Once you’ve had a legit, vegan ice cream, you’ll never go back to sorbet or some of the funky tasting soy-based ice creams. Thankfully, Eclipse Foods, maker of dairy-like ice cream (that is 100% vegan), has continued its expansion into eateries, now being served for the first time at restaurants and ice cream shops around Los Angeles. 

As of the end of February, Eclipse is now available in LA at the below restaurants/shops in the following flavors: 

  • Honeybee Burger — Chocolate Soft Serve 
  • Wanderlust — Sweet Cream w/Berry Rose Petal Jam flavor (available at all five locations) 
  • Long Beach Creamery — Cashew Fennel Chip flavor and Black Ring Coffee flavor (available at all three locations throughout Southern Calif.) 

Eclipse is also currently in New York City at OddFellows; San Francisco Bay Area’s Mitchell’s Ice Cream, MilkbombAcre Pizza, The Good Scoop; Washington DC’s Ice Cream Jubilee and Equinox Restaurant.

We also got word that Eclipse is going to be available in a larger national ice cream chain next month, so stay tuned for an update coming soon. 

Eclipse is the “first plant-based ice cream that is indistinguishable from dairy,” the company says. With its initial debut in late 2019 at OddFellows in New York City and Humphry Slocombe in San Francisco, it did receive rave reviews in outlets ranging from SF Chronicle to CNN to New York Magazine's Grub Street. In a blind taste test here at The Beet, some unsuspecting dairy lovers thought it was in fact a real-deal dairy ice cream.  

Eclipse's Secret to Dairy-Like Ice Cream

What makes Eclipse different...and so darn good? Instead of relying on just one or two plants, Eclipse uses a unique blend of plants to replicate milk on a molecular level, creating “the first true dairy replacement that tastes, feels, and functions just like conventional dairy,” the company says. The process uses common and sustainable ingredients like corn and cassava to create milk that is indistinguishable from traditional dairy.

With their first product, Eclipse is creating a liquid ice cream base that spins in any type of ice cream machine and makes everything from soft serve to gelato. Since Eclipse milk (and its ice cream base) is made without soy, wheat, nuts, coconut, gums, gels, stabilizers, or GMOs it’s a clean product that is free from all of the aforementioned common allergens. Eclipse does in fact give you the chance to enjoy the creamy texture and indulgent flavor of ice cream without the health, environmental, and welfare issues attached to traditional dairy.

The People Behind the Brand

Backed by Reddit co-founder and Managing Partner at Initialized Capital Alexis Ohanian, Gmail creator Paul Buchheit, and former Dreyer’s executive Eric Patel, Eclipse is co-founded by two alternative protein experts, Aylon Steinhart and Thomas Bowman. Steinhart is one of the top experts in the alternative protein industry and was previously at the Good Food Institute, the leading non-profit in the plant-based space. Bowman was a chef at Michelin-starred restaurants before becoming Director of Product Development at JUST, where he created and scaled some of the best-selling plant-based products in the world such as JUST Mayos, Cookies, and Dressings.  

Eclipse's mission is to create a more sustainable, healthy and humane food system and we can only achieve that if mainstream consumers adopt a more plant-based diet,” Aylon Steinhart, co-founder of Eclipse Foods told The Beet in an interview. “With 80% of Millenials choosing a more plant-based diet, it makes perfect sense to partner with mainstream restaurants that all types of consumers love. We partner with the best chefs, ice cream shops, fast-casual chains and more to bring these products to consumers everywhere. The three main purchase decision drivers for consumers are taste, price & availability and so we are working with partners nationwide to bring our incredibly tasty, affordable products everywhere.” 

With a clear team of all-star industry players and a proven great tasting product, you can expect Eclipse ice cream coming to more restaurants and shops soon. 

The Ultimate Vegan and Dairy-Free Ice Cream Taste Test

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