Hot Summer Temps Mean Big Business For Ice Cream Shops

It has been one of the best summers in years for residents to take a plunge into an inviting pool of fresh water, or, the briny ocean. But let's not forget, one of the tastiest ways to cool off -- cool refreshments provided by Marblehead's hottest ice cream shops.

Carlos Rocha, 54, owner of Terry's Old Fashioned Ice Cream, has more than three decades of experience in the ice cream business, and he has been the owner of  Terry's Old Fashioned Ice Cream for six years.

In order for Rocha to keep up with the ice cream business all year long, he works 12 hours per day, seven days a week.

The shop has packed cases with all kinds of cold ice cream treats throughout. Rocha jokes that the shop has "too many" flavors to even name (the shop offers more than 100 flavors).

Rocha's shop also sells shakes, frappes, toppings and other confections. The favorite flavor customers crave this year is Moose Tracks, he said.

Extra supplies have been ordered because of 2010's hot weather, which has hit record-high temperatures many days this year. Shipments are being received at the ice cream shop more frequently than seasons past. The shop receives more than 150 gallons of products a week, Rocha said.

The staff who work at Terry's also put in more than their fair share of work to make the local ice cream business a success. Rocha said, "We are very busy, there are long hours for me and everybody else."

At The Little Store, owner Rick Mullin, 47, compares the past few months to cooler summers New Englanders have seen in the previous years, and said business is on the rise.

"Our Smoothie sales are doing much better with the hotter weather," Mullin said.

Customers who favor novelty sellers this year are reaching for the trademarked Fudgesicles and Creamsicles at this busy shop.

Keeping the store cool has been a challenge for Mullin this summer.

"We have a three-and-a-half ton air conditioner and a 24,000-BTU wall unit," Mullin said. "We are running them a lot more than last year."

At no extra help has been needed this year, according to manager Erica Petersiel. The beachfront restaurant manager is "extremely proud" of her employees.

"We have been fortunate that the staff wants to work and that they are glad to work here. It's our extended family," she said.

When it comes to buying supplies for Lime Rickey's, there is no question in Petersiel's mind that there is a definite need for extra shipments this year.

"I have absolutely gone through more ice cream and drinks this year than in the past three," Petersiel said. 

The restaurant's staff members agree the most popular flavors this year are Cookie Dough and Oreo Cookie ice creams. Chocolate Chip and Chocolate ice cream are two more of the biggest sellers.

"The most fun flavor for the kids is the Crunch-A-Saurus, which is based with blue vanilla ice cream," Petersiel said.

Devereux Beach may the coolest spot to swim in the summer, but inside Lime Rickey's, where fried summer favorites are being prepared, the heat can become  uncomfortable for the workers.

"We bought a high-powered fan for the kitchen for 90-degree days," Petersiel said. "It gets well over 100 degrees in the kitchen, this summer especially."