COVER STORY
Jessica and Craig Valby in their new restaurant, Stave & Still, in Webster. CHRISTINE PETERSON
WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM
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loaning supplies when ingredients are low or providing mental support. For Aaron Peek and Carmela Manzaro, opening Ice Cream Pharm was a long time coming. Two years ago, the husband-andwife team decided to make Peek’s love of making ice cream into a full-time venture. Peek grew up in the northeast corner of Texas about 100 miles outside of Dallas — hometown population, 400. “There’s nothing to do except make sweet tea and homemade ice cream. We used to make it in the sink at home,” he said. But then, just as they were near opening in March, the coronaviurs forced a delay. Fortunately, they said, their contractors continued the work and then the couple just had to wait on the final inspections from the town. They finally were able to open on July 18, serving unique homemade hard ice cream that is made on location. “We can’t complain if it’s only four months after we wanted, in light of everything that’s happened,” Manzaro said. “It’s summertime, and everyone wants their ice cream. At least we had the summertime.”
With the regulations on indoor dining, Peek and Manzaro were concerned that customers would not want to go into the establishment to order or to eat, but they would like to soon have online ordering capabilities so they can meet their customers curbside. They are hopeful that their flavors of the week, nondairy and sugarfree offerings, and all-natural ingredients and specialties like ice cream pies, doughnut a la mode and Dole Whips will keep people coming back. They continue making the favorites — “Oreo chocolate chip cookie we can’t keep,” Manzaro said — and are trying to secure a liquor license so they can offer alcohol-infused ice cream. They’ll also try to make customer requests in small batches, Peek said, adding, “If you have an ice cream flavor, let us know.” Despite the pandemic, the couple believe they have a business that will succeed, fueled by Peek’s love of creating different ice cream flavors and Manzaro’s previous experience in the industry — she owned an Italian restaurant in Worcester back in the 1980s. “If you look at the places
S E P T E M B E R 3 - 9, 2020
the day when they shut everything down,” Wittner said. “I thought it may kill us. I was just sitting on the bench, trying to figure out things.” Not only were further construction and the permitting process delayed, but Wittner was unable to secure any of the business grants that were being offered, most of which required owners to show loss of revenue. “When you have no sales, you cannot lose sales,” he said, adding that he spent an immense amount of time seeking help. “The help I got was zero dollars — zero-point-zero dollars.” Once Wittner made it through those tough months, he planned to open on July 14, Bastille Day, which is the national day of France, but the permit didn’t come through in time. Instead, he opened on Aug. 15 — just as appropriate, he said, because it is the birthday of the late Julia Child, the famous American chef known for her traditional French cooking. “We are born on the same day as Julia Child, who brought comfort food to America,” he said of his café. But COVID-19 has continued to bring challenges even after the grand opening. Wittner worked on perfecting a vegan/gluten-free crêpe, and then, there was a shortage of buckwheat, which is the main ingredient in that particular recipe. “I had to reinvent a recipe that took me three to four months to create,” he said. In addition, right now the café has a limited menu and reduced hours due to COVID-19 — on hold is an “amazing brunch menu” that Wittner said will debut later when he can open earlier in the day. Another difficulty is that “COVID has changed the way people eat. Right now, everybody wants delivery. Everybody wants to eat at home,” he said, adding that crêpes are not suitable for delivery because the dough will be too mushy upon arrival. “Quality is my biggest concern. I want to have the best quality possible.” Despite the setbacks, Wittner pointed out some positives, such as the outdoor dining aspect, which he hopes the city of Worcester will make permanent. And, he said, local restaurant owners have become essential in helping each other through the difficulties of COVID, whether it’s
