We all scream for ice cream in Wellington

The team behind Zelati used to make bespoke gelato flavours for top restaurants across Wellington. Such was their success, that they opened a dessert café on Left Bank. Using only premium ingredients, Zelati pasteurise, age, infuse and churn each batch of its gelato from scratch. Premium fresh ingredients like milk, cream, and fresh fruit are always featured.

As well as ice cream and sorbet by the scoop, Zelati offers a menu of fun desserts. Get your flavours of choice in a sundae, or cookie ice cream sandwich. There are also brownies and waffles, all as fun to look at as they are to eat.

With locations around the city, you’re never far from a scoop of Kaffee Eis gelato in Wellington. Since first opening a small ice cream shop in 2004, Kaffee Eis has built a reputation for quality gelato.

In a city that loves ice cream, Kaffee Eis has become a favourite. It creates modern fusions of New Zealand and European gelato flavours. The excellent Mojo espresso coffee is also popular, and great for affogato.

Locally owned and operated, Kaffee Eis reflects the Austrian roots of its founder, Karl Tiefenbacher. ‘Eis’ means ‘ice’ in German, and kaffee, of course, means coffee.

Ice cream is taken to another level at small-batch, big-flavour ice cream parlour Duck Island. 

Step into a pastel pink dream where the ice cream tastes as good as it looks. Duck Island has over 50 flavours on rotation. Choose from creative options like peanut butter cookie dough, lolly cake, and fairy bread. There are also experimental flavours like raspberry coconut and coriander, or smoked almond with toasted marshmallow. If you’ve got special dietary requirements, Duck Island has you covered. Many of its flavours are dairy-free and there are loads of gluten-free options too.

A little café right in the middle of the action. Grizzle in Waitangi Park on the waterfront offers a great refreshment pit stop. There’s plenty on offer to keep you energised but the soft serve ice cream is the biggest drawcard. A decent-sized premium soft-serve comes with all the trimmings — flakes, sherbet, and sprinkles. There’s also Dirty Donuts to accompany your coffee.

Grizzle is surrounded by fun activities to keep everyone in the family happy. There’s a sandpit right outside for the kids, a basketball court for the bigger kids, a gravel pit for pétanque, and a skate park just beyond.  

The Enormous Crocodile company was founded in 1997. It began as a multi-seat bike hire business. It has since added towering ice creams and over-the-top milkshakes into the mix. Croc-shakes have become synonymous with hiring a colourful ‘crocbike’ on a sunny day.

Crocshakes are like no milkshake you’ve ever experienced before. They are not bound by the top of the cup. They expand upwards and outwards, defying gravity with sculptural sweet treats stacked high. Fresh fruit is a standard ingredient during summer months.

A word from the wise: don’t wear your best white t-shirt when you’re planning to take on a Crocshake. You will end up decorated with sprinkles and chocolate sauce yourself.

Overlooking Chaffers Marina between Te Papa and Waitangi Park, Raglan Roast is a busy spot. It’s a great stop-off while you wander the waterfront. Raglan Roast’s other cafes concentrate on coffee but the Herd Street location adds gelato into the mix.

It’s delicious, fresh, made on-site, and is a hit with adults and kids alike. There are plenty of couches inside to lounge about on and tables outside to soak up the sun.

The space is friendly and very relaxed – just like its surfer founders want it. Of all the wonderful gelatos on offer try a scoop of salted caramel or pistachio. Take a seat outside and watch the waterfront life roll by.

Gelissimo Gelato is famous in Wellington for its indulgent frozen treats. Everything is made with the best local ingredients and organic Zany Zeus milk. Gelissimo Gelateria in Odlin’s Plaza has 12 to 16 flavours on offer. Expect to taste flavours like cucumber lime and mint, wild carrot seed and pōhutukawa, or yuzu olive oil. These sit alongside classics like cookies and milk, and mango sorbet. One of the biggest sellers is Fix & Fogg peanut butter, salted caramel, and dark chocolate.