Alisa Neil, co-owner of Eight Cow Creamery, soon to open in Ridgefield, named her ice cream business as a nod to her eight children. The whole family will soon celebrate the debut of their storefront in Ridgefield.
Less than a year after it started offering their tasty treats to the public, the local family-owned business will move from its truck to a storefront this summer, offering locally sourced, locally made ice cream at 4327 S. Settler Drive.
Neil moved to Ridgefield from Vancouver with her family nine years ago. She and her husband opened Eight Cow Creamery’s ice cream truck last September, delivering their ice cream to residents at local events, including Experience Ridgefield and the Spudder Olympics. Neil noted that the storefront will open less than a year after they began operations.
“We felt Ridgefield was missing a place for people to come and gather their family after events. It’s gonna be a place where people can come ride their bike and can come sit together,” she said.
Hailey Smedley, chief experience officer at Eight Cow Creamery, explained the storefront will be designed as a local hangout place for sports teams, families and friends. The space will feature barstools, patio chairs and table booths to accommodate several guests. Additionally, a window is being constructed to allow customers to watch the homemade ice cream and waffle cone-making process. As well, Eight Cow Creamery will feature a photo wall dedicated to Ridgefield and Clark County’s farmers.
“We’re going to include what we call a ‘farm tribute wall.’ We’ve reached out to our local dairy farmers,” Smedley explained. “There are people who had farms before they were sold to the school or the city, and have photos for us. We’re going to interview them and write a little bit about their farm and put their photos up on our wall as tribute to the dairy farmers that have had to sell.”
A family-oriented company, Eight Cow Creamery uses locally sourced ingredients, especially fruits, in its ice cream. For its next seasonal flavor, the staff picked 70 pounds of marionberries from Munoz Berry Farm in Ridgefield, last week. The ice cream base is sourced from Alpenrose Dairy, a Portland company.
“My husband makes the flavors. When we have a berry or fruit in season, we try to grab that right when it’s fresh and ripe and make something with it right then,” Neil said.
Corresponding with its name, Eight Cow Creamery’s truck offers eight flavors, but the storefront will eventually expand to over 20. Some flavors will rotate based on the season and ingredient availability. Neil plans to introduce additional items, including luxury hot chocolate, during the winter. Patrons will have the opportunity to try summer flavors, including a recent invention by Eight Cow Creamery, when the store opens soon.
“Raspberry lemon curd is one of our recipes we created last summer. It’s made with homemade lemon curd and fresh raspberries. We freeze-dry the raspberries, too. That’s what makes it amazing,” Neil said.
Eight Cow Creamery will continue operating its ice cream truck for local events. With construction underway, Eight Cow Creamery plans for a mid-to-late August grand opening. To learn more, visit eightcowcreamery.com, or follow Eight Cow Creamery on Facebook.
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