Highest-rated ice cream shops in Richmond by diners

Nothing makes people quite as happy as a trip to the ice cream shop. Thankfully, there are endless options offering enough goods to tantalize anyone's palate. Across the U.S., nearly 17,800 ice cream shops serve up tasty treats to satisfy Americans' cravings.

While most of us would agree that there's no such thing as bad ice cream, there are still elements that keep customers coming back to one ice cream shop over another. A sense of newness and surprise are two big draws. Shop owners aim to please by using quality ingredients to experiment with new mashups—consider the rising trend of ice cream combined with pie. Some put unique spins on global treats, like Japanese mochi and Italian gelato. Others create giant Instagram-ready concoctions that become the highlight of social media.

Consumers have learned that smaller scoop shops may be more adaptive to real-time reactions, which means embracing new concepts, such as delicious dairy-free options. They can also ditch chemicals and give plant-based food coloring a try to see how it resonates with their customers.

But where artisanal shops really shine is in their ability to push the envelope to create amazing new flavors and limited-edition offerings that have customers eager to not miss out on what's next.

Seasonal ice creams feature fresh ingredients and flavors that evoke a particular time of year. Partnerships with local businesses can result in crave-able combinations highlighting local specialties. Many local shops also dabble with exotic flavors—savory ice cream, anyone?

To find out who's scooping up the best options, Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated ice cream shops in the Richmond area using data from Yelp. Data is as of June 24, 2025.

Businesses were selected using Yelp's ranking system, which calculates an adjusted rating value that takes into account the number of ratings as well as the rating score itself. Only businesses with at least 20 reviews and within a 10-kilometer radius of Richmond were considered. Also, in an effort to highlight independent businesses and local chains, those with more than 10 locations nationally, based on our Yelp data, were not included.

1 / 29

#29. Sweet Spot Ice Cream Cafe

- Rating: 4.1/5 (77 reviews)
- Address: 6 North 18th St. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Desserts, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Coffee & Tea
- Read more on Yelp

2 / 29

#28. Crossroads Coffee & Ice Cream

- Rating: 4.1/5 (172 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3600 Forest Hill Ave. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Coffee & Tea, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Breakfast & Brunch
- Read more on Yelp

3 / 29

#27. One Way Cream & Goodies

- Rating: 4.3/5 (24 reviews)
- Address: 407 North 1st St. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

4 / 29

#26. Blue Cow Ice Cream

- Rating: 4.3/5 (25 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 7029 Three Chopt Road Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

5 / 29

#25. La Michoacana

- Rating: 4.3/5 (69 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 7808 Midlophian Turnpike North Chesterfield, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

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6 / 29

#24. E-LOTERIA

- Rating: 4.3/5 (72 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 9022 West Broad St. RICHMOND, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Mexican
- Read more on Yelp

7 / 29

#23. Ray's Italian Water Ice and Custard

- Rating: 4.3/5 (70 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 2416 Old Brick Road Glen Allen, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

8 / 29

#22. NarWhals Rolled Ice Cream

- Rating: 4.4/5 (95 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3313 West Cary St. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

9 / 29

#21. Gelati Celesti

- Rating: 4.4/5 (28 reviews)
- Address: 5808 Grove Avenue Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Desserts, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

10 / 29

#20. Sno To Go

- Rating: 4.5/5 (134 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 2229 Richmond Road Williamsburg, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Shaved Ice, Food Trucks
- Read more on Yelp

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11 / 29

#19. Soul-Ice

- Rating: 4.5/5 (30 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1011 Hull St. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Food Stands, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Tacos
- Read more on Yelp

12 / 29

#18. Dalia's Ice Cream & Bakery

- Rating: 4.5/5 (46 reviews)
- Address: 7310 Staples Mill Road Henrico, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

13 / 29

#17. The Treat Shop RVA

- Rating: 4.5/5 (177 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 6114 Jahnke Road Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Bakeries, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Burgers
- Read more on Yelp

14 / 29

#16. Deluca Gelato

- Rating: 4.5/5 (170 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1362 Gaskins Road Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Gelato
- Read more on Yelp

15 / 29

#15. Vampire Penguin - Twin Hickory

- Rating: 4.5/5 (69 reviews)
- Address: 11345 Nuckols Road Glen Allen, Virginia
- Categories: Shaved Snow, Desserts, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

16 / 29

#14. Smallcakes

- Rating: 4.5/5 (128 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 11516 Busy St. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Desserts, Cupcakes, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

17 / 29

#13. Gelati Celesti

- Rating: 4.5/5 (208 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1400 North Arthur Ashe Boulevard Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Desserts, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

18 / 29

#12. Scoop

- Rating: 4.6/5 (269 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 403 Strawberry St. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Bakeries, Coffee & Tea
- Read more on Yelp

19 / 29

#11. Ruby Scoops

- Rating: 4.6/5 (111 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 120 West Brookland Park Blvd. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Desserts
- Read more on Yelp

20 / 29

#10. Gelati Celesti

- Rating: 4.6/5 (26 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 9357 Atlee Road Suite 1105 Mechanicsville, Virginia
- Categories: Desserts, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

21 / 29

#9. Gigi Tea Time

- Rating: 4.6/5 (170 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1355 West Broad St. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Bubble Tea, Juice Bars & Smoothies, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

22 / 29

#8. Gelati Celesti

- Rating: 4.7/5 (236 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 8906 A West Broad St. Gold's Gym Plaza Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Desserts
- Read more on Yelp

23 / 29

#7. Spotty Dog Ice Cream

- Rating: 4.7/5 (58 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 2416 Jefferson Ave. Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

24 / 29

#6. jiji frozen custard

- Rating: 4.7/5 (28 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Food Trucks, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp

25 / 29

#5. Gelati Celesti

- Rating: 4.7/5 (137 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 11805-5 West Broad St. Henrico, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Desserts
- Read more on Yelp

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26 / 29

#4. Gelati Celesti

- Rating: 4.7/5 (95 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3004 Stony Point Road Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Desserts
- Read more on Yelp

27 / 29

#3. The Big Scoop

- Rating: 4.9/5 (20 reviews)
- Address: 200 Towne Center West Blvd. Ste 601 Henrico, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Hot Dogs, Shaved Ice
- Read more on Yelp

28 / 29

#2. Red Rooster Country Store

- Rating: 4.9/5 (40 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 9582 Chamberlayne Road Mechanicsville, Virginia
- Categories: Delis, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Grocery
- Read more on Yelp

29 / 29

#1. Bubs And Gracie's Ice Cream And Cookies

- Rating: 4.9/5 (36 reviews)
- Address: 7214 Hull St. Road Richmond, Virginia
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Desserts
- Read more on Yelp