Galleria Ice Cream Opens on East Side
The Gallery, a delivery-focused food hall on Murray and North, has added a new ice cream counter.
Galleria Ice Cream, 2335 N. Murray Ave. Photo taken May 10, 2024 by Sophie Bolich.
Most days, Kamal Shkoukani can be found inside his tiny commercial kitchen on the East Side. The chef and entrepreneur puts the small space to good use, keeping Milwaukeeans well-fed with everything from hot chicken and burgers to falafel and cheese curds.
More than simply a kitchen, the space functions as a command center for Shkoukani’s delivery-focused food hall, The Gallery, 2335 N. Murray Ave., which operates seven distinct restaurant concepts.
Just a few steps away from the deep fryer and range, though, is a cool new addition. Shkoukani recently debuted an ice cream counter, Galleria Ice Cream, which will serve to enhance The Gallery’s art-focused dining area.
After weeks of preparation, the ice cream counter officially launched late last week, welcoming its first guests as temperatures soared to 80 degrees over the weekend.
Galleria’s hand-painted freezer is situated in a corner of the room and framed by a wall of repurposed speakers. Tucked inside are buckets of pastel-hued ice creams in flavors like blue moon, strawberry, pistachio, white chocolate raspberry, blueberry cheesecake, chocolate, caramel sea salt and vanilla.
A selection of toppings — sprinkles, nuts, cookie pieces, cereal — and brightly-colored cones add pizzazz to each frozen scoop.
Shkoukani said he was inspired to use the vibrant cones after seeing photos from ice cream parlors in Los Angeles. Specifically, a monochrome black cone made with activated charcoal.
The cones Shkoukani uses are sourced from Brooklyn and are available in flavors like red velvet, midnight vanilla, lavender, orange creamsicle, birthday cake and pink vanilla flavors.
As the concept settles in, Shkoukani plans to expand the menu to offer a variety of unique desserts. Soon, the freezer will also stock an assortment of paletas (fruit or cream-based ice pops) such as those from La Michoacana. He also hopes to add coffee, bubble waffles, crepes, churros and more.
While Galleria is an ideal spot for family ice cream trips and afternoon treats, the business will also be open late-night.
“Being born and raised in Milwaukee, I grew up on Leon’s,” Shkoukani said, noting that he used to prefer midnight visits to the custard spot, but had to change his habits when the business reduced its hours.
He added that he envisions Galleria as a spot where patrons stop for a snack after bar hours before heading home. The effect would be to further activate the existing dining area, which features a smattering of tables and chairs, plus a few comfortable booths.
Despite the fact that most of Shkoukani’s diners order out, the room is open to the public and often activated for community events, workshops and rotating installations from local artists. The walls currently feature works from Shkoukani’s “Kool-Aid and Frozen Pizza” show, an homage to the 90s and 2000s.
The Gallery will celebrate its first anniversary next month, marking a full year of growth for Shkoukani’s ever-expanding business. Now preparing for his second summer on the East Side, the business owner said its feels like he’s finally hitting his stride. “I’m just excited.”
“Everyone says it takes one year,” he says. “We’re coming up on that and it feels like we’re finally finishing the updates and getting everything in line.”
The Gallery’s full menu, including offerings from Galleria, is available to view online. The food hall is open daily from 8 a.m. to 3 a.m.
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Wrong article map: The Gallery, 2335 N. Murray Ave., not La Michoacana at 717 S 2nd!