Scoop Index
How this started
In 2023, I moved from Cambridge to Edinburgh and was almost rendered lactose intolerant by the price of gelato. For less than £10 down south, I could treat my children and me. In Edinburgh, a similar treat costs more.
However, my love for frozen dessert didn't begin in Cambridge. Twenty-five years ago, I was living in Paris and discovered Berthillon on Île Saint-Louis. Pamplemousse and poire were my favourite flavours and, to this day, no other grapefruit or pear sorbet tastes quite as good.
But it's not just about what's in the scoop. Although I joke that it's the cost that counts, quality certainly matters too. It's also about the simple joy of eating it together, the cycle or the walk to the shop, queuing and choosing the flavour, and the conversation that follows.
This project is the culmination of many discussions with friends over the years about the cost of frozen dessert in different cities and why the difference exists. Is Edinburgh (or Scotland) priced for tourists rather than the people who live here? Is it rental prices? Is less footfall a reason for the price difference? What about the weather? Even I've been known to turn down a scoop in 40mph gusts and sideways rain. What about consumer behaviour with significantly reduced daylight hours, which Scotland experiences from late October to February? Or is it Cambridge pricing that is the outlier? I don't know.
I hope this site sparks a conversation, wherever it leads. I find it interesting and perhaps you will too. Thank you to the small businesses that bring us great gelato despite this being an incredibly difficult time for consumers and businesses alike.
If there's a more accurate measure of affordability, a better way to display the data, a shop you'd like added, an error I need to correct, or for any other reason, please get in touch at scoopindex@gmail.com. I'm not a data scientist, just a lover of good ice cream and gelato.
