Team’s ice cream dream scheme

Andrew Edwards

Derric Pollard is a West Coast product trying to market some East

Coast flavor to Newport-Mesa.

A graduate of Newport Harbor High School and Pepperdine

University, Pollard and his mother Kim opened their new Carvel Ice

Cream franchise on the Costa Mesa-Newport Beach border in May. Kim

Pollard, who grew up in Rochester, New York, spent some of her

younger days snacking at Carvel Ice Cream parlors.

“It’s like an icon on the East Coast,” she said.

East Coast transplants who have landed around Newport-Mesa have

already discovered the shop, Derric said.

“A lot of East Coasters are like, ‘I grew up on this,’ ” Derric

said. “It’s really fun on the weekend. It’s all New York people.”

Kim said the store is the first Carvel franchise in Orange County.

Derric had not tasted Carvel ice cream before he went to a meeting

for potential franchisees, and his mother acknowledged the brand is

unfamiliar to people on the West Coast.

“If you’re born and raised in California, you don’t know what

Carvel is,” Kim said.

Derric’s favorite flavors are pralines and cream and dulce de

leche. His shop’s menu includes usual suspects like vanilla and

chocolate soft ice cream along with more unique flavors like cotton

candy and a variety called “birthday cake” that tastes like frosting.

Since all the ice cream is made fresh in the store, the Pollards have

the potential to invent their own flavors.

“We’ll get around to something like that eventually,” Derric said.

Both Pollards’ business backgrounds are in the mortgage industry,

where Derric still spends his days before heading to the shop at

night. He said getting the store started means he has to work 15

hours a day, seven days a week.

“I try to get my mortgage stuff done as soon as possible and come

in to relieve her, but a lot of times we stay the whole day,” Derric

said.

The mother-and-son team plan to hold their grand opening in the

next month. If business goes well, they plan to open future

franchises in neighboring cities. In the meantime, they hope their

Newport-Mesa parlor becomes a place for parents to bring children for

a frosty snack.

“It’s just a place to come to bring the kids and have a good

time,” Kim said.

Carvel Ice Cream is at 474 17th St., Costa Mesa.