BACKROADS • JULY 2021
Page 21
BOYERTOWN ICE CREAM & WATER ICE FACTORY
835 E PHILADELPHIA AVE, BOYERTOWN, PA 19512 484-415-0315 • FIND THEM ON FACEBOOK • 11A-10P SUN-THURS / 11A-11P FRI-SAT It was a whirlwind few weeks. We had just done a terrific ride in the south on some very tasty Triumphs. Returning home, we had time to feed the cats, change our clothes and hope back on our own bikes to attend the Oley Swap Meet with some friends. If you haven’t been, make sure you put that on your calendar for next year. Even if you aren’t into antiques, the people watching and certain oddities to be found are well worth the time. John had plotted a ride from Oley back to his home and informed me that we’d be making a stop at a new ice cream shop that recently opened. Well, hell’s bells, doesn’t that just make for a perfect day. Not only was the ride great, I’d get some homemade ice cream. Boyertown Ice Cream & Water Ice Factory (a mouthful but so is their ice cream) is the creation of Larry O’Toole, a fellow motorcyclist. In November of 2019 he was involved in a severe motorcycle accident which left him with many broken bones, as well as several brain bleeds. He went through many surgeries and returned to work in March, only to be let go on April 1. After a routine CAT scan, he was back in the operating room and, while recovering and pondering what he would do moving forward, he was made an offer ‘he couldn’t refuse’ from Argento’s Pizza of Boyertown to rent their ice cream shop next door. I asked Larry if he had previous experience making ice cream and he told me that he spent over 200 hours watching the Emery Thompson website (makers of fine ice cream machines since the early 1900s), experimenting with the recipes and taste testing at several private social clubs and parties. Finally, in March 2021 he was ready to set sail on his ice cream excursion with Boyertown Ice Cream & Water Ice Factory. Larry makes all his ice cream and water ice on premise, usually on rainy days when the flow of customers is lighter. Being a Jersey girl, I was not too familiar with water ice, which is a very Philadelphia ‘thing’. If you, too, are not familiar – water ice is a combination of sugar, water and various fruits, mixed together before
