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Rochelle's Ice
Cream Stop |
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Morsel
of the Month
- September '07- |
We love to
drive and explore new areas and places. Along the way, we
often find hidden
treasures that tantalize
the taste buds. Some are tucked quietly away
from the mainstream and can
easily go unnoticed.
Nestled in the
foothills of the Chugach mountains, we discovered September's
Morsel of the Month.
This quaint
little ice cream dream is a hidden gem of Eklutna!
(cont'd...)
The owner of
Rochelle's Ice Cream Stop, Tena, was kind enough to give us a little
history of her place.
In the Spring of '82, Tena's daughter, Rochelle, was 14 years old
and was wanting to find some work
to help her earn a few bucks. Her father asked what kind of
job she would like to do. He mentioned working an ice cream
shop and Rochelle said the idea sounded "COOL!" . Well the
idea turned out to be very cool indeed (and creamy!) when that
summer, her mother and father built the above ice cream shop and
gave it their daughter's namesake. Every summer she
would run the shop and when she was 16 it was helping her to pay for
her car insurance and gasoline.
In the
beginning the shop was only open on weekends and accessible by
gravel road. But a few years later, the state
opened a campground just a mile down the road on Eklutna Lake which
made business at the ice cream shop boom! Three years ago,
they also paved the road to get to the campground. No camper could get to the
lake without first passing Rochelle's. Campers, fishermen,
hikers and people four-wheeling have, for two decades, found
refreshment and relaxation, along with helpful information, just up the road.
Aside from
scooping up fresh 'Alaska Supreme' ice cream (locally made in
Mountain View), Tena and her husband chose
to further cater to this camping crowd. They added a public
shower and laundry facility along with a General Store for any last
minute camping needs.
The ice cream
shop serves tasty flavors, including a couple of Alaska flavors -
blueberry, wildberry and
birchwalnut! mmmmm..! They make their own vanilla and chocolate
waffle cones (yes! we said chocolate waffle cone!)
They also serve hot dogs/hamburgers, fries along with coffee and
espresso, etc.
As far as
Rochelle...well she's all grown up now and has a 14-yr-old of her
own! Each summer, she and her son come up
from Arizona to work the shop all of June and July. So...history
repeats itself!
We loved this
place due to it's personal, friendly service, it's quality ice cream
and its relaxing setting with a breathtaking view.
Tena and her
husband also rent out the upstairs room of their house, which is on
the same grounds as the ice cream shop,
along with three cabins across the street. Their business runs from
Mother's Day weekend through the third weekend
in September. More information can be found on their website at
www.goalaskan.com.
Return to Morsel of the Month Gallery
to view more great Alaska restaurants
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