Big Gay Ice Cream
Ice cream shop · Tribeca ·
Artisanal soft-serve swirls: Salty Pimp, Rose, Fluffernutter
Artisanal soft-serve swirls: Salty Pimp, Rose, Fluffernutter
"New York’s last remaining location of a well-known ice cream brand shuttered on Wednesday, January 29; owner Jeremy Wladis told the West Side Rag that slow winter sales and an uptick in rent caused the closure. Wladis took over the lease and licensed the name from its founders in 2022 and had opened a build-your-own Rainbow Donuts bar inside in 2023 (which is also closed). The brand began in 2009 as a roving West Village food truck and peaked at nine NYC locations." - Nadia Chaudhury
"Big Gay Ice Cream is planned for the mall as an upcoming eatery, but it won’t be open during the initial opening week." - Rachel Vigoda
"On my 2013 visit to the popular soft-serve shop, I was horrified to see an elementary school softball team ordering the Salty Pimp with glee; the dessert — a chocolate-dipped vanilla ice cream cone injected with dulce de leche and salt — in my view glorifies a violent, criminal lifestyle and mocks the misfortune of others. Having served as an assistant district attorney in the Domestic Violence Bureau of the Kings County District Attorney’s Office, I witnessed the real harms of pimping—rape, abuse, violence, intimidation, trafficking, drug use and addiction—and I do not accept the counterargument that the name is merely a silly joke or sex-positive; a dipped soft-serve cone has not empowered anyone. I found Big Gay Ice Cream especially disappointing because the company has otherwise made commendable efforts in the LGBTQIA+ community; after repeated emails and calls (and notice about this op-ed), managing partner Jon Chapski replied in June that they had no bad intentions but no plans to rename the item, though I hope they change their mind as the brand expands into grocery stores across the country." - Theodore Mukamal
"I saw Big Gay Ice Cream listed among the younger LES joints that will serve dishes at the premiere." - Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya
"I find Big Gay Ice Cream authentically queer: it is gay-owned and frequently supports LGBTQ nonprofits, so I consider its entire menu extremely gay." - Adam Moussa