Pittsburgh, we heard you loud and clear: You were not thrilled that we left out a few of your favorites in our last Ice Cream Wars piece. And honestly, we get it. We’re incredibly lucky to have so many great ice cream options to choose from in and around the city, so we had to treat ourselves to round two — with another big batch of Pittsburgh’s best ice cream (and a few extra scoops along the way). Who emerged victorious this time? It was a tough competition, but … read on to see who rose to the top.

Who Has the Best Ice Cream in Pittsburgh? Part 2

Swissvale Dari Delite

1990 Monongahela Avenue, Swissvale

One of the cutest little spots to get your ice cream fix is Swissvale Dari Delite on Monongahela Avenue in Swissvale. It has been a community staple for decades (with new owners taking over in 2021), and it serves some of the best classic ice cream treats around. Go here for the basics: a vanilla soft serve with sprinkles tastes exactly like summer did when you were a kid. Or, level up with a Swissvale Swirl (with mix-ins ranging from peanut butter cups to chocolate-covered strawberries), or go with a specialty sundae. Their dirt sundae, layered with Oreo cookies and twist soft serve, is especially popular. Their soft serve ice cream is exactly what you want it to be: light, airy and perfectly nostalgic.

Sarris Candies

511 Adams Avenue, Canonsburg

In any form of hard-hitting journalism, it’s best to lay all your cards out on the table. So, I have to admit: Sarris Candies is my hometown ice cream shop. It’s where I went growing up, so I’m probably not the most unbiased person to judge it. But… it’s just so good, folks. The Canonsburg chocolate shop has an attached, old-school ice cream parlour, and their hand-dipped cones, sundaes (always get the hard cap, a pour-over of their signature chocolate sauce that hardens over the ice cream), and giant milkshakes are the kind of treats that keep you coming back. There are usually around two dozen flavors on the menu, from Pralines n’ Cream and Strawberry to French Vanilla and Oregon Peach, and every scoop is dense and velvety. Sarris leaves you with that classic homemade ice cream-shop feel.

Antney’s Ice Cream

1316 Poplar Street

If you’re not a fan of Antney’s Ice Cream in Green Tree, it’s probably because you haven’t been there yet. This beloved seasonal shop makes its ice cream fresh daily, and they’ve created hundreds — literally hundreds — of flavors over the years. That’s what makes every visit so fun: You truly never know what’s going to be in the case, and if you find something you love, you’d better grab it because it might not be there next time. Flavors like Gooey Butter Cake, Lemon Ricotta and Dubai Chocolate sit alongside standards like Cookies & Cream and Vanilla.

I tried the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, and it was incredible — generous ribbons of cookie dough swirled throughout with a silky texture and a base that stayed balanced without being overly sweet. What really sets Antney’s apart is the way they build every flavor from its own custom recipe. Instead of starting with the same vanilla base and adding mix-ins, each flavor gets a specifically tailored ice cream base designed to match whatever they’re creating.

Scoops

Various Locations

We’re lucky enough to have four Scoops locations in Pittsburgh: Mt. Lebanon, Bloomfield, Bellevue and Sewickley. No matter which one you visit, you’re in for a great treat. The original Mt. Lebanon location has been around for more than 25 years, but they all offer incredible ice cream in dozens of flavors, including classics and more adventurous options (such as Bittersweet Sinphony — coffee ice cream with fudge swirls and fudge chunks — Amaretto Cherry and the ever-popular Pittsburgh Pot Holes, made with dark fudge ice cream.

The Salted Caramel Truffle is my favorite, with threads of sweet caramel throughout rich vanilla ice cream and mini caramel cups tucked into every bite. It sounds like it could veer too sweet, but the flavor stays balanced thanks to the smooth, mellow base underneath it all.

Handel’s

9020 St. Simon Way

Handel’s is a small chain that started in 1945 in Ohio, and has since grown to more than 100 locations throughout the United States — including one Pittsburgh spot in McCandless. They’re known for their towering ice cream cones, which defy the laws of gravity: scoop stacked on scoop of some of the best ice cream you’ll ever eat. There’s a depth to Handel’s ice cream that comes from the fact that each batch is still handmade.

Flavors like Cherry Vanilla, Chocolate Pecan, New York-style Cheesecake, and Birthday Cake rotate among the roughly two dozen flavors that are on the board each day. And honestly? I think that Handel’s chocolate ice cream is some of the best I’ve ever had. It’s deeply chocolatey, smooth, creamy and somehow both decadent and straightforward. There’s usually a line, but don’t worry; it moves quickly, and it’s completely worth it.

And the Winner Is…

This one couldn’t have been tougher. I loved every single bite that I took on this journey (and all of the bites I stole from my companions, too), but for me, it came down to variety … and I’m crowning Antney’s Ice Cream to be the champion of Ice Cream Wars Part II. Part of what I love is that you truly never know what you’re going to find there — and that the lineup goes so deep with creative, unexpected flavors. I don’t end up in Green Tree very often, but Antney’s is always worth making a special trip.

Story and Photos by Emily Catalano
Featured Photo From Handel’s

Subscribe to TABLE Magazine’s print edition.