Carmen’s Italian Ice is set to open its fourth full-service location in early June, in time to beat the sweltering summer heat.
The new shop will be located off Seven Locks Road in Potomac’s Cabin John Village shopping center.
Carmen’s offers homemade gourmet Italian ice in more than 60 flavors and is known throughout Montgomery County for its homemade ice cream, custard and gelato, according to its website. The “authentic Italian ices” come in classic flavors including lemon, mango, cotton candy and strawberry lemon.
The menu, which also offers freshly baked pastries, has options that are dairy-free, gluten-free and fat-free.
The business was opened in 2001 by New Jersey native Jason Mandler in Rockville. Italian ice traces its roots back to Philadelphia and South Jersey. Carmen’s has since expanded to Olney, Kensington and now Potomac, with partner locations in Clarksburg and Gaithersburg.
“Potomac has been on our radar for a long time,” Jerry Walters, co-owner of Carmen’s Italian Ice in Kensington and Potomac, said in a news release. “We’ve watched families drive across town just to get their Carmen’s fix, and we knew this community deserved a shop of its own.”
“None of this happens without Jason,” added co-owner Brad Riddle. “What he built in Rockville is the heartbeat of this whole brand. Jerry and I just want to carry that same spirit forward.”
“Twenty-five years ago, I opened the doors in Rockville with a simple idea — give Montgomery County a little corner of summer that felt like home,” Mandler said in the release. “MoCo welcomed us from day one. Seeing Jerry and Brad bring that same heart to Kensington and now Potomac means the world to [my wife] Boodie and me.”
The Potomac location will continue two of Carmen’s popular traditions. Named for Mandler’s son, Jayden Day offers 50% off Italian ice and gelati on the eighth of every month.
And every year on the first Saturday in February, Carmen’s opens its doors early for National Ice Cream for Breakfast Day.
