Ice cream, gelato and desserts in Laguna Beach

Gelato and ice cream

The frozen-dessert shops on this page split into two groups. The two gelato shops sit in the Village. Dolce Gelato is at 247 Broadway Street. Its site calls it a family-owned shop steps from the sea and lists gelato, sorbet and almond milk gelato, with a themed set of flavors each month. Gelato Paradiso is at 448 S Coast Hwy, Suite A, in Peppertree Lane. Its company site says it makes 30 or more gelato and sorbetto flavors.

South Swell Ice Cream is the third frozen stop and sits farther south, at 1330 S Coast Hwy in the HIP District. Its menu works like an order form. You pick a base, either an ice cream bar, a frozen banana, a coconut milk bar or soft serve, and then pick a combination of toppings.

Chocolate and candy

La Rue du Chocolat shares the 448 S Coast Hwy address with Gelato Paradiso, in Suite B on Peppertree Lane. Its site lists homemade chocolates and seasonal and custom chocolates and candies, and says the shop has been on Peppertree Lane since the 1950s. The Candy Baron is on Forest Avenue at number 231. Its site sorts its stock into taffy, licorice, sours, gummies, old-fashioned classics, sugar-free candy and novelties. The shop has a second store at Pier 39 in San Francisco.

Desserts on restaurant menus

Two restaurants post dessert menus on their own sites. South of Nick’s, at 540 S Coast Hwy, lists a churro sundae, a warm butter cake and a vanilla flan on a separate dessert menu. Broadway by Amar Santana, at 328 Glenneyre Street, has a dessert section that includes a brown butter banana tart and a bourbon vanilla bean panna cotta, along with a lemon goat cheese mousse with honeycomb and a brown butter rum cake. Menus change, so treat these as examples and check the current menu.

Dietary notes

Gelato Paradiso’s FAQ says its sorbettos contain no dairy or eggs and are naturally vegan-friendly and gluten-free. It adds that some gelato flavors contain mix-ins such as cookies or cheesecake pieces, and that staff are trained to help identify gluten-free options. Dolce Gelato lists an almond milk menu and South Swell a coconut milk bar. These are the shops’ own statements. If you have an allergy, ask at the counter, since flavors and mix-ins change.

Getting there

Six of the seven are in the Village, near Main Beach and the Forest Avenue shops. Park in a city lot and walk, or take the trolley; see the parking guide and the getting around guide. The art walk route passes through the same blocks, and the coffee and bakeries page covers pastries and espresso.