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Museum Of Ice Cream Brings Sweet Treats & Selfie Bait To The Meatpacking District
By
Scott Lynch
Published Jul 29, 2016
Modified Jul 29, 2016
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(Scott Lynch/Gothamist)
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By
Scott Lynch
Published Jul 29, 2016
Modified Jul 29, 2016
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Listen, before you get too excited about any of this you should know right away that the Museum of Ice Cream's entire month-long run, in a pop-up at an empty storefront in the Meatpacking District, is completely sold out.
That's ten hours a day, $18 a ticket, totally gone.
Sorry.
There IS today's Free Opening Friday celebration from 11:00 until 3:00, first come first served, so if you didn't jump on a time slot already and absolutely must have a Sprinkle Pool selfie, you should probably leave right now and get on what is likely an epic line.
The Museum of Ice Cream is a museum only in the loosest sense of the word. There's some contemporary ice-cream-themed art on the walls, a bit of history and fun facts here and there, and a gift shop. Most of all this was completely ignored at the preview we attended yesterday.
Instead, museum guests were busy eating ice cream—a different purveyor is handing out "free" scoops every week; first up is Blue Marble—and gleefully succumbing to the institution's primary purpose, which it does exceptionally well: providing backdrops for social media content.
(Scott Lynch/Gothamist)
The Sprinkle Pool, disappointingly filled with tiny plastic beads and not actual food, feels interesting on your feet for a minute or so and will definitely look great in your Snaps and Boomerangs. More real ice cream can be had at the Miracle Berry installation, where they give you one of those tablets that mess with your taste buds, changing sour to sweet, and then you eat a lemon sticking out from a bright pink swirl of soft serve.
Edible helium balloons don't really have much to do with ice cream, but they will make your voice all squeaky just like the regular ones, so that's good for a laugh, plus you get to eat spun sugar. There's a sensually-lit Chocolate Chamber with video walls, moody music, and a burbling fountain in the back, though it's unclear if you're allowed to stick your face in this and drink freely. Photo-ops riding an ice cream sandwich porch swing and a scooper-shaped see-saw complete your visit.
The whole thing's pretty silly, of course, but founders Maryellis Bunn (who wore a killer pair of ice cream shoes to the preview) and Manish Vora have done an excellent job of also making it all pretty fun. If you were excited enough about the concept to buy tickets before it sold out, you will not be disappointed.
The Museum of Ice Cream is located at 100 Gansevoort Street across the street from the Whitney. All tickets for the entire month-long run are sold out.
Tagged
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Scott Lynch
Photojournalist, food writer, preschool receptionist. Love NYC.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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