A great place to go for ice cream
06/18/08
BY TREENA MIELKE
Red Deer Express
The Little Ice Cream & Soda Shoppe is a welcome haven on a hot summer’s day.
It’s also a great place to visit even if it’s raining.
The ice cream shop, located at 4030 50 St. won gold in the Best of Red Deer competition.
Greg Little, who owns the shop along with his wife Krista Dellert was pleased, but not surprised to win.
“It’s cool. If it wasn’t my place, I’d come here,” he joked.
Little opened his shop in 1991 and has been making his own ice cream in the basement since 1996.
The shop has a delightful ambiance, reminiscence of the 50s with antiques gracing the walls and the original hardwood floor still in place.
An old wooden church pew stands against one wall.
Little takes great pride in making perfect, delectable ice cream. He works with 150 flavours, rotating them regularly so there are always 48 flavours of ice cream in the shop for customers to choose from. Sherbet and sorbet (dairy free) cones are also available.
“Sometimes a family comes in and everybody can have ice cream except for one kid. He gets the sorbet.”
Ice cream flavours run from traditional vanilla to unique tastes such as ginger, cake batter, Mexican chocolate and rum and raisin.
To keep up with the demand, Little often begins his work at 6 a.m. and usually makes 35 tubs of ice cream daily.
The pride in his work and his shop has netted positive rewards for the Red Deer business owner.
Since opening 17 years ago, The Little Ice Cream & Soda Shoppe has made a name for itself and customers come from far and wide for the melt on your tongue delicious ice cream.
“I have people say we are the best around,” said Little. “People drive from Calgary for our ice cream. I would say they come not only for the ice cream, but also because our staff is so good.”
The Little Ice Cream & Soda Shoppe opens the first week of April each year and closes Thanksgiving weekend.
tmielke@reddeer.greatwest.ca 309-5452
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