Ice cream tossing YouTube creator brings fun and levity to 1st-of-its-kind scoop shop
Ice cream tossing is the trick of the trade that launched YouTuber Dylan Lemay's dessert career to new heights.
Lemay's famed internet presence (he has 3.7 million YouTube subscribers) and short-form content, hurling spheres of ice cream through the air -- yes, it's exactly like it sounds -- are coming to life at Lemay's first-ever brick-and-mortar location, Catch'n Ice Cream in New York City, which opened Friday.
Lemay gave "Good Morning America" the inside scoop and a look at the cool new concept that brings customers into the action for a one-of-a-kind ice cream experience.
"I've dreamt of this moment for so long," he told "GMA" adding that it was "insane to see all these people here and getting to serve them some ice cream."
"I just want to say thank you because I wouldn't be here without all of you watching my videos on YouTube," he added.
Lemay added that he wants to use his creative process "to connect with people again in a fun genuine way."
"There's not a very friendly customer interaction anymore, it's kind of died the last couple years," he said. "Our goal is to make the best customer experience you could have -- do some tricks and throw some ice cream to them."
Upon entering the scoop shop, fans will shuffle past blue and orange walls filled with merchandise like waffle cone scented candles and "Livin the dream, Catch'n ice cream" t-shirts, before arriving at the start of the line in the back of the shop.
The glass windows give a glimpse into the kitchen, offering a "Krispy Kreme effect" as Lemay called it, which allows customers to "see how we make our ice cream balls here since it's a very different process than what you would normally see" at other ice cream shops.
The ice cream itself is churned in a soft serve machine and piped through a hose into silicone sphere molds then flash frozen at negative 35 degrees for 40 minutes, at which point they are ready to be coated in various toppings.
Much like battering fried chicken, Lemay uses one hand to dunk his signature ice cream balls into a layer of melted chocolate coating, drops it into a container filled with the topping of choice and uses the clean opposite hand to coat the treat entirely.
Once the treats are ready to go, they are placed in a crystal clear display case where customers "can see what flavor you have based on the coating on the outside."
The store will offer six flavor options: Fruity Pebbles, Oreo, strawberry shortcake, cookie dough and brownie -- the only option filled with chocolate ice cream -- plus vanilla coated in chocolate, rolled in pretzels and topped with a salted caramel drizzle. Lemay said the final flavor was inspired by his first ultra viral video, back when he worked at a Cold Stone Creamery.
Instead of employees arching down to excavate a scoop or two of ice cream from an oversized tub that's buried in a freezer, further separating customer from the craft, Lemay's concept allows full human interaction, thanks to the advent of the pre-formed ice cream balls.
Once customers have selected a flavor, the Catch'n Ice Cream pros will grab their spades -- flat ice cream paddles -- to pick up the selected ice cream ball and toss the sphere into the air -- maybe throw in a behind-the-back or spin move -- so it lands on a frozen marble slab. From there, the pros will chop and fold the ingredients together before forming a new ice cream ball and putting it in a cup to serve.
"Everyone's having fun, we can ask them how their day's been while we mix all those toppings and layer that throughout the ice cream and form it back into a ball," Lemay said. "We can throw it up into a cup, or if they're really risky [they can hold the cup] and we'll toss it over to them."
Lemay plans to showcase the store to fans and creators around the world via YouTube and his other social channels where he'll draw inspiration for new ice cream flavors, collaborate with creators and celebrities and find new opportunities to use the space to make unique digital content.
