Top 10 Insta Worthy Dessert Places Around USC
Once in a while, you just need a small treat to satisfy your sweet tooth. But why not satisfy your craving and post something aesthetically pleasing for your Instagram feed at the same time? I’d say that it’s a win-win situation! If you’re new to campus or the Los Angeles Area, here are the Top 10 Insta-Worthy Dessert Places Near USC.
1. Somi Somi
Located in Korea Town, Somi Somi is the perfect dessert place to check out after eating KBBQ. The store takes a twist on Taiyaki (japanese fish-shaped bread), making it into an ice cream cone. They serve organic soft serve in four different flavors: Green Tea, True Milk, Banana, and Milk Tea. On top of that, you can choose different toppings such as red bean or Nutella to compliment your sweet treat.
2. California Donuts
California Donuts is an iconic retro-styled bakery in LA. They’re open 24 hours a day so you can stop by if you ever need to treat yourself. If you want something simple, they sell their Classic Donuts ranging from flavors such as Glazed, Chocolate, Lemon Filled, Matcha Green Tea, and Boston Cream. But if you’re feeling a bit fancy, you should check out their Specialty Donuts that the Internet is raving over. Their speciality flavors include, but are not limited to, the Panda, Blueberry Toast Crunch, Luck Charms, and Reeses.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWA6rcFFDmY/?taken-at=217848213
3. Little Damage
Little Damage is an ice cream parlor in Downtown LA, popular for their signature black soft-served ice-cream and black cones that are colored by activated charcoal. Although Little Damage is a small family business, the parlor gives off a very homey and warm vibe. They have unique flavors such as Mother of Dragons, Unicorn Tears, and Salted Covfefe with an array of different toppings.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWmOdL4hYyS/?tagged=littledamage
4. Gongcha
Gongcha means “Royal Tea” in Chinese and is a hot spot for bubble tea in California and Eastern Asia. They freshly brew their tea and pearl every four hours, so you will be guaranteed a high quality drink. Unlike many other bubble tea shops, Gongcha allows you to customize the amount of sugar and ice in your drink, making the experience more enjoyable and personal. Their top drinks include Milk Foam Green Tea, Lemon Wintermelon, Early Grey Milk Tea, and many more. Besides honey boba pearls, they also offer unique toppings like Basil Seeds, Rainbow Jellies, White Pearls, and Pudding.
5. Sul & Beans
Similar to snow cones that are eaten in the United States, Sul & Beans is a Korean Dessert cafe known for their Korean Shaved Ice called “Bingsoo.” To make Bingsoo, they use milk ice flakes to create a soft texture, icecream, condensed milk, and multiple toppings depending on the requested flavor. They have a variety of different Bingsoos such as Original Milk, Green Tea, Coffee, Oreo, Strawberry, Mango, Taro, and Yogurt Berry. The cafe also sells other things such as coffee, Dessert Toast, and Taiyaki.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWUYPvCF8yL/?taken-at=1815402772029944
6. Milk
Milk is a dessert parlor that has ice cream, cookies, and cakes. They’re well known for their famous ice creams and shakes. At their “Make Your Own Sandwich,” you are able to customize your own ice cream sandwich by choosing two freshly baked cookies and with your scoop of ice cream or sorbet. Other things include regular ice cream sandwiches which come with macarons instead of cookies. The shop also has different shakes such as The MILKIE Way Malt, Citrus Vanilla Float, and Banana Peanut Malt. You can also try out their unique cake flavors like “Blue” Velvet, Tres Leches, and 3X Chocolate.
7. SK’s Donuts & Croissant
People call SK’s Donuts & Croissant the “Best Donuts in LA.” The shop has a wide variety of different donut types and flavors, unlike most donut stores. They sell their famous cronuts called “Skronuts” with flavors like Strawberry, Blueberry, Chocolate, Glaze, and Maple Bacon. They also have classic donuts like Original, Glazed with Strawberries, Maple Bar, and Blueberry Crumple, which are known for their moist and chewy texture. If you happen to stop by during lunch hours, you can also try their Turkey, Ham, Tuna, and Veggie sandwiches.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BU15JqtBv2r/?taken-at=264516117
8. HONEYMEE
HONEYMEE takes a unique twist on this popular cold treat as they serve Fresh Californian Milk Ice Cream with Raw Honeycombs. This combination gives the ice cream a very light but naturally sweet taste. Although they’re known for their Honeycombs, the shop offers other flavors like Matcha Affogato, Dear Caramel, and Sweetie. Along with this soft serve ice cream, you can pick up a shake or their freshly baked Belgian waffles as well.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWjBakGjPV0/?tagged=honeymee
9. CottonHi
Located in Korea Town, CottonHi tops their soft serve ice-cream with 100% organic cotton candy. At the ice cream parlor, each customer goes through two steps: Step One is to choose their soft serve flavor and the second is to select their cotton candy type. CottonHi provides the option to make your own or to order a pre-made combination like their Tiramisu, Berry Shortcake, Mango Cheese Delight, and Red Velvet flavors. They also have Strawberry, Lemonade, Salted Caramel, Coffee and Double Mint Chocolate for their cotton candy flavors.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BVC7rW2jrf0/?taken-at=1018985957
10. Snow Monster
Last but certainly not least, you should definitely check out Snow Monster. They’re well known for their customizable macaron ice cream sandwiches which are baked freshly throughout the business day and their brewed teas. Their ice cream flavors include Browned Butter, Colombian Coffee, Horchata, Cookies & Cream, Red Velvet, Taro, Matcha, and Vanilla. They also have refreshing drinks like Honey Milk Tea, Jasmine Milk Tea, Strawberry Lemonade, and Thai Tea. If you wanted to be a little more fancy, you can purchase a Lightbulb Glass to take aesthetic and cute pictures of your drink as well.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWJURMzF8HT/?taken-at=270836010030747
Can you think of any other places to grab dessert around USC!? Comment below!
Feature Image Source: weheartit.com
