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July is National Ice Cream Month. To celebrate, we'll be reviewing some of our favorite ice cream spots -- and some new ones, too -- all this week.
That's Guinness tiramisu on the lower left, green tea cheesecake on the upper right. (Photos by Lyle Zimskind/LAist)
They say money can't buy you happiness. We say try Scoops, where it's all yours for less than three dollars in the form of an ample two-flavor "single" cup serving.
We've never seen another ice cream (or maybe it's gelato) shop anywhere else with flavor profiles like the ones they've got here. Many of the daily-rotating dozen or so selections actually combine two primary components, including, on our most recent visit, strawberry / balsamic vinegar, red velvet toffee, yuzu / kool-aid (this one was a revelation), and ricotta tiramisu. From previous stops in, we remember such unlikely ingredients as poppyseed, saffron, basil, avocado, Jim Beam and (believe it or not) Montecristo.
There's even a suggestion board where customers can challenge the management with their own original flavor combination ideas. (Anyone for corned beef and cabbage?)
The one ice cream variety that Scoops offers every day is brown bread, a deliciously crunchy mix we'd pick more often if we didn't always see new exotic selections we fear might not catch again. There are also always several soy-based vegan options available.
The original Scoops is situated just behind Los Angeles Community College in East Hollywood. (A new, second outpost also recently opened in Culver City.) For one of this town's best full-scale meals on the super cheap, start off with a sandwich or empanada combo at the Rincon Chileno Deli right around the corner on Melrose before stepping in here for a jolt of sweet adventure served cold. Your two tabs combined will total less than a ten-spot.
