Eli's Ark

Eli’s Ark is a small dessert shop in Wicker Park known for transforming their gelato into animals that look like they belong in the Hello Kitty universe. The gelato itself is a little grainy, not too sweet, and the flavors—like cookies and cream, butter pecan, or ube—are all pretty subtle. But for an extra charge (depending on the size of your cone), scoops can be “animaled-up” by sticking an assortment of mini cookies and other sweets to form cute little koalas, monkeys, and unicorns. There isn’t much seating in the shop, but there is a very large grass wall that’s a perfect backdrop for a picture of your temporary gelato pet.