Jegimajo!

I have never visited the Philippines, but my cohort in Manila tells me that there is a tradition of walking ice-cream vendors there, too, complete with pushcarts and the tinkling bells recognized by kids the world over.

There aren't any pushcarts at Jegimajo!, but you can sure get a taste of the Philippines there. Gigi Hobson's cute little establishment on East Oltorf carries all kinds of interesting Filipino groceries and gifts, but her pièce de résistance is the snack bar serving coffees, bubble teas, and traditional cold desserts.

In addition to more common flavors of ice cream such as mango, Hobson imports some varieties that could give Ferran Adria a run for his money. Macapuno is made from refreshing green coconut, and buco salad is chewy candied fruit folded into green coconut ice cream. My total favorite is the sweetly unctuous ube made from taro root -- the same starchy vegetable used to make Hawaiian poi, although you can't imagine two more different end products. The flavor of ube ice cream reminds me of nothing so much as cookies-and-cream, and it gets extra style points for its alluring deep-purple color. One of my friends plans to start stocking it at home to complement her décor.

The most exotic ice-cream choice has to be mais y queso (corn and cheese). Yes, it is somewhat sweet, but it is definitely about corn kernels and cheese that, when frozen, create quite an interesting mouth-feel experience. Mais y queso isn't going to supplant my favorite ube, but it's growing on me.

Although not all ice-cream flavors are available at all times, some of the other options at Jegimajo! are jackfruit and avocado. You can take your ice cream straight (two scoops for a dollar), or order it as part of one of the mixed cold desserts like halo halo, a refreshing combination of shaved ice, tropical fruit, jellies, and ice cream.