Remember those root beer floats you used to love as an 8-year-old? Now imagine the buzz you’d get if the “beer” were actually creamy stout.
Dream no longer. Pastry chefs all over the city are reinterpreting the summer’s go-to cool-down cocktail.
“Floats are always awesome for the summer,” points out New York Central’s executive pastry chef, Katzie Guy-Hamilton.
Here are five seasonal temptations to kick off your summer.
PHOTOS: NYC’S BEST ICE CREAM FLOATS
Beer float at Jacob’s Pickles, $12
509 Amsterdam Ave.
“The carbonation of the Keegan Mother’s Milk resembles the bubbly, effervescent feel you get from root beer or Coke,” explains Jacob Hadjigeorgis, the owner of Jacob’s Pickles. Domestic stout has a nice chocolatey, malty flavor, which pairs perfectly with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for a rich and creamy treat.
Cherry cheesecake float at Lexington Brass, $9
517 Lexington Ave.
You’ll rely more on a spoon than a straw for pastry chef Thiago Silva’s float at Midtown’s Lexington Brass. Chunks of cheesecake, complete with graham-cracker crust, are stacked in a parfait glass with vanilla ice cream and all manner of berries — raspberries, strawberries, blueberries — and then doused with bubbly Cheerwine cherry soda.
Espresso stout float at the Palace Gate, $14
At the New York Palace Hotel, 455 Madison Ave.
Pastry chef David Carmichael has created the ultimate float of excess for the chichi New York Palace Hotel’s outdoor courtyard. Three scoops of cinnamon gelato mix with crunchy bits of chocolate-covered graham crackers, white chocolate hazelnut meringue cookies, plus tiny cubes of espresso gelée, not to mention shards of milk chocolate that are embedded with Pop Rocks. All that’s before the stout beer gets poured in tableside — a true pool of decadence.
Tamarind float at Coppelia, $4.95
207 W. 14th St.
Super-sweet Jarritos, a Mexican soda, collides with super-tart tamarind ice cream at the cheery West Village Cuban diner Coppelia.
The result? A one-two punch that’s mellowed just slightly with a touch of whipped cream.
Peaches and Cream “Floats Away” at New York Central, $10
At the Grand Hyatt, 109 42nd St.
New Jersey peaches were the inspiration for this fruity beauty at New York Central, where executive pastry chef Katzie Guy-Hamilton has created a float of homemade cream soda, peach gelato and a honey
ginger syrup that’s topped with a refreshing, crunchy champagne granita. “It’s peachy, it’s creamy, it’s fun and it’s worthy of being a dessert,” she says.