A new ice cream shop will bring soft serve, sundaes & more to Bellefonte
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- A new ice cream shop is working to open at 122 Dunlop St. in Bellefonte.
- Sprinks Ice Cream will offer soft serve, hard-scooped ice cream, sundaes and more.
- Gluten-free cones will be available upon request.
A new ice cream shop is preparing to open just steps away from Bellefonte’s Talleyrand Park.
Sprinks Ice Cream will debut this summer inside a small storefront nestled between the train tracks and Spring Creek at 122 Dunlop St. The shop will serve both soft serve and hard-scooped ice cream.
Owner Ellen Fornicola-Clontz hopes Sprinks will find a local audience by offering an uncommon treat. The shop got its start in 2023 by selling ice cream cookie sandwiches at a few local events.
“We’ve got ice cream in Bellefonte, but no one really does soft serve locally,” she told the Centre Daily Times. “You can’t walk anywhere in town for soft serve, as far as I know.”
The space along Dunlop Street has been in Fornicola-Clontz’s family for decades, often rented out to other tenants. But when the opportunity arose, she took a chance and set out to open her own ice cream shop.
Fornicola-Clontz worked at a Dairy Queen while growing up in Bellefonte but spent most of her post-graduate career in administrative roles in chiropractic care. She credits her upbringing for providing a profound love of sweet treats and ice cream.
“We’re a big ice cream family,” she said with a laugh. “In my house growing up, we would get three-gallon tubs from the [Penn State] Creamery, and every few weeks, we’d need to get new ones. We’re big on ice cream.”
Sprinks will serve chocolate and vanilla soft serve, plus hard-scooped ice cream. Guests can top their sundaes and cones with plenty of sprinkles and cookie crumbles.
Though the shop can’t guarantee true allergy-friendly status, Fornicola-Clontz said Sprinks will offer dairy-free ice cream for guests looking for an alternative treat. The shop will also give guests the option to enjoy a gluten-free ice cream cone.
While announcing Sprinks’ opening on Facebook, Fornicola-Clontz recalled spending her spare change and “walking around money” on cones of ice cream. She hopes to offer accessible prices at her own ice cream shop to keep sweet treats affordable for guests.
“An afternoon treat with your kids can be pricey,” she said. “I’m hoping to keep [prices] reasonable so we can get kids in here without them needing to spend $10 on a sundae or something like that.”
Fornicola-Clontz said she’s thrilled to get her ice cream shop up and running just steps away from Bellefonte’s picturesque Talleyrand Park, where foot traffic should be plentiful.
Once it opens in the early summer, Sprinks is expected to operate from 4-8 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays and from noon to 8 p.m. on Saturdays. The shop will likely open on one or two other weekdays, plus Sunday evenings if the weather cooperates for outdoor concerts at Talleyrand Park, Fornicola-Clontz said.
As Sprinks prepares to open, Fornicola-Clontz credited Bellefonte’s community with supporting her family and her new business.
“It’s a dream,” she said. “Business owners have been so supportive in boosting our social media posts, sharing that we’re hiring and much more. I didn’t appreciate Bellefonte years ago nearly as much as I do now. I’ve always loved the small-town feel, but after I moved away, the reason I came back is that I realized how special the area really is. I’d hate to see it lose that touch.”
You can follow Sprinks Ice Cream on Facebook and Instagram to receive more updates as it prepares to open. The shop is currently hiring for part-time roles.
%202.JPG)