Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Astoria Sweet Shop Serves Up Dairy-Free Ice Cream and Pops

By Jeanmarie Evelly | July 31, 2014 4:54pm | Updated on August 1, 2014 5:48pm
 Sweet Jane's Frozen Desserts opened earlier this summer at 27-17 24th Ave.
Sweet Jane's Frozen Desserts opened earlier this summer at 27-17 24th Ave.
View Full Caption
DNAinfo/Jeanmarie Evelly and Sweet Jane's Frozen Desserts (Inset)

ASTORIA — A new ice cream shop in the neighborhood is offering sweet relief to vegans and the lactose-intolerant.

Sweet Jane's Frozen Desserts opened earlier this summer at 27-17 24th Ave., specializing in dairy and gluten-free ice cream and fudgesicle pops that are made on the premises, as well as Italian ices that contain no corn syrup.

"I was looking for frozen desserts that were healthy and clean," said owner Jane McGinn, of her concept behind the shop. "I believe we can treat ourselves and the planet in a friendly and conscionable way, and still enjoy ourselves."

The supplies in the shop are also eco-friendly: the cups, bowls and spoons are all recyclable or made from recycled materials, and even the countertop was fashioned from reclaimed wood that was once a lane in a bowling alley in the Bronx.

McGinn's dairy-free ice creams are coconut, almond or soy-based, and come in a variety of unique flavors that change regularly. Current options include avocado tequila lime, mai tai and sweet salty corn. There is a gluten-free ice cream cone option as well.

The diary-free pops come in chocolate, raspberry, coffee and caramel, and Sweet Jane's also serves fruity sorbets as well as more than a dozen traditional, dairy-based ice cream flavors that hail from a company upstate which makes them hormone-free and in small batches.

McGinn said she's happy to offer treats for all tastes, especially those with dietary restrictions.

"That's been a very rewarding response, to be able to give ice cream to everyone," she said.

In other local restaurant news:

►Three bar owners with joints in Manhattan are teaming up to open a craft beer and cocktail bar called Judy & Punch, at 34-08 30th Ave. Gerard Leary, owner of One Mile House on the Lower East Side, is opening the new spot along with Barry Spellman of the Upper East Side bar DTUT and Mike Higgins of Professor Thom's.

"We're just really excited to bring our product to Queens," said Leary, who said the bar will serve cocktails, small plates of food and particularly craft beer, including "a lot of rare and rotating stuff."

The team is shooting for a mid-August opening, Leary said.

►A Greek restaurant is set to take over the space occupied by Frank's Bakery, which closed last month after being open for decades at the corner of 30th Avenue and 36th Street.

Barcode will be taking its place, a restaurant which has its original location in Greece, as the neighborhood blog We Heart Astoria first reported.

Chef Kostas Moschos said the eatery will be similar to its flagship location — an online menu there lists things like gyros, salads and pita wraps — and that they are hoping to open in the beginning of October.