. I’ve now been several times and was told they have over 300 flavors. It’s not only a bargain — I find the two scoops in a small more than enough, and sometimes can’t finish that, as delicious as it is. They give you samples and have the icy flavors and the creamy ones — pumpkin pie, even!
I recommend pear, red raspberry, mint chip, oatmeal raisin cookie and cookies and cream, though I’m sure there are other delicious flavors I haven’t tried (like peanut butter chip). The staff is friendly, it’s fast and delicious and the perfect summer treat. The flavors are truly flavorful and change daily (even change within a day as they run out). If you’re in the East Village I highly recommend checking them out. Even when you think you’re full, there is always room for NYC Icy.

This place is around the corner from me so I wish I liked it more.
The flavor choices are awesome and the initial taste is awesome, but I’m super turned off by the aftertaste! There is a saccharine-​y taste that lingers in your mouth. It’s kind of like drinking diet soda or having anything with Sweet & Low… and this I just can’t get over! I’ve tried many flavors in both the icy and the creamy categories and all of them are the same. Wah wah.

What is this bright, shiny new place I see on the corner of Ave A and 7^th St? BF and I wandered over to check it out around midnight tonight. At first I didn’t want anything but then i saw the magic word that would move mountains for me… «LYCHEE»
I got my lychee sorbet in a sugar cone. The two really don’t go together but they’re two of my favorite things separately. Best of both worlds! I was so pleasantly surprised by the Lychee sorbet. It was light, and had bits of Lychee in it! Yum! That’s a winner in my book. BF got the pineapple in a M sized cup, which also had chunks of real pineapple in it. Total for the two together was $ 6, which I guess isn’t so bad when compared to the likes of Ralph’s italian Ices.
I will be back to try other flavors. The «Thai Iced Tea» cream ice piqued my interest… to be continued!

Dear NYC ICY,
I never thought I would feel this way until the other night. I thought I would always love Killer Kiwi from Uncle Louie G’s. But then I came across your kiwi flavor. Holy Kiwi!* Your kiwi is just full of seeds, the taste of real refreshing kiwis and a little creamy too. Something really different from Killer Kiwi.
It’s been a week and I can’t get you out of my head, you are killing me here. Why are you only available sometimes, wish you’re always there. But I guess that’s what makes you so special. I don’t know how to break this to Uncle Louie G’s Killer Kiwi. If it has a heart it might be broken because of me. I’m a terrible person, but for the love of kiwi, I think I shall be forgiven.
Sincerely,
Hopelessly in love with kiwis
*not the name of their kiwi icy

Cheap ($ 2.50) sorbet in this grueling heat? Count me in! The peach and kiwi are really tasty… had a taste of the key lime pie which was fine (too cream based for my liking in this heat). Nice staff, but beware– it’s a pop up shop, so no seating!

It was a hot night out in NYC. I wanted some relief from the heat so I went in search of this vegan ice cream place named Lula’s Sweet Apothecary that I have heard so much about. Walking through the streets, sweat beaded on my forehead, I got to the block where the ice cream shop was supposed to be located.
«Where is Lula’s?» I mumbled «I don’t see it?»
Overhearing me, a tall dark stranger in the shadows of a nearby door silently pointed across the street to a darkened shop with a couple sitting outside happily licking away at their ice cream cone.
«Noooooo!!! It can’t be closed» I thought to myself. Quietly saying my thanks to the stranger in the dark, I walked across the street. Yep. It was the shop alright. I missed the closing time by 5 minutes. Damn it all.
I jealously glanced at the two people enjoying their ice cream while a drop of sweat ran down the side of my face. Sighing, I walked away defeated. I’m melting…
A block away, I passed by this little shop shining bright in the night. A few steps pass it and I stopped. The name of the place registered in my heat muddled mind. There was that magical word that I needed to hear. Ice!!! Ok ok. It actually was the word icy. As in NYC Icy but it’ll do.
I quickly ran back. There were these two customers that were buying and trying out multiple flavors by the counter. Five cups in front of them already and when I got there they asked for a sixth.
«These are amazing» I heard one say to the other. The friend nodded in agreement.
I looked at the selection that they had displayed. They only sell icy here. $ 2.50 for a small. $ 3.50 for a medium. There is also a large but I can’t remember the price (My mind was probably fried from the heat at this point). Not expensive at all for NYC. They have creamy icy and regular icy depending on the flavor. The flavors were not your typical ones either. Mango basil, sweet corn, cotton candy, and lychee were just some of the flavors among many others. Intrigued by creamy icy (never had one that was creamy before) I had the mango flavored one. Damn if it didn’t taste just like fresh mango. As other reviewers have mentioned, the texture was similar to a cross between gelato and a icy. It’s a little softer than a typical icy. It was so good!!!
Out of curiosity I asked for a sample of their lychee flavor. All I could say is I know which flavor I am getting the next time I pass by again.
I walked away enjoying the nice summer breeze, all thoughts of the heat forgotten.

After finishing dinner on St. Marks and Ave A, my friend and I were craving sorbet, so I Unilocaled «gelato» and found NYC Icy.
We sampled the Shazaam — which was pretty good but a bit sweet for what we were looking for — and instead went with the Mango /​Passion Fruit combo (recommended by the boy behind the counter) and it was DELICIOUS!
The consistency is creamier than your regular Italian ices, even the regular icy (there is creamy icy too which is more like gelato /​ice cream) has a ‘gooey’ texture. I will definitely be coming back here on a hot summer afternoon!

The cream ice dribbled down my shirt and a child laughed at me. Sometimes dignity must be sacrificed in the quest for yum.
NYC Icy offer classic and peculiar ices (lemon, candy cotton, purple carrot, mango basil etc) and cream ices (butterscotch, ginger, choco variations). My earl grey tasted like a frozen soft granular cup of bergamont tea with cream and honey — delicious and complex.
I may bounce them up to five star after more visits, but the prices are pretty high — the small size means you’re paying ice cream prices for something with cheaper ingredients.
BYO napkins.

I think this place has been around for a while under other forms — in Brooklyn, on Ave B in the past… but now they have opened what looks to be a pop-​up shop right next to Black Market on Avenue A.
Top marks for their product, which is not gelato, or sorbet, or ice cream, or water ice. Its… a New York City icy, right down to the little paper cup that it comes in. The texture is similar to sorbet, but less watery and finer. Somethiing makes me think that they had a binder of some sort to the ice because it can be kind of tacky/​sticky as well.
Whatever… it tastes good! You won’t find the cherry/​mango/​rainbow icy flavors that are sold everywhere on the streets. Instead, they have interesting fruit/​herb/​spice combos, like the popular Mango Basil (actually a green color which I assume is from actual basil, because the flavor is really intence) and creamy flavors like chocolate and Ricotta chocolate chip.
Price is very fair! $ 2.50 for a small, 50 cents more for the premium flavors. This place looks almost temporary, but I hope they are here to stay in the East Village.

So when I step to Tompkins Square dear,
You better have ice cream to share
NYC ICY ven aqui (yeah)
_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​
This hole in the wall right off Tompkins Square offers enough selection of icy cold cocaine-​like addictions that would confuse a polar bear fiend. Exotic flavors run about 50 cents extra, but for mango basil explosiveness in my mouth, I’ll go set a bag of doody on fire in front of Precinct 9.
Its a must for a cup of ice cream, unfortunately for other types of bells & whistles (floats, sprinkles, cones, napkins, the ability to charge your purchase oh plastic one) — ya gotta head to Lulu’s.
This is the Viva Pops version in NYC. Welcome, we’ve been looking you.