Many Americans love to have a sugary treat or dessert, and often, these frozen treats are ice cream or gelato. But there’s more to these desserts than the food itself; gelato supplies, dessert cups, eco-friendly paper drinking straws, ice cream party supplies, and more are serious considerations for any dessert shop today. Customers have all kinds of options for how they get their frozen treats, being able to choose between soft serve and hard serve ice cream, gelato, frozen custard or frozen yogurt, and more. What is more, there’s different kinds of ways to eat these treats, from ice cream cups and plastic spoons to slightly more specialized gelato supplies like their own unique spoons. An ice cream parlor that expands to include gelato, for example, will need to order gelato supplies, or adding sherbet to the menu calls for the right supplies as well. A new ice cream shop will need the right gear for the job, from gelato supplies to the ice cream makers and a sign. And who is interested in eating ice cream?
Ice Cream in the USA
Most Americans, for over a century, have savored ice cream or similar cold treats, and they are as popular as ever today. Research done by the NDP Group, or example, has found that in any two-week period, about 40% of Americans, tens of millions of people, will eat ice cream. And that’s just the start. Nearly 90% of American households indulge in frozen, sugary treats every year, and nearly 1.5 billion gallons of ice cream and other desserts such as gelato are produced across the United States every year. This means that a significant amount of all dairy produced by the United States is dedicated to making ice cream to meet all this demand, and different kinds of ice cream or other frozen treats have different ingredients. Some have milkfat, others have cream or eggs in them, or even yogurt with bacteria cultures safe to eat. Overall, businesses looking to sell frozen treats today should know what kinds of different products they have at their disposal to sell. And the supplies and machines at a dessert shop can reflect this. A shop can always add new hardware and supplies for new items on the menu.
Setting Up Shop
What does a frozen dessert parlor need? This will be based on what is being sold. An ice cream shop will need ice cream mixers for the standard ice creams, and these machines can produce many different flavors. In turn, an ice cream parlor is advised to have both cones and cups available for ice cream. Cones are edible waffles cones that make for a classic look, and many customers love to have ice cream on an edible cone as an extra treat. But customers should be aware that ice cream cones can be on the messy side at times, and they don’t allow for storing leftovers or mixing flavors, so it’s a sort of trade-off. Paper cups, meanwhile, allow a customer to keep everything neat and tidy, and it’s also possible to stir around ice cream flavors and condiments at will. Plus, ice cream cups make for convenient storage later, especially if they have lids. And if a dessert shop expands to have new items like gelato or sherbet, there should be enough gelato supplies and sherbet ingredients on hand to serve all this. Gelato is only served in cups and spoons, so gelato supplies are a must. Scooping gelato onto a waffle cone may not work out so well.
Ice cream machines need care, and they will need cleaning and maintenance to keep running well. After a day’s work, employees should first rinse water through the ice cream machines to flush out most of the leftover food, then disassemble the machines into their separate parts. For a new machine, employees can refer to the owner’s manual. These parts can then be soaked and washed in soapy water, then allowed to dry. The dry parts can then be put back into the machine for another day’s work. And of course, damaged machines can be sent back to the manufacturer for repair or replacement. A busted ice cream machine won’t serve anything anytime soon.