Solley’s Kentish Ice Cream is throwing open the doors to its delicious new attraction: the Solley’s Ice Cream Parlour.
Located at the Solley family farm in the picturesque village of Ripple, near Deal, the new parlour is the perfect showcase for the company’s award-winning Kentish ice creams. Visitors can pick their favourite Solley’s flavours and enjoy a sumptuous sundae or banana split, finished off with an array of toppings from chocolate brownie to whipped cream and fudge sauce.
Keen ice cream fans can even peep through the windows of the Solley’s ice cream factory and see the creamy iced treat being made just metres away.
Freshly-made sandwiches and paninis will also be on offer, as well as cakes from local bakeries and a range of hot and cold drinks. After satisfying their craving for Kentish ice cream, visitors can browse the shelves of The Calf Shed farm shop and purchase some delicious Kentish produce to take home.
The Calf Shed is designed to show off the best produce Kent has to offer, with frozen and fresh produce from local suppliers including Home Cooked by Hannah, Field Fare, Lower Hardres Butchers, Corinne’s Kitchen and Biddenden Apple Juice. Also available are also fresh bread, fruit and vegetables, locally-produced jams and chutneys, freshly roasted coffee and eggs from the farm’s own hens.
Keith Morrison, Solley’s director, said: “We’ve been producing our award-winning Kentish ice cream for more than 30 years, and working in such idyllic surroundings it’s been a natural development for us to become a tourist destination.
“We opened The Calf Shed farm shop last year to showcase Kentish produce and enable people to pop in and buy our ice cream direct. Lots of our visitors have said how lovely it would be to taste some Solley’s ice cream during their visit, so we created the ice cream parlour so they could relax with family and friends.
“The Solley’s Ice Cream parlour will not only show off our award-winning ice cream, but will also support the local economy by creating jobs and encouraging more visitors to our beautiful corner of Kent.”
Solley’s Ice Cream Parlour is open seven days a week; 10am-4pm Monday-Saturday and 10am-2pm Sundays. Solley’s Farm is located on Church Lane, Ripple, near Deal, CT14 8JL; ample free parking is available onsite and pre-booked groups are welcome.
Solley’s is the largest independent ice cream producer in Kent, and the only producer to carry the Red Tractor logo, confirming its farm assured credentials. More than 85 per cent of base products are sourced from within the county and all milk and cream comes from a herd of Channel Island cows on a neighbouring farm just a mile down the road.
Solley’s Kentish Ice Cream supplies a host of businesses including farm shops and delis, theatres, restaurants, kiosks, premier tourist attractions, independent supermarkets and international airlines. For more information, prices or to order direct, visit www.solleysicecream.co.uk or call 01304 374100.
