NORTHUMBERLAND — Located about halfway between Northumberland and Danville, the Route 11 Coffee and Cream shop is the dream of its owners — and something co-owner Doug Van Derpool, has been working on since last February.
Van Der Pool and his partners had a business, but figured, “Hey, this would be a good place to have a coffee shop,” he said.
“It was then suggested, why don’t we also serve ice cream? We talked about it, and someone mentioned rolled ice cream. I didn’t know what that was. But once he found out …. I said, ‘let’s try it.'”
Rolled ice cream, also known as stir-fried ice cream, is spread on a cold metal surface then scraped up into a spiral. The result is a delicious new way to enjoy rich ice cream.
“The pandemic certainly slowed down the construction of the shop,” he said. “Because of COVID we couldn’t get our permits and couldn’t put together our floor plans.
“It took us quite a while to get all that done. Then, we began construction.”
The shop opened up this past week. The interior was re-purposed from what was once a car sales space, Van Der Pool said. There was no kitchen, so one had to be built and equipment purchased, including ab espresso machine.
Morgan Lawton, the general manager, said she has worked in many different restaurants.
“But I’ve always had a passion for coffee,” she said. “I’ve worked at a coffee shop when I was 15, so that’s where I had my background.”
The idea behind the shop is to provide a “fun, nice atmosphere,” Lawton said, “where if you want to come here with your family, you can do that. If you want to come in with your laptop and do your homework we have WiFi available. Drink some coffee. Have some ice cream.”
The tables inside are spaced to comply with social distancing protocols suggested by the CDC.
On the menu is rolled ice cream, many different coffee drinks, tea, frozen drinks, and hot chocolate. Bakery selections are available as well — bagel with spread (butter, jelly, or peanut butter) or bagel with cream cheese. The bagels are baked fresh in Lewisburg.
There will be a coffee-of-the-month, Lawton said. This month it is pumpkin muffin.
The rolled ice cream choices — specialty flavors are $8 — include cookies and cream, cookie monster (blue ice cream with a cookie chopped right in), and brownie diva (a brownie chopped into their ice cream).
Specialty ice cream and coffee flavors will be constantly changing. “We want to try new things, keep up with the trends,” Lawton explained.
The establishment is looking to hire more staff. They currently employ 10 people, some full time, others part time.
Lawton had to teach staff how to, from start to finish, use the espresso machine.
“It’s not hard when you get the hang of it,” she said.
Route 11 Coffee and Cream, at 3391 Point Township Drive, is open seven days a week. Coffee hours are 6 to 9 a.m.; ice cream hours are noon to 8 p.m.
For more information, call 570-284-8955, or email route11coffeeandcream@gmail.com. Coffee can also be picked up as a drive-through option.
— Rick Dandes/The Daily Item/Tribune News Service
