Shannon Road Ice Cream does not have the bragging rights of having made ice cream for the past 50 years. Nor can I say that my grandparents came through Ellis Island with a recipe, an ice cream scooper, and a dream.

What I can say is that I love ice cream, and that I’ve been searching for a rich, creamy, non-dairy alternative. So when I finally discovered a non-dairy ice cream recipe that showed some promise, I dusted off the ice cream maker that was sitting in my closet for the past three years, and gave it a try. After making that recipe a couple of times, I started to experiment with it to enhance it and make it better. Each effort brought me closer and closer to the real thing in both consistency and taste. Needless to say, I was getting more and more excited with each progression. When I realized that I had something really special going, I thought about going into the ice cream business. (With this kind of discovery, who wouldn’t want to be in the ice cream business?)

Well, I let the idea stew for awhile, and didn’t do much to follow up with it until that one fateful day. Not realizing where this would lead, I snuck some of my non-dairy ice cream out of the house (it was a hot commodity around the house), and brought it to work. There were two ladies I worked with who kept razzing me about my ability to make ice cream, and refused to believe me when I said that it was really good. So to prove them wrong, I brought some in for them to taste… and they loved it! They were the first ones to tell me that I’ve got to sell it!

I figured that I would test the market, and gave some to a friend of mine who brought the sample in to work with him. His office is always full of food and people who like to eat food, so it was a good combination. What can I say? It was polished off in no time. I then started to pass out more samples to other friends, all of whom became constant repeat “customers.” Within two weeks, I began receiving orders from folks who were actually willing to pay for the stuff! Suddenly, and without any advertising, I could barely keep up with demand. After about 6 months of experimenting with new flavors and plenty of late nights making ice cream, we decided to take the plunge, and go full time into the ice cream business. That was then and this is now, and every day we draw nearer to making ice cream for fifty years.

I want to thank those two ladies who gave me the confidence to believe in my product, all my customers, especially those who gave me honest feedback, and most importantly my wife who has been very supportive through this whole endeavor. We are starting small, but plan on being in a store near you — wherever you are. Feel free to use our contacts page to send us any questions, comments, or ideas, and let that store near you know that you want to buy Shannon Road Ice Cream there.

Daniel Dadusc