Bakdash Ice Cream
The same shop halfway along Souq al-Hamidiyah since 1885. Booza is made with sahlab and mastic, then pounded with wooden mallets in front of the counter.
- What to order
- Pounded booza — sahlab, mastic, topped with Aleppo pistachio
- Price
- Variable — ask at the counter; cash only
- Opening hours
- Daily 08:00–23:00
- Duration
- 20 minutes
- Best time
- Before noon; by late afternoon the queue reaches the door
Halfway along Souq al-Hamidiyah there is a point where the crowd slows down on its own. Bakdash opened in 1885 — some sources say 1895 — and it has done one thing ever since. Booza. It is pounded with wooden mallets in a metal vat behind the counter, in front of you.
Getting there
Inside the souq, between the western entrance near the Citadel and the Umayyad Mosque. Close to the middle. You do not need an address; the crowd at the door says where it is.
What to order
Booza is made with milk, sahlab and mastic. What sets it apart from Western ice cream is the texture: not creamy, but stretchy and firm. The top is covered in Aleppo pistachio. You eat it standing. There is little seating and nobody uses it anyway.
When to go
Open daily 08:00–23:00. The crowd builds in the late afternoon and holds through the evening. Go before noon if you would rather skip the queue; on summer nights this is the tightest spot in the souq.
Tips
- Cash only; cards are not accepted
- Two zeros were dropped from the pound in January 2026 — prices in older sources look 100 times today's figure
- Watch a round of the pounding before you take your cup; it happens behind the counter
Transparency
- How this was chosen
- Two kinds of record live here: the dish itself, and the place that serves it. Both are chosen and written by hand; ranking is not for sale and there are no sponsored entries. If a price range is not known for certain, it says so. Venues that serve alcohol are not listed on this site at all.
- Facts checked
- August 2026
- Last updated
- September 15, 2026