What makes a top Sydney chef give up the rush of the kitchen? Soft serve, if you're former Nomad executive chef Nathan Sasi. He's just opened up Good Times Artisan Ice Cream on Potts Point's so-hot-someone's-gonna-get-hurt Macleay Street, right opposite the Apollo, and just up the road from Yellow, Billy Kwong, Cho Cho San and Monopole (seriously though, do we ever need to eat anywhere else?).
It's a long, thin, seat-free space decorated with pastel tones, with just a couple of staff making up soft serves before bedecking them with all sorts of thrills and miscellany.
Try the Not Your Grandma’s Cup of Tea. It's a honey-toned, peach and cream-flavoured ice cream topped with soft little meringues, burnt butter crumbs and a trickle of Lady Grey flavoured jelly. The peach flavour is gentle – almost floral – rather than robust. It's like high tea for the 21st century.
For something a bit more trashbag, go the Michelin Man. Valrhona chocolate ice cream is swirled with smoked vanilla (although we can't detect any smoke ourselves) and topped with crushed-up, Snickers-like peanut praline, chocolate fudge sauce and fluffy, pre-torched marshmallows. It's sweet and cute and majorly Instagramable, but with its muted flavours, feels like more of a kid's, rather than an adult's, dessert.
One for the adults is definitely the Randy Watson. Dark chocolate cookies sandwich chocolate hazelnut ice cream (which is thick, heavy and rich rather than a light and bright soft serve). The ice cream is not too sweet, slightly bitter and properly chocolatey. It's dipped in more chocolate and rolled in Valrhona pearls, with a secret centre of liquid caramel just waiting to escape onto your chin. As far as we're concerned, this will see you through any future heartbreak guaranteed.
Pleasing both adults and kids – and our pick of the bunch – is the Ziggy Stardust. It was the first creation that Sasi came up with, and Good Times' call it their signature – unlike the rest of the menu which changes monthly, this will be a permanent member of the crew. It's more of that creamy smoked vanilla bean ice cream but this time it's topped with whole freeze dried blackberries, strawberry powder and Pop Rocks. And there's a gold dusted white chocolate star on top. It's insanely fun to eat - a crunch from the fruit, a blast here and there from the Pop Rocks, a moment of cool respite from the cream. Its mash-up of different bits and pieces makes it endlessly entertaining – a bit like David Bowie himself, actually.
Not all ice creams can be sold in the house made brown butter cones, given their sheer weight, but the Ziggy Stardust can, so go for it. They even make gluten-free cones and vegan-friendly ice creams (hello Valrhona chocolate and coconut milk soft serve).
Because of all the air in it, soft serve melts super fast, so in the summer months you’re going to have to dig in fast. These ice creams may not be the height of sophistication, but they’re so much fun to eat we don't care.