Lemon Cherry Gelato NYC snapshot: on 16 of 32 licensed dispensary menus on Oct 17, 2026, $29 to $57 per eighth, 22% to 31% THC on labels

Lemon Cherry Gelato Strain: Lineage, THC and Where to Buy It in NYC

Lemon Cherry Gelato, often shortened to LCG, is a hybrid from the Los Angeles brand Backpack Boyz, with a sweet lemon and berry smell and a lineage that is still argued over. It was the most viewed strain in New York on Leafly for 20 straight months starting in May 2023. On Oct 17, 2026 it was on 16 of the 32 licensed NYC dispensary menus we read, at $29 to $57 per eighth with 22% to 31% THC on the labels.

Lemon Cherry Gelato at a glance

Type Hybrid; Leafly describes it as leaning indica
Lineage Disputed. Leafly’s strain page gives Girl Scout Cookies x Sunset Sherbet; Leafly News traces it to a Gelato #33 seed
Breeder Backpack Boyz, Los Angeles, around 2016
THC About 20% on Leafly, with some reviewers reporting plants near 33%; 22% to 31% on NYC menu labels
Terpenes Caryophyllene, then linalool and limonene, per Leafly
Aroma and flavor Lemon, citrus, berry, lime and sweet
Effects people report Tingly, relaxed, giggly, euphoric
Recognition Most viewed strain in New York on Leafly from May 2023; High Times strain of the year for 2022, per Leafly
On NYC menus 16 of 32 on Oct 17, 2026
NYC menu price $29 to $57 per eighth (citywide median: $40)

NYC figures come from our read of 32 licensed dispensary flower menus on Oct 17, 2026; two of them (FlynnStoned Chelsea and Unlimited Cannabis) could only be partly read. See how we built the dataset. Page published Oct 12, 2026; menu data refreshed Oct 17, 2026.

Where Lemon Cherry Gelato comes from

Everyone agrees on the brand and disagrees on the plant. Leafly News reported in December 2023 that Backpack Boyz in Los Angeles started LCG around 2016 from a seed found in a bag of Gelato #33, a strain from the Connected brand. Leafly’s own strain page lists Girl Scout Cookies x Sunset Sherbet and notes “several alleged origins,” including a Runtz-type Gelato x Zkittlez cross. The NYC growers who named a cross on their menus said Sunset Sherbet x Girl Scout Cookies.

The practical upshot is that “LCG” is a broad label. Leafly’s strain page warns that it can cover a range of Gelato and Runtz plants, and Leafly News advised buyers to “expect quality to vary.” Spin-offs such as Platinum Lemon Cherry Gelato and Lemon Cherry Icee are different products, so read the label.

Aroma, flavor and terpenes

Leafly’s flavor tags are lemon, citrus, berry, lime and sweet, and NYC retailer The Travel Agency adds cake, hard candy and a skunky, herbal edge. Leafly lists caryophyllene as the dominant terpene, followed by linalool, which is also common in lavender, and limonene, the citrus terpene.

THC and effects

Leafly lists about 20% THC, with some reviewers reporting plants near 33%. NYC labels ran from 22% to 31%.

Leafly reviewers, who give it 4.6 out of 5 across more than 800 ratings, most often tag it tingly, relaxed, giggly and euphoric, and describe it as mostly calming. For other strains reviewers tag this way, see our list of weed strains that make you giggly. The most reported downsides are anxiety, headache and dizziness. Those are consumer reports, not predictions. Our THC calculator turns a label percentage into milligrams per serving.

Forms and brands of Lemon Cherry Gelato in New York

Our Oct 17 count covers flower menus only; vapes and pre-rolls also appear on delivery menus. These are products we found listed at New York licensed retailers in October 2026:

Form Brand (New York) Where we saw it
Flower BudJet, Claybourne Co., Dank, Dave’s Buds, Electraleaf, Grassroots, Hashtag Honey, High Scale, Honey King, Hurley Grown, Nanticoke, Nautical Blaze, Packs, PUFF, PURPS 16 NYC dispensary menus (see below)
All-in-one vape MFUSED The Travel Agency, Union Square
Disposable vape, 1.5g Jaunty, 87.26% THC on the listing QUBE Delivery, Upper East Side
Pre-roll, 1g Budd, 28.49% THC on the listing Bleu Leaf Delivery, Morningside Heights

We did not find an LCG edible or live resin product from a New York licensed brand in October 2026.

Where to buy Lemon Cherry Gelato in NYC

On Oct 17, 2026 we read the public flower menus of 32 state-licensed dispensaries across the five boroughs. Lemon Cherry Gelato was on 16 of them. Each shop below has its address, phone number, a Google Maps link, its online menu, our listing for it and the Lemon Cherry Gelato products we saw on its menu that day. Menus change daily, so check the menu or call before you go.

Bar chart of NYC dispensaries stocking Lemon Cherry Gelato by borough: Manhattan 6 of 13, Brooklyn 7 of 11, Queens 1 of 6, the Bronx 1 of 1, Staten Island 1 of 1
Lemon Cherry Gelato by borough: licensed NYC dispensaries carrying it, out of the menus we read in each borough on Oct 17, 2026.

Lemon Cherry Gelato in Manhattan (6 shops)

Lemon Cherry Gelato in Brooklyn (7 shops)

Lemon Cherry Gelato in Queens (1 shop)

  • Bayside Cannabis (Bayside and Little Neck). 224-15 Union Turnpike, Oakland Gardens, NY 11364. Phone: (347) 548-0304. Google Maps · Online menu · Our listing. On the menu Oct 17: PUFF, 3.5g, $29, 25% THC; Dank, 28g, $160, 26.4% THC.

Lemon Cherry Gelato in The Bronx (1 shop)

  • Two Buds Dispensary (Northeast Bronx). 696 East 241st St, Bronx, NY 10470. Phone: (347) 202-9756. Google Maps · Online menu · Our listing. On the menu Oct 17: Hashtag Honey, 28g, $179.64, 21.8% THC; Nanticoke, 3.5g, $39.83, 24% THC; PURPS, 3.5g, $44.25, 27.5% THC.

Lemon Cherry Gelato in Staten Island (1 shop)

  • The Vault (East Shore). 1151 Hylan Blvd, Staten Island, NY 10305. Phone: (718) 689-6330. Google Maps · Online menu · Our listing. On the menu Oct 17: Nautical Blaze, 3.5g, $35, 24.4% THC; Honey King, 3.5g, $32, 25.2% THC; Claybourne Co., 3.5g, $50, 24.2% THC.

The growers on those menus were BudJet, Claybourne Co., Dank, Dave’s Buds, Electraleaf, Grassroots, Hashtag Honey, High Scale, Honey King, Hurley Grown, Nanticoke, Nautical Blaze, Packs, PUFF and PURPS. Eighths ran from $29 to $57, against a citywide median of $40. Some shops ran sales that day, so a few of the lowest prices may be sale prices. The live entry is under Lemon Cherry Gelato in our NYC weed strains database, and our NYC dispensary directory lists every licensed shop by borough.

Bar chart comparing how many of 32 licensed NYC dispensary menus carried each strain on Oct 17, 2026: Blue Dream 21, Jack Herer 18, Permanent Marker 17, Gorilla Glue (GG4) 17, Lemon Cherry Gelato 16
How the five strains in this series compare on NYC menus, Oct 17, 2026.

Is Lemon Cherry Gelato legal in New York?

Yes, for adults 21 and over, from a licensed dispensary or licensed delivery service (Office of Cannabis Management). Lemon Cherry Gelato was bred in California, but cannabis cannot legally cross state lines, so every jar on a licensed New York menu was grown by a New York cultivator. Adults can carry up to 3 ounces of flower.

Licensed stores display the state’s QR verification code, and you can check any store on the state verification page or with our license checker. Our New York cannabis rules cover where you can smoke, taxes, home growing and federal law.

Lemon Cherry Gelato in the news

New York’s attachment to LCG is documented. Leafly’s “Trends: top 10 cannabis strains in New York” by Amelia Williams, last updated February 2025, reported that Lemon Cherry Gelato had been the most viewed strain in New York on Leafly for 20 straight months starting in May 2023, with Platinum Lemon Cherry Gelato among the fastest-rising names. A Queens grower quoted in the piece credits its durability, high yields, high THC and bag appeal for its wholesale demand. The ranking measures Leafly page views, not sales.

Lemon Cherry Gelato FAQ

What strain is Lemon Cherry Gelato?

Lemon Cherry Gelato is a hybrid from Backpack Boyz in Los Angeles. Leafly lists Girl Scout Cookies x Sunset Sherbet as the parents, while other accounts trace it to a Gelato #33 seed; the lineage is disputed.

Is Lemon Cherry Gelato indica or sativa?

It is a hybrid. Leafly describes it as leaning indica.

How strong is Lemon Cherry Gelato?

Leafly lists about 20% THC, with some reviewers reporting plants near 33%. Labels on NYC dispensary menus ranged from 22% to 31% on Oct 17, 2026.

Where can I buy Lemon Cherry Gelato in NYC?

On Oct 17, 2026 it was on 16 of the 32 licensed NYC menus we read: 6 in Manhattan, 7 in Brooklyn, 1 in Queens, 1 in the Bronx and 1 on Staten Island. Prices were $29 to $57 per eighth.

What does LCG stand for?

LCG is short for Lemon Cherry Gelato. On menus it can cover a range of related Gelato and Runtz plants, so check the grower and the lineage on the label.

Why is Lemon Cherry Gelato so popular in New York?

It combines high THC with a sweet, fruity smell that stands out in the jar. Leafly reported it as the most viewed strain in New York for 20 straight months from May 2023.

More strain guides

Sources

For adults 21 and over. Nothing on this page is medical advice. Effects people report vary from person to person. Phone numbers and addresses were checked against each shop’s own site or listing in October 2026.