Silky Japanese Soft Serve Ice Cream Is Coming to San Diego

The first ice cream shop in America to use milk and cream from Hokkaido, Japan — a prefecture known for its prized dairy products — has its sights set on San Diego. Indigo Cow launched in 2021 out of the Seattle izakaya run by Keisuke “Kay” Kobayashi, who wanted to recreate the Japanese style of soft serve, aka “soft cream”, that is a specialty of his hometown of Hokkaido.

Sourcing grass-fed milk, cream, and condensed milk from Iwase Farms in Sunagawa, Hokkaido, Kobayashi now operates two soft serve ice cream parlors in the Seattle area and will open Indigo Cow’s first storefront in Los Angeles later this summer.

More locations in Los Angeles, Orange County, and most importantly, San Diego, are also in the cards, although Kobayashi tells Eater that he has yet to start a location search here.

His menu features Hokkaido milk and hojicha (roasted green tea) soft serve swirled into cups or waffle cones with optional toppings and garnishes that include homemade seasonal fruit sauces and shiratama kuromitsu kinako, or mochi balls in black sugar syrup with a dusting of toasted soybean powder.

Indigo Cow’s Seattle shops also offer melon cream soda with a float of soft serve, plus limited edition ice cream flavors like sweet potato brulee, ceremonial matcha, and Hokkaido melon.