EMPIRE, MI – Delicious scoops of ice cream in an incredible variety of flavors add a special touch to summer tastes. And when you serve it in the shade of the Sleeping Bear Dunes? Then it’s guaranteed to be a sweet sensation.
Grocer’s Daughter Chocolate introduced ice cream flights this summer and they’ve been a big seller. This two-store (ice cream shop + chocolate shop) candy shop in the small town of Empire has become a popular hangout for visitors and northern locals.
The ice cream parlor currently offers 12 flavors of ice cream and sorbet, including classics like scoops of Madagascar vanilla, pistachio, and dark chocolate. Customer favorite Fresh Mint Chip is also on the menu, alongside a vegan Cinnamon Cereal Milk, a Sour Cherry Sorbet, and even a Toasted Sweet Corn gelato with a link to a local farm.
The team at Grocer’s Daughter has been scooping ice cream to customers for several summers, but this year the addition of three mini sundaes as a “flight” is a fun change – especially for people who can’t decide on just one flavor, says co-owner Jody Hayden.
“The flights were designed to allow our customers to enjoy multiple flavors of ice cream and sorbet at once,” she said. “We are excited to offer the flights on sustainably sourced ash boards made by a local friend.”
The handcrafted flight boards are made from ash trees cut near Crystal Lake, sawn in Buckley and then manufactured in Frankfort. And the small, custom sorbet/gelato cups were designed by Max Buzzell’s team at OB & Co.
If you haven’t tried these yet, get your fix soon. Grocer’s Daughter Chocolate’s main store is open year-round, but the ice cream shop next door closes after Labor Day.
“The Gelato Shop’s last hurrah is Labor Day weekend,” said store staff. “Stop by and get one last taste of summer – from old favorites to new flavors like August’s Saskatoon sorbet with berries from Three Barns Farm in Maple City or Shimek’s Sweet Corn Gelato with Iron Fish Bourbon Caramel Sauce.”
When the ice cream shop closes its doors, you can still go to the main store next door, where the ice cream bars and sorbets are available year-round in the freezer case. Pints and 5-oz mini cups (with a spoon in the lid) are available for pickup there.
Two new guest suites have opened above Grocer’s Daughter Chocolate’s new ice cream shop in Empire. Photo provided by Grocer’s Daughter and OB & Co. Media
July was a record month for the Grocer’s Daughter team. They served:
- 7,687 scoops of ice cream
- 810 waffle cones
- 2,154 caramel candies on a stick
- 10,668 Truffles and Caramel
- 799 cookies
- 606 sleeping chocolate bears “which also happened to be the most popular topic of conversation after a visit from a sugar-loving black bear friend last spring!”
And if you’re looking for a nice place to stay in Empire, where Sleeping Bear’s headquarters is located and where the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail begins, Grocer’s Daughter rents two suites above their store. Find out more about them here.
