You Should Be Eating This Right Now: Magpies Softserve.

What: Scratch-made soft serve ice cream and toppings.

Where: Magpies Softserve (2660 Griffith Park, Blvd, Silverlake).

When: Tues-Thurs, 11am-9pm; Fri-Sat, 11am-10pm; Sun, 11am-9pm; Closed Mon.

Why: Over the past few years LA has undergone an ice cream renaissance. However, amidst the hoopla I realized there has been a total lack of nouveau soft serve options. You know, that classic you crave on a relentlessly warm, long SoCal summer's day and eve. Sure, Sweet Rose's Santa Monica location offers two swirl options a month, but that was really it. Apparently former Westside Tavern chef Warren Schwartz and his wife Rose thought likewise because they just opened a silly good soft-serve only spot in Silverlake. All the ice cream is made in house, from scratch. And the flavors vary from Sweet Cream to Strawberry Rhubarb to Green Tea Brown Rice to Blueberry Cobbler. In the above picture you're looking at Malted Milk Chocolate and Sweet Corn Almond. Both incredibly tasty, hefty and fresh. And although I would never have guessed, the Sweet Corn Almond is dairy-free (along with at least one other offering a day, btw).

But the real kicker: the toppings are also ALL HOUSE MADE. And they're creative. None of those bullshit, borderline stale, YAWN chain ice creamery toppings here. I went with Hazelnut Wafer and White Chocolate-Drizzled Waffle Cone Bits this time. But definitely have my eye on the Chocolate Covered Honeycomb and Graham Cracker Streusel upon return.