It's been open for a few weeks and there's not a day without lines: the ice cream shop that marks the start of the ice cream season in Malaga

In Malaga, the arrival of spring has several recognizable signs: the heat that starts to intensify earlier than expected, terraces filling up at any time of the day, and for an entire legion of artisanal ice cream fans, the reopening of Heladería Inma. Each year, when the shop on calle Moreti raises its shutter after a break of about five months, something changes in the Las Delicias neighborhood. The queues return to the sidewalk, the turn numbers reappear on the screens, and that specific bustle that only this place in the entire capital of Malaga has, returns. Officially, the season has begun.

More than five decades serving ice cream in the Las Delicias neighborhood

Heladería Inma opened its doors in 1972 on Moreti street, number 15, in the Carretera de Cádiz district. More than fifty years later, the shop remains in the same place and with the same essence, becoming one of the solid references in Malaga's informal gastronomy, unaffected by any competition –no matter how close it may be. In the city, it is simply known as 'La Inma', no further introduction necessary, a shorthand that speaks volumes about the level of familiarity it has achieved among the people of Malaga over the decades.

The business model of the ice cream shop is unusual for these times: it closes each year in mid-October and reopens in spring, usually in March, after a winter break that lasts about five months. This seasonal pattern has a very particular side effect: when it reopens, the accumulated anticipation almost immediately translates into queues at its door. A phenomenon that repeats with a regularity that no one in the neighborhood questions anymore.

Queues, turn numbers, and a service that keeps its cool

The external image of Heladería Inma on the busiest days is unmistakable. People gather at the entrance in several simultaneous layers: those checking the available flavors to decide, those who already have a number in hand and wait for it to appear on the screens, and those who have just arrived and have not yet grabbed their number, usually between 50 and 80 digits behind the current one. A turn system that, despite the volume of the public, allows for a swift and orderly service pace given the large number of workers coordinating behind the counter.

To the right, the place where everyone goes to get their number. / Javier Albiñana

If there is a flavor that explains the dimension that Heladería Inma has reached in Malaga, it is Kinder. An ice cream that over time has become the emblem of the shop, the most requested product, the most photographed, and the one that has traveled from mouth to mouth bringing new customers to Moreti street. Its popularity has allowed the ice cream shop to maintain a reference position in the city without the need to resort to tools that today are almost essential for any hospitality business.

Three new flavors this season

Beyond Kinder, the offer at Heladería Inma includes flavors that have gained their own space among regular customers. Mille-feuille and pistachio are two of the most requested from the menu, options that reflect a commitment to quality ingredients and flavors with their own personality.

This season, the ice cream shop also incorporates several new additions that expand the menu with more sophisticated options. Among the new flavors debuting at the shop in 2026 are 'Sesame Mix', 'Hazelnut Cremino', and 'Tropicana', three additions that aim in different directions, from creamy to spiced, and that demonstrate a willingness to renew the menu while maintaining the artisanal character that defines the shop.

Behind the counter, they work tirelessly at 'La Inma'. / Javier Albiñana

In a gastronomic landscape where digital presence often makes the difference between visibility and anonymity, Heladería Inma holds a unique position. They do not have an Instagram or TikTok profile, nor do they publish stories with the flavors of the day. And yet, since 1972, every spring, the queues reappear at the door on Moreti street as if the previous season had ended just a few months ago...