The Peninsula doesn't get the ice cream press San Francisco does, but it should. Between Burlingame and Mountain View there are nineteen shops we've personally verified — gelaterias run by Italian immigrants, frozen-yogurt counters that have outlasted four decades of food trends, neighborhood scoop spots where the staff knows your kids by name. Here's our single best pick in each Peninsula city, in driving order from north to south.
San Bruno: Sweet Connections Ice Cream. A no-frills neighborhood shop on San Mateo Avenue with hand-dipped scoops, generous sundaes, and the kind of friendly counter service that makes it feel like a small-town parlor a few miles south of SFO. If you're flying in or out, it's a five-minute detour worth taking.
Burlingame: hard to pick just one because four shops live within three blocks on Burlingame Avenue (we wrote a whole guide on that stretch). If forced, we'd say Caffe Stellato for the most authentic gelato — but go hungry and try them all.
San Mateo: Somisomi. The Korean Ah-Boong fish-shaped waffle cone, filled with matcha or black sesame soft serve and a slick of custard, is the most fun you can have eating dessert on the Peninsula. Tucked just off downtown's B Street, it's a date-night surprise.
Belmont: Livin Sweet. Belmont's quiet 6th Avenue has hosted this neighborhood gem since 2017, and locals talk about it the way Bay Area people talk about their best taqueria — protective, slightly secretive, weekly. A 4.8★ rating from real regulars is not an accident.
San Carlos: Gelataio. Authentic Italian gelato made by an Italian-born gelatiere, on a sunny stretch of Laurel Street. Get the pistachio Bronte. Argue with us later.
Redwood City: SF Gelateria. Downtown Redwood City's lively Broadway dining strip is the right setting for a post-Fox-Theatre scoop, and SF Gelateria does a clean, small-batch Italian gelato a half-block from the Courthouse Square fountains.
Menlo Park: Café Borrone. The patio at Borrone has been the unofficial heart of downtown Menlo Park since 1989. Their gelato isn't the entire menu — there's espresso, panini, late hours — but the stracciatella scoop on a warm evening under the patio's string lights is one of the Peninsula's most reliable pleasures.
Palo Alto: Tin Pot Creamery. Founded right here in 2013, Tin Pot's salted butterscotch alone earns it the crown. Small-batch artisan ice cream, handmade waffle cones, vegan coconut options always on the menu. The Town & Country Village location is the original; the Sharon Heights and Los Altos outposts are equally good if those are closer.
Three honorable mentions worth a separate trip: Rick's Ice Cream & Pints of Joy in Palo Alto for old-school generous-portion classics (the shop's been there since 1956, though it now goes by a refreshed name); Yumi Yogurt in Burlingame for a frozen-yogurt recipe unchanged since 1979; and Salt & Straw (Palo Alto) on University Avenue for adventurous monthly flavors that always include vegan picks.
Whatever you pick, the Peninsula's ice cream scene rewards exploration. Most of these shops are family-owned, most have been there for years, and most are within fifteen minutes of each other on El Camino. Go drive El Camino with a hungry teenager and you have a full afternoon.