Guestbook

OUR STORY

Our journey is based on trial and error, a lot of faith, partnership, and family. Steven and Amanda first opened Beaches-n-Cream in 2012, sharing space with a country store on Stone Chimney Road. Prior to this, Amanda practiced making ice cream and developing recipes for about two years. It all began with a tiny countertop ice cream machine. From there, Amanda learned to make ice cream in larger quantities using proper equipment (in the garage), in accordance with North Carolina regulations.

The original business plan was a deli and homemade ice cream. However, the building that would have housed it was too difficult to bring up to code for food service. This was taken as a sign to start with just ice cream—and thank goodness we listened. This led Steven and Amanda to the country store, where it all began.

Amanda quit her job to take this leap of faith. At the time, loans were difficult to obtain, and putting their home up for collateral was out of the question. They scraped together enough money to get started and placed it all in God’s hands. The first “employees” were Amanda and her mom, who both worked for free.

Beaches-n-Cream quickly became too busy for the location. More space was needed for preparation and storage, as well as additional parking. This led to the move in 2013 to our current location on the causeway, where we remain today.

Every single recipe is developed by Amanda. We refer to her as the ice cream scientist (or maybe mad scientist), though the proper term for an ice cream chef is actually maestro. She creates an idea and brings it to life through ingredients and testing.

When she feels a flavor meets Beaches-n-Cream standards, she introduces it in the dipping cabinet. If it sells well, it becomes part of the flavor rotation. If it does not perform well, it goes into the “flavor trash can.” Sometimes flavors are popular at first and then fade. When that happens, she may rework the recipe or remove it entirely.

During COVID, ingredient availability changed significantly. As a result, some flavors were adapted, and others were discontinued.

The Butter Pecan recipe changed about seven times before it reached a standard Amanda considered “good enough.” It has not changed since opening, and she knows better than to alter it—you like your Butter Pecan just the way it is.

She describes orange-based flavors as the most difficult to perfect. Achieving a true, natural orange flavor proved especially challenging. Beach Sand was the first flavor Amanda created after vanilla (which, let’s be honest, is pretty basic). The original concept was inspired by Mexican fried ice cream and initially included a cornflake crust. The first version, served on opening day in March 2012, was too soft. She returned to the drawing board and refined it into the beloved flavor you have all heard of and want to get your hands on.

Amanda will not prepare a product she doesn't feel good about, which means only high quality ingredients are used. The milk comes from a dairy farm here in North Carolina and is the most premium base you can obtain for American made ice cream. 16% butterfat, no hormones, no preservatives, no corn syrup, no eggs. Just simple, good milk. We use real ingredients—never syrups or artificial shortcuts. That is why you won’t see bubblegum or cotton candy flavors at Beaches-n-Cream. If you eat strawberry ice cream, it was made with fresh strawberries. If you eat banana pudding ice cream, well it's made with banana pudding. Our mint chip is not green because we don't add dye. Ice cream is not a "health food" and we definitely use ingredients that contain dye such as Cheerwine, red velvet cake, and rainbow sprinkles. However, we take pride in providing the "real thing" and not something we poured out of a bottle.

The ice cream is prepared every single day. For a couple of reasons. 1. We want it to be as fresh as possible. This is not mass produced ice cream that sits in a carton with a crazy long shelf life, full of preservatives. 2. We pump out a lot of ice cream out of a very tiny space. We don't have enough room to make ice cream for multiple days ahead. Amanda essentially “guesses the ice cream future” each day, predicting demand for the next day. Ice cream cannot be scooped immediately after production; there is a full process that requires time to set.

While Amanda is very accurate with planning, there have been rare occasions when a "standard" flavor runs out—she is only human.

We are truly grateful every single day to share a piece of ourselves with you. Every batch is made with care, pride, and intention. We are beyond thankful for our customers and for the opportunity to serve Holden Beach.

THANK YOU for being part of this journey and for making Beaches-n-Cream what it is today.