Lindenwalds Sweden Creme will not open this season
Throughout the winter, people in Tri-State dream of the return of a summer classic – the local ice cream shop. These confectionery suppliers serve cones, shakes, banana chips and more. They have lots of names: Dairy Bar, Creamy Whip; in Hamilton’s Lindenwald district, Sweden Creme has been filling the bill for decades, but this summer will not be so sweet.
Round, blue metal tables sit empty, sweet chewing gum balls gather around their bases; their happy umbrellas conspicuously absent. The blackboard on the small building just north of Lindenwald’s historic business district still reads “Last Day, September 19”.
It may turn out to be prophetic.
Fans of the neighborhood’s creamy whip and burgers have been calls for the seasonal store to reopen for almost two months. Hopes dropped on Monday when Sweden Cream’s Facebook page posted this message: “Sweden Creme will not open this season. It was a tough decision but necessary. Our deepest apologies to all our loyal customers who stood up for us.”
“What? They’re not opening? I did not know it was closing,” a surprised Mace David gasped on Monday afternoon after hearing about the announcement. “Where are we going to get ice cream from?”
“Oh, sir,” he added, shaking his head.
David chatted with Ashley Neal outside her car shop just down the street. The announcement was the neighborhood’s speech.
“I was really sad because I’m primarily a pregnant woman and I need that ice cream,” Neal said with a laugh. “My children love it. We went (past) there the other day and then we heard the sad news today. They have to open – I do not understand why they do not open.
“This week would have been perfect for them,” she added, noting the warmer temperatures during the second week of May.
Sweden Creme opened in 1950 and has been a family-owned company for several years, although it has changed owners several times. The current owner Teddy Young bought it a few years ago and told us about it Journal News he had big plans to expand to a second location.
He could not be reached for this story.
In addition to the usual ice cream candies, people came from all over town for the famous Dixie Burger with its sautéed onion and steaming bun topped with mustard and a pickle. It’s a rendition of a White Castle-style burger popular with a former hamburger in the neighborhood.
Stu Owens lives in neighboring Fairfield; a friend said he had to try the burgers. He and his wife tried to stop by for lunch on Monday, shortly after the Facebook message.
“I never had it,” he said, “(my friend) said that there was a company that had (the Dixie burger) that went bankrupt and that these people finally got the right recipe … and that it was really good. “
With their lunch plans scrapped, they drove off towards Lindenwald’s center to find somewhere else to eat.
Right next door, David Smith owns the Perfectly Blended Barber Shop. He was one of the first to share Sweden Cream’s announcement on Monday, noting that many of his customers had asked when the store would open for the season.
“At least once a day, no doubt, I get someone asking me when to open up, or I see someone outside and I have to tell (them) that they are not open yet and I’m not sure when ( “they will be.” We are a little disappointed because it usually fed us at least two or three times a week, “he said.
“I’m a little disappointed to hear that they will not open. Either way, I hope either they can solve something or that someone else can get it and open it up. I would really like to see that place open again. It has been a staple of this society for as long as I can remember. “
Sweden Cream’s owners gave no reason for the decision and did not give any clues about the store’s future.
The reaction online has been overwhelmingly disappointing. Several people would like to see the business sold to someone who will quickly reopen it.
“Sweden Creme has something special for me,” James Brown told WVXU in a voice message. “It was the first place my daughter and I used to go to eat ice cream when she was little. The owner was always so nice … We tried to be the first there at the beginning of this season and we always tried to be the last there at the end of the season. “
“We will definitely miss it,” he says, adding that he hopes Sweden Creme will return so that they can continue to create memories.
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