MOUNT MADE ICE CREAM
Deb and Glenn Stubbs from Mount Made Ice Cream can turn anything into a magical dessert.
In just four months, the little ice-cream store based in downtown Mount Maunganui has been pumping out some pretty big flavours—and has quickly won the hearts of locals.
Deb grew up in Tauranga while Glenn came to the Bay from West Auckland over a decade ago.
The pair have spent their careers in hospitality, both overseas and at home. Glenn is a chef who loves to play around with ingredients and flavours.
“Glenn is the ‘get it done’ person and he loves experimenting,” says Deb. “I’m more of a ‘think it over’ person so I’m the chief taster and critic.”
Many of the ingredients are locally sourced and can arrive unexpectedly.
“People are often calling us up offering leftover fruit which we can quickly make into a sorbet. We have a yearly tangelo juicing session from Mum’s tree, and we can’t wait for feijoa season!”
Mount Made Ice Cream makes use of the Bay’s fruit-producing superpowers, using hyper-local Bay ingredients like berries from Somerfield’s, tea from Webster’s, chocolate from Solomon’s Gold, kiwifruit from Zespri and grapefruit from friends’ trees.
The ice-creamery now has up to 40 regular flavours. The black hokey pokey flavour, which was created for the Rugby World Cup, has become so popular that they keep it stocked in the freezer because people are always asking for it.
“When people walk up to the cabinet, they ask ‘why is the hokey pokey black?’ so we tell them the story,” says Glenn.
“It’s one of those flavours that when you sit down and eat it, it tastes like hokey pokey, but your eyes tell you a different story,” says Deb. “The secret is activated charcoal, so people joke about having white teeth. It’s good-for-you ice cream.”
Doughnuts are also on the menu, inspired by Glenn’s time as a baker in Sweden. And for those after a savoury treat, Mount Made’s toasties are quickly becoming legendary in their own right.
But the ice cream is the main game, and the menu is always changing.
“We have some customers that come in for their regular favourites, but others come in just to see what we’ve come up with,” says Glenn. “We’re up to about 40 regular flavours.”
“We try and balance the classic with the seasonal,” adds Deb.
“And everything is hand-crafted, very much made by us, right here. And we’re always up for suggestions on new flavours.”
Check out their website here.