With the upcoming opening of Herrell’s Ice Cream in North Square in the Mill District, Amherst will no longer be an ice cream desert. A pop-up branch of the celebrated Northampton Thorne’s Market store is set to open, hopefully next week, at 83 Cowls Road, while a larger store at 69 Cowls Road is being constructed. The pop-up store is almost complete, with just a few small details needing to be worked out before it can open. The plan is for the ice cream parlor to move to a larger venue a few doors away in December.
Owner Judy Herrell said the Amherst store will have the same full selection of premium, homemade ice cream as the Northampton store but will not have the capacity to make frozen yogurt. The ice cream will continue to be made in small batches at the Northampton store. In addition to ice cream cones and cups, the pop-up store will also offer ice cream sodas and sundaes. The permanent location will feature a larger menu. Neither the pop-up nor the permanent Amherst store will have a display freezer large enough for ice cream cakes.
Judy Herrell mentioned that she had been looking for space in Amherst for some time. The manager of the Northampton store attended the Christmas market at the Mill District last December and suggested that the location would be ideal for a branch of the ice cream store. The Mill District is close to the Mill River Recreation Area, Cherry Hill Golf Course, the remodeled North Amherst Library, UMass, and several apartment complexes. It offers a healthy mix of stores and restaurants in North Amherst, with plenty of parking available.
The store’s permanent location will be between the Carefree Cakery and Provisions, a store offering craft beers, fine wine, and cheese. Futura Coffee is also nearby, as is the Mill District General Store and Local Art Gallery.
A soft opening is planned for the pop-up store at 83 Cowls Road, with a larger celebration to take place when the store moves to its permanent location. January 2025 will mark the start of Herrell’s 45th year in Northampton. The Amherst store will be open from noon to 9 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday, and noon to 10 p.m. on Thursday through Saturday.
