Matcha Cafe Maiko is a matcha specialty shop that first opened in Hawaii and currently has multiple…read morelocations across multiple states including California (two Los Angeles locations in Monterey Park and Rowland Heights), Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Michigan, New Jersey, and Arizona. For this location, the shop is located inside the Kinokuniya Mall in Japantown in San Francisco. [Parking]: There are two parking garages - The Main Garage (1610 Geary Boulevard) and The Fillmore Annex Garage (1650 Fillmore Street). Parking rate = $5 per hour from 12 PM to 6 PM and $3 per hour outside of those hours. I got lucky and was able to find metered parking spots near the intersection of Buchanan St and Sutter St (free on Sunday). [Atmosphere]: Matcha Cafe Maiko is located on the first level of Kinokuniya Mall. This is mostly a takeout only spot with no indoor tables and limited chairs available. [Menu]: Most visitors come here for the matcha soft-serve ice cream. The shop also offers the Golden Sho-Gun 24K gold soft-serve ice cream. Other items include sundaes, parfaits, lattes, cream foam lattes, and teas. *** Soft Serve Ice Cream (Matcha, Cone - $6.95): Amazing ice cream - creamy and dense with a strong matcha flavor. *** This is a fantastic matcha ice cream shop - two big thumbs up. P.S. - If you are already at the shop, this is also a good opportunity to check out other shops in Kinokuniya Mall and the adjacent Japan Center Malls.

Came here yesterday (Friday) a little before 2pm. There was no line. We ordered on the tablet…read morelocated near the entrance. I ordered a Matcha Cheese Foam. I upsized to a large, got half sugar, and subbed oat milk. The drink was really good. The matcha was strong, which I liked, and the cheese foam added a nice creaminess. Overall, solid matcha.

Matcha/sesame: Great combo of soft serve to end the night…read more Nuttiness of the sesame with the bitterness of matcha. Both are not sweet. Ordering is on the kiosk, comes out in less than 5 minutes. Well lit interior space with 2 staff members working. Utensils are self service. Seating is available across from the store.

I had been looking forward to coming back here for a while, but this recent visit was a total…read moredisappointment. The shop is always packed, but they have completely eliminated customer service by forcing everyone to order through a kiosk. Worse, the soft serve isn't as good as it used to be. The matcha flavor was incredibly weak, and the black sesame was way too grainy, weak and lacked any depth. The biggest issue was a major hygiene and professionalism fail. Despite using order numbers, the employee at the counter ignored them and handed my ice cream to two other customers. When they realized the mistake and said it wasn't theirs, the employee just took the ice cream back and handed it right to me--with zero apology. Passing along food that other people have already handled is completely unhygienic. Japantown has way too many amazing dessert spots to waste your time and money here. I won't be back.

Incredible concept with ice cream and crepes, and to top it off, your food is handed to you looking…read morelike a cute character from one of the shops in Japantown. Delicious desserts served in a uniquely creative way has made this a must-have when we visit San Francisco!

I was stuffed after dinner, but as we all know, dessert goes into a completely different stomach!…read more Another bonus was that there was no line when I arrived, so I quickly decided on the Daifuku Special. It came with a matcha-flavored crepe, matcha ice cream, caramel sauce, and, best of all, daifuku. I opted to skip the bananas since I wasn't really in the mood for fruit with my dessert. I just wish the crepe skin itself was a bit crispier. I requested it but I don't think their method of making the crepe makes it possible. At $12 plus tax it felt like a fun indulgence and a sweet way to end the evening.

This place was absolutely amazing!…read more One of my favorite things about an ice cream shop is having lots of flavors to choose from, and this place definitely delivered. The variety was incredible, and I loved that they let you sample as many flavors as you wanted before making your decision. That made the experience even more fun. I ended up getting two flavors: Roasted Banana and Honey Lavender. The Honey Lavender was the clear winner for me. It had such a unique, delicate flavor and wasn't overly sweet, which is exactly what I enjoy. My husband chose Black Sesame, Berry Sorbet, and Piña Colada. I tried the Black Sesame, and it reminded me of Chinese sesame desserts, which isn't my personal preference. My husband enjoyed it, though. The biggest surprise was the Piña Colada. I usually skip piña colada-flavored desserts because they're often overly sweet, but this one wasn't at all. It had a slightly tangy, almost bittersweet flavor (it actually goes with alcohol). I absolutely loved it. I'll definitely be coming back for that flavor! If you're visiting Dolores Park, this is the perfect stop. Grab an ice cream, walk over to the park, find a nice spot on the grass, and enjoy the beautiful San Francisco views. It's such a great way to spend a warm/hot afternoon. Highly recommend!

Delicious ice cream flavors! I love the banana flavor. It tasted like real banana and not…read moreartificial laffy taffy banana. Black sesame was good but a bit too sweet. Small cup sizes but it's pretty sweet so a small cup was enough. We noticed that they put up an out of order sign on the bathroom door even though it was working fine...

If you're into frozen milk, this certainly is a place to enjoy it!…read moreThe cornucopia of flavors is staggering. I believe they've been around since 1953. I myself have been going in there since 1984. I'm not really into much dairy, a little cheese from time to time and the occasional child's scoop. But as far as ice cream, you scream, there's no place better on the planet. I'm sure! I mean, avocado ice cream? Shut up, hand me a spoon! Take home a large handpacked portion and forgo a small order. You see, a child's cup of coconut is $5.50 but a 1/2 gallon is $15. You see my point? Simply ask for a sample taste of anything you want for free and then run home and share a tub with friends, and family. My wife sent me in there for the DURIAN which to me smells and tastes like gasoline but it's a slice of Nirvana to her! Two heaping bowls, and she's still raving about it! Fuel for her soul. Parking could be very frustrating and it's always busy. There's one of those pull a number things like at a deli to keep the crowd controlled. Make sure to grab one when you walk in the door or you may set yourself back a handful of customers. But if you're getting a tub to go, there's a special line for that, like a quick service register. Maybe grab a box of cones too to save on dirty dishes back at the crib!

What's not to like about this ice cream place; a late dinner, a drive-by for an ice cream, pick up…read moreyour ticket number, wait in line, you get called, you get the ice cream, you leave or sit or stand and enjoy the scoop!! Lots of flavors to choose from. A variety of cones to savor. Pints to buy! Basic ambiance. Order and be out. No chairs inside. Parking is a problem at the back, never enough spots. So have some who can go in to order while you watch the car!

Best ice cream in SF. Bar None. Highly recommend this lovely little super high quality gelato shop…read more I've eaten gelato all over Italy and this place matches the best ice cream in Milan and Florence. Great staff too! Will be taking friends and family here soon!

Philmore Creamery is classic gelato and sorbet done right. I have come by twice already and each…read moretime the flavors I got were fabulous. The line can get long but they move fairly fast. They have a policy where each person can only try three flavors, in the interest of keeping the line moving. The inside is a bit cramped with some seating inside and a refrigerated cabinet with ice cream based treats, as well as a cute spot for "dog parking" by the door. I really like their giant ice cream figurine outside. The first time I visited, I tried their dark chocolate sorbet and mascarpone gelato. This combination was absolutely HEAVENLY. The chocolate was rich and not too sweet, and the mascarpone tasted exactly like a tiramisu. I am always amazed by how they can get chocolate sorbet to taste just as good as chocolate gelato, as there isn't any milk. The second time, I tried their matcha blackberry ice cream and strawberry sorbet. The matcha was smooth and strong, and paired beautifully with the two summer flavors. The strawberry sorbet is limited to only a few weeks and it's so, so good, like summer in a cup!! This is one of my fave spots in the city for classic flavors with perfect execution. I can't wait to try their coffee and pistachio flavors!

Sophie's crepes have interesting combination of flavors. I had a mandarin ice cream crepe here…read morepreviously and it was delicious. I like the fresh fruits and ice cream inside the crispy crepe. Service is efficient and friendly. Located on Webster and Post.

mmmm sophie's …read more... I've been a reoccurring customer at Sophie's -- their crepes are always quite cripsy at the top then soft as you go down -- and overall, delicious. You can't miss Sophie's as it's across Marufuku and makes for a great dessert after a savory meal! You come in, order at the register, and wait briefly until your number is called- which takes typically around five to ten minutes for the crepe to made. They're usually quite quick imo.. I always get the E on the menu, which is an vanilla ice cream crepe with strawberries, chocolate, and whipped cream! Normally, I stick with vanilla but my friend and I decided to try cookies n cream for an extra dollar and wowwwww .... it was honestly heavenly... The strawberries are always very sweet and juicy, and there's always the right amount of filling without causing anything to spill. Inside, there's honestly not too much seating -- there's a couple tables and chairs so you'll have to find seatings outside but Sophie's relatively cozy and cute to visit. Definitely a stop worth making. ^_^

It's never too cold for ice cream. At least it wasn't when we were getting Swensen's!…read more The night before we had driven past and there was a line out the door! Their curb was completely filled with people, so it deterred us from going. But after our dinner, we were seriously craving a sweet treat. They keep the doors open, so you can walk in and the delicious smell of ice cream wafts on to the street. And would you believe--no line! I walked right up to the counter and placed my order! Now, I always love niche flavors and they had plenty of them to choose from! I could've spent time going through and sampling some (which they offer), but I decided on their banana ice cream in a waffle cone. It was spectacular gimme 14 of them. The banana ice cream was creamy and didn't give off that artificial taste that some ice creams tend to have. And the waffle cone was the right move! Highly recommend to get it with whatever ice cream flavor you end up choosing. It was crispy and perfectly sweet! I now understand the line. Definitely a must visit for a sweet treat to end your night!

I've been trying to hit more ice cream spots in the city, so what's better to try than…read moreSwensen's--an absolute classic! I got the Sticky Chewy Chocolate which I really liked! It was very rich (tasted very fudgey) and dense, which is exactly how I like my ice cream. The service was also good and I got to try a couple different flavors since it was my first time. I'll definitely be back at some point!