By: Anthony Brousseau
Katie Romanski didn’t go to Stillwater last Thanksgiving looking to open a second location for her frozen sweets shop, Minnesota Nice Cream.
But when she saw the space formerly occupied by The Wedge & Wheel on Chestnut Street was for lease, the gears started turning.
And then the city’s charms took hold.
“Everything sort of felt right,” Romanski says. “The people in the streets and the ambiance. Stillwater feels like home to me.”
Her first brick and mortar store resides in Northeast Minneapolis, next to Able Seedhouse + Brewery. Minnesota Nice Cream began as a food truck, traipsing around the Midwest serving up highly Instagrammable cones stacked with mouthwatering, eye-catching toppings. In addition to the permanent home, Minnesota Nice Cream has added a second food truck.
Courtesy of Minnesota Nice Cream
Romanski describes her ice cream empire as more of an “experience” than your average shop. Just search #mnnicecream on Instagram and you’ll see her proven right, with fans showing off their elaborate and luxurious frozen concoctions.
Courtesy of Minnesota Nice Cream
“My focus is always on Instagram,” Romanski says, adding that she puts her energy there because it’s a “positive” social media site.
The Stillwater location will evolve that ethos. “All of the walls are going to be Instagrammable,” she says, and she’s even planning scratch and sniff wallpaper.
Courtesy of Minnesota Nice Cream
But Minnesota Nice Cream’s product isn’t all window dressing. The Stillwater shop’s menu will be largely similar to that of the Minneapolis store, featuring an “ever-changing menu” in addition to the classic vanilla, chocolate and twist. The menu features two vegan flavors and vegan and gluten-free toppings. They even have hypoallergenic recipes made from pure fruit and rice milk.
A new shop in Stillwater doesn't mean the Northeast location will be neglected. In fact, Romanski says they’re planning on building a patio in the outdoor space between Minnesota Nice Cream and Able. That should be open by the summer. While the Stillwater location will lack an outdoor space at opening, Romanski says visitors won’t want for places to simultaneously enjoy the ice cream and the fresh air.
“I pictured people taking their ice cream and having the experience and then, if it were me, I’d head towards the water,” she says.
Courtesy of Minnesota Nice Cream
Romanski hopes to open the Stillwater shop in May. “I’m just going to make sure that it’s absolutely perfect,” she says. The new space is about twice the size of the Minneapolis shop, and Romanski says to expect much more than your typical creamery.
“Now I get to go kind of crazy,” she says. Her dream is to open a “museum of ice cream” in a warehouse-sized space one day.
“We’ll start here for now,” she says.
Minnesota Nice Cream
Minneapolis location: 807 Broadway St. NE
Stillwater location (set to open in spring): 308 Chestnut St. E
Instagram: @mnicecream
Facebook: MN Nice Cream
