Without friends to meet up with, it’s likely your evening confidants now mostly involve bulk quantities of chocolate peanut butter swirl ice cream. Give your bent spoon a night off, and order some dessert from one of the places on this guide. Alternatively, if you’re here to order a dessert for someone in your life - know that you’re an excellent friend and that there’s pretty much no better way to tell someone you love them without a smooch on the mouth.
THE SPOTS
The best ice cream in the city is made out of a Kensington basement, and the only way to get your hands on a pint is to sign up for their flavor drops and buy something before they sell out. The flavors vary with every drop, but they range from key lime pie to dark chocolate with potato chips - and they’re all incredible.
The Bakeshop on 20th
You can find the Bakeshop’s daily menu on their Instagram. It usually includes brownies, dessert bars, and an assortment of cookies - place an order for pickup by calling them at 215-644-9714 or order for delivery on Uber Eats.
Bassett’s is the oldest ice cream shop in the city, and there’s a reason it’s lasted so long (since 1861 to be exact). They have over 40 super creamy flavors - from the vanilla and chocolate to things like salted caramel pretzel and strawberry cheesecake. Even though you can’t currently stand in line at a crowded Reading Terminal Market to pick it up, you can get it for curbside delivery by ordering here.
You might be used to going to Beiler’s on a Saturday morning for a blueberry fritter or a dozen donuts. But you should also know that they have excellent pies, cookies, and other baked goods as well. Place an order for delivery here.
Café y Chocolate
All you need to know about Cafe Y Chocolate is that they have incredible churros, and you can order them for delivery.
Cry Baby’s pastry chef is making custom cakes for $45, with frosting flavors like blood orange and salted caramel. They’ll also do cupcakes, muffins, and chocolate chip cookies, and will deliver anywhere in the city. Fill up your cart here, and send a cake to your coworker who covered for you when you fell asleep in the middle of the day.
D’Emilios Old World Ice Treats
D’Emilio’s is constantly creating new flavors of water ice, like the tropical “Passyunk Punch,” but has all the standard flavors like mango, pineapple, and lemon. You can also get soft serve, milkshakes, or soft serve on a big Philly pretzel like it’s a cone. To place an order for pickup or delivery, click here.
Essen Bakery
Essen has started up what they’re calling the “Babkamobile.” Order from their menu of things like Jewish apple cake and assorted cookies, and they’ll deliver it anywhere throughout South Philly. If you live elsewhere, you can always pick up your order from their East Passyunk location daily from 9-10am.
Fiore has started making and selling a new gelato flavor every week, with their Instagram followers voting on the flavor. Once there’s a winner, you can place an order here, and pick it up on Sunday. They’re also offering cannolis, cookies and creme bomboloni, and other pastries that you can add to your order as well.
The Franklin Fountain
Franklin Fountain’s ice cream comes in Chinese takeout containers, and that’s only the second-best thing about this spot. They also just make seriously good ice cream, with flavors like Hydrox and cherry butter almond. You can get it for pickup or delivery by clicking here.
Isgro Pastries
If you want to try your hand at making your own dessert, but don’t trust yourself enough not to screw it up, you should order one of Isgro’s take-home cannoli kits. They come with enough shells and cream for six cannolis, cost $30, and are available for pickup here.
Oui
Oui is open for takeout and delivery, with a rotating menu of pies, pastries, and cookies. To place an order for pickup, call them at 215-922-1269, or for delivery click here.
Your number one reason to order from Porcos should be their incredible porchetta sandwiches. But a close second is something from their bakery - they sell things like cheesecake bars, bread pudding, and black and white cookies. Place your order for delivery here.
Scoop Deville
Scoop Deville’s new delivery menu includes the option to make your own at-home sundae bar. All you need to do is head here, choose your ice cream flavors and toppings like toasted coconut and hot fudge, and then set it up on your kitchen counter and pretend you’re at a six-year-old’s birthday party.
Somerset Splits
You can get ice cream, sundaes, mochi, and other frozen desserts for pickup from Somerset Splits by calling them ahead of time at 267-905-7778. Their menu is posted daily on Instagram, and on the weekend, they have specials like banana splits and chocolate chip cookie sandwiches.
If you’ve ever had a grilled cheese and wondered what it would taste like if you poured a bunch of maple syrup over it, then you probably want to place an order for Suraya’s kanafeh kit for two. It’s sweet and salty at the same time, and even though the grilled cheese analogy is doing an injustice to how great this dessert is, it’s the best possible comparison we can think up. Find out for yourself how delicious the kanafeh is by ordering one (or a few) here.
Sweet Box Cupcakes & Bake Shop
Sweet Box in Center City is known for “The Jawn,” which is a cookie dough bar layered with birthday cake and cake batter buttercream. It’s monstrous, insanely rich, and will probably put you in a sugar coma for a few hours. But if you have a friend celebrating a birthday in quarantine, it’s exactly what you should be sending them. Place an order for delivery here.