If you’re in Manhattan, there’s no better place to go for a sugar hit on a balmy, sticky night.  From caramel marshmallow sundaes to chocolate peanut butter malted shakes, Lula’s Sweet Apothecary beckons you in with a saccharine finger.  There are all your childhood favorites & flavors: hot fudge sauce, tantalizing maraschino cherries, & chocolate or rainbow sprinkles, but the best thing?  Lula’s fare is completely vegan.  The entire joint is animal-free, right down to their non-gelatin gummy bears & coconut whipped cream.

The whole concept is brilliant.  They’ve taken the classic charm of an apothecary & combined it with the needs of a young, modern customer.  Daily flavor specials are blasted out across the universe courtesy of Twitter, but samples are still served on silver spoons.  In cold weather, they serve sublimely rich vegan hot chocolate with marshmallow pieces.  The staff are charming, dapper & genuine.

Lula’s house o’ sweetness has a checkered floor & cranks old-timey tunes, but the space is too small to hang out in comfortably.  Instead, take your shake or cone & walk north a couple of blocks to Tompkins Square Park.  Go & admire the enormous elm trees — one of them is the site where the Hare Krishna religion was started in America (& beat poet Allen Ginsberg was in attendance!).  The park is always littered with divine miscreants & fireflies blaze trails through the night.  A beautiful park & a tongue lashed with frosty delights is the recipe for a magical evening, n’est-ce pas?

Lula’s Sweet Apothecary
516 East 6th Street, New York NY
http://www.lulassweetapothecary.com

Words by Gala Darling with photo by  http://www.flickr.com/photos/kathyylchan/