We are thrilled to share with you our first "Feature Friday" spot, and by doing so, we hope to encourage you all to check out the local businesses that might be in your area too!
This week Ray & A explored White Nest Market + Sweet Pea, a local kitchen market and homemade ice cream shop in the heart of our little town, Perkasie. We got to speak with Danielle Marinelli, co-owner and wife of Vince Marinelli who both started Sweet Pea and White Nest Market after making pretzels in Doylestown for 15 years.
We hosted a quick Q&A session with Danielle at the shop to learn more about White Nest Market + Sweet Pea:
Q: What is the process that goes into making the ice cream here, and what's your favorite flavor?
A: We start with 14% buttermilk sourced from a local farm and I churn the ice cream all day... Literally. I'll add the ingredients, such as 100% fresh fruit, roasted nuts, and cake pieces, and package it ready to sell at the different shops or place into large containers for fresh scoops. Caramel Pecan Praline (my personal favorite) and Mexican Chile Dark Chocolate are the some of the newest, most popular flavors in the shop right now.
Q: How did Sweet Pea and White Nest Market get their beginnings?
A: I (Danielle) was a nurse, and my husband, Vince an electrician, and we started with the pretzel business. An ice cream shop in Newtown closed one day, and Vince asked if I wanted to start making ice cream. I laughed, not thinking much of it at the time, but that's when Sweet Pea was born. We spent two years there and then opened a second location in Doylestown, and soon after, Perkasie became the third retail location. We also sell our ice cream in several Center City Philadelphia locations, and a few other cities all over the country. White Nest Market started out as an online shop focusing on modern kitchenware and home goods, but now I have been able to display the goods in the retail shops alongside my ice cream.
Q: How do you see this business influencing the community?
A: I want the community to come and hang out with their families and make awesome memories, ice cream brings people together! Buying and supporting local businesses is something that I am passionate about, and hope that other people will be as well. I also host 'Celebrity Scoop Night' with schools in the area, where the students vote on a custom flavor, I make the winning flavor and the principal and teachers take shifts scooping for the night. We encourage families to come and then give a percentage of our sales for the night back to the school. In the market side of the shop, we're going to be selling local homemade honey, pecans and nuts, beef jerky, and more, so stay tuned for more on that soon.
Be sure to look out for future Feature Fridays highlighting new awesome places by searching our Instagram hashtag #rayandafeaturefriday. And definitely stop by to taste it for yourself!
#loveyourlocal
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