Chicago's Most Iconic Ice Cream Just Landed in Laguna
Laguna already has some solid ice cream going on. Gelato Paradiso, South Swell, Chantilly — we are not a town that suffers when it comes to frozen desserts. So when something new opens on Coast Highway and calls itself different, it has to ACTUALLY be different.
And Rainbow Cone definitely is.
The Chicago institution — open since 1926 — opened its doors at 244 South Coast Highway on May 11, right in the thick of downtown, steps from Main Beach.
If you've walked past and wondered what the colorful tower coming over the counter was, that's the famous five-flavor cone. And yes, it looks exactly as good as it sounds.
Five Flavors. One Cone. No Scoops.
Here's what makes Rainbow Cone unlike anything else you'll find downtown: they don't scoop. They slice.
Chocolate, strawberry, Palmer House (vanilla with cherries and walnuts), pistachio, and orange sherbet get sliced and stacked directly onto the cone — layer by layer — into a tall, colorful tower where you can see every single flavor before you even take a bite. The technique was invented by founder Joseph Sapp back in 1926 and hasn't been touched since.
Every bite has all five flavors in it. Not "work your way down to the good part." All five, every time.
"Instead of scooping each flavor separately, our team slices each layer of ice cream and stacks them one on top of the other directly onto the cone," the Rainbow Cone team explained. "It's a completely unique presentation developed by our founder, and it ensures you get all five flavors in every bite rather than eating one flavor at a time."
The combination sounds like it shouldn't work. Pistachio and orange sherbet on the same cone? And yet — it completely does.
"On paper, it sounds unexpected, but once you try it, it just works," they said. Almost everyone who tries it for the first time is surprised by how well the flavors come together.
That's been true for a hundred years, which makes the reason for their popularity obvious.
How It Came to Laguna
Laguna Beach is actually Rainbow Cone's second California location. Owner Anne Hsiung grew up eating Rainbow Cone in Chicago and opened a first Orange County shop in Cypress in February 2025. The community response was strong enough that adding a second location felt like the natural move — and Laguna made sense immediately.
"Laguna Beach has a strong local identity, a walkable beach-town atmosphere, and a culture built around family, summer, and community," the team said. "All things that align naturally with who we are."
For a brand that spent nearly a century as a Chicago neighborhood staple — the kind of place families returned to every summer, generation after generation — Laguna is a pretty natural fit. The vibe translates.
What Else Is on the Menu
The five-flavor cone is the reason to go, full stop. But Rainbow Cone isn't a one-item shop. The full menu includes traditional scoops, hand-spun milkshakes, made-to-order mini donuts, sundaes, ice cream cakes, and "Sliced Creations" — two- and three-flavor combinations using the same layering technique. It's a proper neighborhood ice cream experience, not a novelty act.
Still on the fence about committing to the cone?
They've introduced something called the Rainbow Guarantee: try the famous five-flavor cone, and if it doesn't deliver, they'll replace it with another menu item at no charge.
For a recipe that hasn't changed in 100 years, it's a confident offer.
This Year Is a Big One
Rainbow Cone turns 100 this year, and the centennial is being marked all year long with special promotions, limited-time offerings, and community events. Walking in now puts you in on the celebration from the start.
But honestly, the centennial is just extra. The real reason to go is that it's a genuinely fun, genuinely different experience — the kind of thing you'll want to take your kids to, bring your out-of-town visitors to, and probably go back to on your own just because we all know ice cream is THEE thing to do in Laguna… and there's a colorful tower of ice cream waiting for you on Coast Highway.