Great ice cream shop in Rapid City, SD! Amazing delicious flavors! Very unique. Very clean shop and very friendly service!

tl;dr the extra-creamy ice cream delivers on both quality and quantity; don't be afraid to sample the more adventurous flavor offerings Compared to California, the Dakotas have far fewer premium dessert destinations. But some of the states' best ice cream can be found around Rapid City, South Dakota. Enter The Silver Lining Creamery. This small-batch scoop shop only has locations in the Dakotas. But don't count out the rotating selection of premium, handcrafted ice cream. Silver Lining is routinely ranked among the best ice cream parlors in the state. The Rapid City location is at the far corner of the Main Street Square, adjacent to the covered downtown parking lot. Countless metal tables and chairs are organized on the outside patio, and the flavor lineup is markered onto a stainless steel menu beside a seasonal service window. A bulbed "ice cream" sign sits above the front entrance. Inside, the queue twists along the curved counter. Merch shelves and a grab-and-go freezer are pressed against the exposed brick wall to the right, while a half-booth is tucked into the corner beside the side entrance on the left. The two-tiered ceiling is accented by a baby blue lighted strip, while a deep blue "ice cream solves everything" neon sign is displayed against the back subway-tiled wall. Ambient music plays lightly in the background. My group visited on a Sunday evening in late spring, and Silver Lining still boasted a sizeable crowd. The flavor lineup ranged from standard to moderately ambitious -- namely, Silver Lining offered a perfume-y sage-flavored ice cream. After sampling multiple flavors, my partner and I opted to share a triple-scoop in a waffle cone. The cone was dwarfed by the giant scoops; our staff member treated it as a personal challenge to see how much ice cream the petite cone could possibly balance. The high butterfat content was unmistakable -- the ice cream was eyebrow-raisingly creamy but not overwhelmingly sweet. My favorite flavor was the mildly mocha-y Coffee Toffee, while my partner enjoyed the true-to-flavor Butterscotch. Our final flavor, Circus Town (birthday cake ice cream with frosted animal cracker), was no slouch, either. The service was efficient and accommodating, and a monster-sized triple scoop runs $8 -- a bargain by big-city standards. I left feeling impressed by the portion sizes and the execution. For a sophisticated yet crowd-pleasing dessert option, Silver Lining is a solid bet. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Triple Scoop (Butterscotch, Circus Town, Coffee Toffee) - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

Ice cream was delicious, staff was super patient in allowing us to sample the selections. We ended up getting "mini clouds" because they were all so good! Loved the blueberry, maple bacon, coffee and vanilla. read more

Love this ice cream shop. They truly have some really tasty ice cream and it's located in the cutest downtown center. Not to mention the shop always smells delicious and the service is always great! read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Exterior - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

Solid ice cream place in Rapid City. The flavors are unique. I love the orange creamsicle the most. They have a good choice of flavors and you are able to try samples if needed. There's street parking available! A must in Rapid City! read more

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Silver lining creamery has a few flavors and they are on rotation. We came in because we saw an interesting one - line and cilantro. I got a taste and it was actually good. However I went with a coffee and rocky road cone. It was just what was needed. Smooth and flavorful. The staff was also cheery, had a great vibe! Great quality ice cream without a high cost. Plenty of street parking nearby. Would recommend! read more

Silver Lining Creamery - rocky road and coffee - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

Ice cream lovers: this is the place! Delicious dessert, right in Main Street Square, with a beautiful outdoor area to sit in the warm sunshine. (And in the winter, it's an ice rink!) Lovely staff, consistent smiles, and amazing attitudes! read more

Yummy ice cream!! My daughter and I got waffle bowls with chocolate and salt caramel! My husband got a salt caramel malted! The ice cream was so silky smooth!! read more

Little piece of dessert heaven. Small place not so many choices, but don't need more if the ones they have are amazing. The cashier was sweet and funny. Come and check this place out. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Strawberry - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

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I got the four scoop sampler with coffee-toffee, salted caramel, Captain crunch, and the passionfruit. 4.99 and well worth it. My favorite was the coffee toffee with passion fruit a close second. Very flavorful! read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Four scoop sampler - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

Yum. Yum. Yum. We came here 3 times in 5 days! Wait in the line, trust me! The ice cream all flavors had so much flavor and you could really taste all the flavors in each one. It was creamy, but didn't melt fast which was great because it was hot outside! The ice cream flight was SO fun and something I didn't find out until the last visit! But happy I was able to try more flavors before we headed home out of town! There was some tables inside, but not a ton, but there was way more outside! I suggest parking in the free parking garage behind the shop, park on the first floor right next to the door! read more

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Delicious! Butterscotch and mint chip were really good. Friendly staff. Great outdoor seating area.

Some people come to Rapid City for Mt Rushmore, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, or the statues of the presidents, but you don't want to miss their incredible ice cream parlors. For hand scooped ice cream you cannot beat Silver Lining Creamery. They have a wide assortment of flavors, several choices for cones (and cups), and a really nice crew. This is a family-owned business that is located right in the downtown square. They have indoor and outdoor seating. A great place to go for dessert after lunch or dinner in one of the downtown restaurants (or skip the meal and get a double scoop). read more

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Very good and hearty portions! I got a double scoop, vanilla and huckleberry, in a waffle bowl. While tasty, the huckleberry didn't have a much berry flavor as I would've liked, but it was detectable. The location is perfect for grabbing a scoop (or several) and sitting down to people watch in the square. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Huckleberry and vanilla! - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

Great place on the main square. Not bad selection and our choices were tasty. Definitely worth a visit for dessert. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

Fresh ice cream, friendly service,fun ambiance. Always like to stop when traveling through! read more

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Cute little shop in Main Street square. Friendly service. Could not decide on a flavor so I got a sample which I think was called "dots" that came in either 4 or six count (it's called a "flight" where I come from). I got the 6 count. They were all so creamy and flavorful but my favorites were the coffee chip and the cinnamon. Want to go back before I leave rapid city to see what flavors they have next! read more

Super cute ice cream shop located in the heart of downtown. They have some fun flavors like Lemon Oreo and Rose. The ice cream is delicious with nice somewhat subtle flavor. Mouthfeel is very creamy but not too heavy at the same time. We came to get dessert here two days in a row because we liked it so much. Service is also very friendly. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Variety of mini scoops - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

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Great ice cream location in Rapid City. All homemade. Staff is personable and accommodating. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Selection of homemade ice cream - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

After walking around Downtown, Art Alley, Main City Square, etc, we came across Silver Lining Creamery which prides itself in it's small hand made ice cream. They use local honey and Midwest dairy and created in small 2.5G batches. There is a glass window in which you can view them making their ice cream in the back. I ordered a cup with 3 flavors: Lemon Blueberry, Horchata, and Strawberry. They all were fresh tasting and creamy but the Horchata really stood out! They have many flavors including mint chip, pumpkin cheesecake, Oreo cake batter, berry blast, pineapple jalapeno, etc. You really can't go wrong..it's fresh made ice cream! read more

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We spent a few days in Rapid City. I love ice cream. I thought that Armadillos was my jam. Until I found Silver Lining Creamery. The home-made hand pack ice cream here is amazing. Super creamy with really interesting flavors. Cool wooden spoons. Highly recommended. Armadillos if you want soft serve. Silver Lining if you want hand packed. Everyone wins. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Peanut Butter Oreo. Yum! - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

They have the hours incorrect on this site. It states they are open until 9 pm but in reality they closed at 7 pm. We arrived at 7:10 pm and we had to leave and go to Safeway to get ice cream read more

My two youngest daughter got and ice cream because the rest of us got a smoothie at the coffee shop next door. They were pretty expensive (over $3 for one tiny scoop) and they had weird flavors and didn't have several traditional flavors like cookies and cream. The girl waiting on us wasn't very helpful or seem to care one way or the other. Lobby was closed o assume due to covid although every other lobby was open in the area. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

The sweetest staff cropping up delicious treats! We were greeted with smiles and had no problem finding a flavor for everyone. Great option downtown with outdoor seating!! read more

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My husband and I were on a stroll after our anniversary dinner and saw a line out the door at almost 8 at night and decided we should jump in. Worth the wait! The key lime was fantastic! The service was actually pretty quick considering how long the line was as well read more

Best ice cream I've ever had. And the waffle cones taste so fresh, you can taste the difference!

So creamy and good but my favorite thing about this cute ice cream shop is their 'little cloud' sampler. We ordered 4 golf ball size scoops of ice cream, the perfect size to try multiple flavors! We also got an espresso at the coffeeshop next door and used one of our vanilla scoops to make an affogado treat. Yum!! read more

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The best shake I've had in a long time. They have about 10 different flavors all made in house. This is what real ice cream is all about. Be sure to stop by when in Rapid City. It is 10x better than the places trying to pass off store bought ice cream as their own. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - The Mocha shake. Coffee ice cream with chocolate syrup. The best shake I've had in a LONG time! - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

The best ice cream in Rapid City! Homemade, tasty, I always have to stop by the store when I'm in Rapid City or Fargo. Don't miss! read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Waffle cone with chocolate and peanut butter cup ice cream - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

We spent a few nights in Rapid City and needed to check out the local ice cream scene. On the advice of a local foodie, we bypassed Armadillo's soft serve in favor of Silver Lining's hard packed ice cream and it was a good call. Silver Lining Creamery is located in the heart of downtown Rapid City adjacent to a big outdoor patio/splash pad. The staff was friendly and there is a rotating list of the daily ice cream offerings on the wall. Behind a huge glass interior window, you can actually watch the ice cream being created by the in-house glacier. We got scoops of brown sugar banana (winner), salted caramel and Oreo cake batter. The texture of the ice cream was perfect and the flavors were very good overall. This should be your go-to place for homemade ice cream in town. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

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The Lobby Coffee has been a great addition to Excelsior! Absolutely love the decor and the staff is friendly and efficient. A good variety of baked goods (OMG croissants ), coffee options, smoothies and tea. I'll be back to try the Espresso Milk Shake before the end of the summer! read more

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I wish I'd written this sooner as I'm not 100% sure on the name - but the Tiger Bite (I think this is it) - wow, to die for. One of the best ice cream flavors I've had in a while. We even went to Silver Lining Creamery in Fargo later on and I was so disappointed they didn't have that flavor at the time (I had the hot mango and while it was good, it wasn't the Tiger Bite). Like, do y'all ship??? I need more! Also - they have a window outside you can roll up to instead of going inside. Great if you're not pretending the pandemic doesn't exist! read more

Small ice cream parlor located off Main Street near an amphitheater park. Had the Oreo peanut butter, strawberry, and pistachio and they were all great. You can tell that they make their own ice cream as it has a thickness and chewiness that you don't get from normal store bought brands. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Oreo peanut butter - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

What a cool find in a cool area. Made it here just before they closed. The girl that helped us was super friendly and helpful. Ice cream was fantastic with great flavors. Cool looking shop inside and out. read more

Cute place right in the middle of downtown. I was visiting during their pumpkin festival and had a scoop of their "pumpkin cheesecake" which was absolutely delightful. A definite highlight of Rapid City, SD. read more

Vegan ice cream, thank you!! Good choice of flavors of both vegan and regular ice cream. Super cute place off the park on Main Street.

This is the best spot to get ice cream for sure. They have a thing called Sunday in a jar it's by far one of my favorites. The service was wonderful it was only one employee but he worked as fast as he could for everyone. I loved the Carmel salted Carmel coffee jar. read more

Silver Lining Creamery - Desserts Near Me - Rapid City, South Dakota

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Service was friendly but the ice cream was just so-so. I got the flight and tried the America flavor, huckleberry, berry sorbet, and strawberry lemonade sorbet. The strawberry lemonade sorbet tasted the best to me and I actually came back for a second scoop of it the next day, it's very refreshing on a warm summer evening. While it didn't blow me away, it was fine, the other flavors were also fine. I wish they had some more unique flavors as some of the pictures of past flavors look much more appealing. read more

We went on a Saturday evening and the line was out the door. It moved quickly but having a place to look at the menu while in line would have helped to move the line quicker. I had the lavender honey which was very nice and not too sweet. My husband had a cake shake which he enjoyed very much. read more

After waiting in line for 40 minutes with two young kids - with at least 30 Other people... the girl behind the counter said 10 minutes before 8oclock that she was closing and anyone else waiting in line wouldn't be served. On the yelp hours it said 9pm. She was the only one working- so i will say the owners set this young girl up for failure by allowing her to work by herself at such a busy establishment and get so behind- but also allowing that many customers to wait that long and not stop the line long before closing is terrible for business This place has great reviews for its ice cream and many people coming from Out of town want to try it- but won't have the chance if things like this continue Hire more staff and teach business etiquette. read more