• Blue Ribbon

  97 Sullivan St., 10012, between Prince and Spring Streets; 212-274-0404

  I cringe at the “improvements” of crowd-pleasing-for-generations desserts. Bless Blue Ribbon restaurants for respecting the perfection of the banana split.
  —HAL RUBENSTEIN

• Washington Park

  24 Fifth Avenue, 212-527-4400

  There may be no cherry, and the ice creams tend to change (we like mint chocolate chip), but the sauce is always chocolate, and they always give you a cookie.
  —ADAM PLATT

• Pearl Oyster Bar

  18 Cornelia Street 212-691-8211

  Mary's Fish Camp

  246 West 4th Street, 646-486-2185

  A tie: equally rich vanilla ice cream; gooey, chewy fudge; and pure whipped cream.
  —ROBIN RAISFELD

• Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory

  1 Water St., 10004, between Old Fulton and Water Streets, 718-246-3963

  No contest. The ice cream’s made by an obsessive mad ice-cream genius; the hot fudge, with Michel Cluizel chocolate.
  —ROB PATRONITE

From the 2003 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine