Eat Ice Cream Because Pride
Brought to you by American Express

Eat Ice Cream Because Pride

Story by Alex Blynn / Illustrations by Neasden Control Centre

Pride season tends to be hot, and not just from all the body heat created by the dancing gogo boys and girls. Mid-summer temperatures soar up into the 80s or higher, making all that marching and twirling and skipping and sashaying quite the sweaty experience. How to cool down? Easy, ice cream. But for Pride, just any old ice cream won't do... it has to be gay ice cream! So we've teamed up with American Express to chose our three favorite queer ice cream makers to get your chill on with this Pride season!

Coolhaus

In 2009, life partners Natasha Case and Freya Estreller rented a beat up ice cream truck and drove to a music festival to launch Coolhaus. Their incredible blend of organic ice cream with homestyle cookies for their "cool house" sandwiches instantly became a hit, and now, the company distributes to more than 7,500 groceries and organic shops across the country. Often acknowledged as one of LA's ice cream trailblazers, Coolhaus ice cream sandwiches are a no brainer for Pride-on-the-go.

Lick

Created in 2011 in Austin, TX by significant others Anthony Sobotik and Chad Palmatier, Lick Honest Ice Creams was founded with the aim to offer "honest ice creams" to savvy palates in Austin. Honesty and integrity is part of Lick's DNA, which is why their ice cream is never made using artificial colors or flavors, or high fructose corn syrup or preservatives, and they can trace every ingredient back to its original, local source. Lick is an artisanal ice cream maker worthy of your taste buds this Pride.

Big Gay Ice Cream

Their name says it all. In 2009, New York-based entrepreneurs and partners Doug Quint and Bryan Petroff began Big Gay Ice Cream out of a "Big Gay Ice Cream Truck," and have expanded to three beautiful shops in Manhattan and one in Philadelphia. Featuring ultra premium mixes with flavors like Birfdae Cëk (yellow cake batter ice cream with chocolate frosting and sprinkles) and Spicy Choco-Lit (chocolate ice cream with a swirl of spicy chocolate sauce and red hot cinnamon candies), a trip to Big Gay Ice Cream is always an adventure for your taste buds.

American Express proudly backs the Shop Small® Movement, which is dedicated to supporting small businesses around the world. Wherever your Shop Small journey takes you, we invite you to discover local small businesses that provide a beacon of hope and acceptance in your community. Find more American Express-accepting small businesses in your local area by visiting shopsmall.com. Want more Pride inspo? See more here.

Illustrations: Neasden Control Centre