00:00We found the best ice cream in L.A. after tasting the top independent ice cream makers at food festival
00:06Smorgasburg's Ice Cream Alley.
00:09I sampled ice cream as well as frozen yogurt and gelato from seven different vendors.
00:14For simplicity's sake, we'll lump them all under the category of ice cream.
00:19These frozen desserts have been my favorite food since I was 18, and my sweet tooth is not easily impressed.
00:26I'm looking for thick, creamy texture and authentic, complex flavor.
00:31In third place was Bernie's Italian Ice.
00:34Bernie's ice texture is so fine and smooth, with the slightest hint of crunch.
00:40The passion fruit flavor tasted really authentic.
00:43On the sole metric of refreshingness on a sweltering hot day, Bernie's Italian Ice takes the cake.
00:50The runner-up was Inamorata Gelato, which wowed me with their frozen yogurt gelato drizzled with olive oil.
00:56And flaky sea salt, so thick and creamy, while simultaneously tart and refreshing.
01:02The olive oil and sea salt add a very unique, savory contrast.
01:06Pleasure is productive enough.
01:08I think we live in a world where everything has to be justified, even every bite.
01:13But with gelato, it's just enjoying the simple moments, enjoying that slow life.
01:17You're just eating because you're with someone you love, because the sun is out, and that's productive enough.
01:22And finally, the overall winner was Swirly's Ice Cream and Frozen Yogurt.
01:27They first captivated me with their banana ice cream with caramel and marzipan crumbs.
01:32Swirly's Ice Cream achieves the subtle, complex flavor notes of real banana,
01:37because it's made with real bananas and vanilla ice cream.
01:40And somehow their machine makes the final concoction ultra-thick and creamy.
01:45Swirly's founder, Yardley Vergara, then said I had to try their signature frozen yogurt,
01:50made only with real fruit and yogurt, no added sugar.
01:54I had just eaten seven different ice creams and felt like the last thing I wanted was another ice cream.
02:00But I wolfed down Swirly's strawberry and peach frozen yogurt and probably could have eaten two more.
02:06Swirly's launched in LA in Highland Park, where Vergara was born and raised.
02:11He brought over the concept of his wife, Bianca's frozen yogurt shop in Jalisco, Mexico.
02:17My wife and I said, you know what? Highland Park is missing the Latino culture that it was removed years
02:21ago.
02:22Our frozen yogurt is family recipe. Everything's homemade. Everything's made with love.
02:26So my wife had the idea. I just put it together.
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