Head to Underground Creamery in the Heights, and you’ll likely get a glimpse through its pick-up window of founder Josh Deleon at work, but don’t expect him to stop what he’s doing. Later, there’ll be a line of antsy customers snaking the sidewalk outside, and they’ll only want one thing — ice cream.
“They can see me clearly, but I’m going to keep working,” he says. “I don’t mean to be a dick, but I’m trying to make as much ice cream as I can.”
The self-taught ice cream maker has been whipping together unique flavors since his pop-up days in 2020, garnering long lines and intrigue comparable to exclusive clothing drops a la streetwear brands like Supreme. His sought-after, catch-’em-if-you-can flavors include sorbets and cobblers that incorporate fruit and crumble or graham cracker crunch, like his basil-infused ice cream with cinnamon blueberry compote and honey corn streusel. He also offers other deeper, richer flavors, like the decadent CCCs (or three Cs, most often a combination of chocolate, caramel, and cookies) — an Oreo ice cream swirled with salted caramel — or his chocolatey limited edition, Turtle Power, which is loaded with salted pecans.
