Add Event My Events Log In

Upcoming Events

    We see you appreciate a good vintage. But there comes a time to try something new. Click here to head over to the redesigned Louisville.com. It's where you'll find all of our latest work. And plenty of the good ol' stuff, too, looking better than ever.

    Eat & Swig

    Print this page

    Brie. Bourbon. Beer. These are not your typical ice cream ingredients, but for the staff at Louisville Cream, it’s just another recipe on the list. Louisville Cream has been serving not-your-average-ice-cream flavors since 2014 on a mobile cart. They are now set to open their first retail store in April 2017 at 632 E. Market St. in the heart of NuLu, just before the tourist rush of Derby season.

    Darryl Goodner, co-owner, started making ice cream at age 19. After being asked to cater a few weddings, he enlisted the help of best friend and current co-owner Zach Hardin. The catering events spiraled into a fully-fledged business and Louisville Cream hit the streets in 2014, with additional co-owner Lynette Ruby. Customers can find them scooping cones all over the city, primarily at festivals throughout the year like NuLu Fest, Flea Off Market and Buy Local Fair.

    Before acquiring the permits to move into a retail space, Goodner says starting the business out on a mobile cart gave them the ability to see if their idea would actually work. “I think food trucks and carts allow you to test the business out,” he said. “It’s a really big test to see what catches on and what can be successful enough to move to the next step. I think more and more the city is good at finding what’s local and kind of championing that.”

    The need to move into a retail space was a culmination of popular demand and big dreams. “There was no other option, really,” Goodner says on the decision to open a store. “We kind of exhausted the mobile, out-of-the-tent ice cream scooping we could do. We still all work day jobs, so we could really only do it on the weekends. If we wanted to do this full time and meet the demand that’s out there, then we have to go all the way in and straight to a brick-and-mortar store.”

    Louisville Cream is all about infusing local flavor, literally and symbolically. They often partner with local businesses for their flavors, including Bulleit Bourbon, Copper and Kings Distillery, Sunergos Coffee and recent brick-and-mortar store newbies, Hi-Five Doughnuts. In their new store, customers will have more options than their usual four seasonal flavors. Goodner says they will have 11 flavors in total - seven will stay the same and four will change every month. The team is also debuting five new sundaes, including a ‘Buttered Toast sundae’ and a ‘Balsamic Strawberry sundae,’ and a rotating flavor selection of pie concretes, or “pie blizzards.”

    The original Louisville Cream cart will still go on, though business will slow down to mostly bigger events. Pints will still be available for sale at Rainbow Blossom and Old Town Wine and Spirits, and the Louisville, Lexington and Cincinnati Whole Foods Stores, as well as Lucky’s Market, Value Market and Liquor Barn.

    Although the scoop team may have a small following now, Goodner says the vision for the future is big, with a specific idea in mind. “We’ve always had a bigger picture of what Louisville Cream is supposed to look like,” he says. “The flavors of the ice cream fit a theme in my head. In a way, I’m trying to do what Ben and Jerry’s does where they just throw a lot of stuff into their ice cream. I want to do it with more of a curated feel.”

    To stay up-to-date with Louisville Cream, follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!

    All photos by Brian Patrick Todd

    Share On:

    Most Read Stories