Rita's Hits 40, New Brewery Coming: Bucks Business Brief

BUCKS COUNTY, PA —Rita's Italian Ice & Custard is a spring and summer ritual. For 40 years!

Bensalem-based Rita's —known throughout the Philly region for its sweet frozen treats —is celebrating its 40th anniversary on Saturday with a cool sweepstakes. (See details below.)

Speaking of sweet treats, the Yardley Ice House also celebrated an anniversary. While not around as long as Rita's, this borough hotspot has also delivered the summer slush for the past three decades. They added a Newtown location in the past year too.

A Montgomery County brewery is also giving Bucks County a taste of its craft brews.

Crooked Eye Brewery, a longtime Hatboro staple, is expanding into Bucks County, teaming up with a Chalfont restaurant to open a second location on Saturday.

Brew and sweet treats are certainly topics you think about when the weather warms in May. But with Memorial Day coming, people think of the Jersey Shore and also swimming pools.

But if your children aren't ready yet to take that first dive, there's a new business coming that will prepare them.

The Big Blue Swim School has locations throughout the country. This will be their first endeavor in Bucks County.

These were some of the stories making business news over the past week in Bucks County:

Big Blue Swim School Coming To Warminster

The Giant Shopping Center at Center Point Place in Warminster is continuing its makeover. Just months after the Bach to Rock Music School opened, that business at 828 W. Street Rd. is getting a neighbor. Big Blue Swim School will be moving in. (Read this Patch story for more details)

(Dino Ciliberti/Patch)

Yardley Ice House Partners To Celebrate 30th Season

The Yardley Ice House on Saturday celebrated its 30th season by unveiling a commemorative T-shirt and designating a portion of the day’s proceeds to the Artists of Yardley (AOY), a non-profit that fosters creativity in the community. The T-shirt, designed by AOY member Yvonne Reyes, will be available for sale while supplies last at the ice house on South Main Street, in the parking lot behind Mil-Lee’s Diner. (Read this Patch story for more details)

(Jeff Werner/Patch)

Crooked Eye Brewery Expanding Into Bucks County

Crooked Eye Brewery is expanding into Bucks County. The well-known Hatboro staple for the past decade will open a second location on Saturday in teaming up with Fusion Kitchen, a restaurant in Chalfont. (Read this Patch story for more details.)

(Crooked Eye Brewery)

New Italian Pastry Shop Coming To Newtown Township

Santina’s Pastry Shop by Nino’s will be setting up shop at the Village at Newtown South at the former Smoothie King store, according to a sign in the store’s front window. Jane Mendello and her husband, Nino, who opened Nino's Pastry Shoppe on Quakerbridge Road in Trenton in 1996, are hoping to open this spring or early summer. (Read this Patch story for more details)

(Jeff Werner/Patch)

Rita's Celebrating 40 Years With Sweepstakes

In ringing in its 40th year, Rita's has launched a contest that runs through May 26 in which participants from select states can enter weekly for their chance to win a trip to the destination of their choice: Italy or Iceland, and free ice for a year. (Read this Patch story for more details.)

(Rita's Frozen Ice & Italian Custard)