This Black-Owned Gelato Shop, Cloud Cups, Is Making Waves In The Philadelphia Community
A Philadelphia man has opened the first-of-its-kind gelato shop that offers customers a unique retail experience.
On March 19, Galen Thomas held the grand opening of his Kensington flagship location for Cloud Cups, an artisan gelato and sorbet storefront, according to Eater. The 2,000-square-foot location at Maken Studios North offers customers a place to enjoy delicious desserts, along with merchandise from other small business owners residing in the Philly area. The establishment can host 50 patrons in its lounge seating area and they can also enjoy the intricate wall paintings by graphic artist Justin Richburg and sky-like artwork painted on the floors by Raheem Spataccino.
Although the Northwest Philly native earned his education at Frozen Dessert University and Carpigiani Gelato University didn’t expect his business to transition from an idea into a brick-and-mortar. When he launched Cloud Cups in 2019, the dessert shop was on wheels as he started in a scoop truck. To help spread the word about his brand, he would host pop-up shops in different locations in his community.
“This has been a journey that started as an experiment in trying to make gelato a CBD edible to now a brick-and-mortar with over 150 tested flavors,” he told Eater. “To now see this become a flagship location that will host tastings, events, parties, retail, and more is a dream come true.”
Earlier this year, one of Thomas’ supporters, Charisse McGill who was the beloved founder of Lokal Artisan Foods (of French Toast Bites fame) and executive director of the Farmers Market Coalition, passed away unexpectedly. He credits her with helping him take his small business to new heights.
“I’m so grateful for so many people who’ve helped me along the way, especially Charisse,” he said. “She helped expand my business at a time when we were trying to grow, and I’m making several flavors at my shop in honor of her legacy.”
Cloud Cups serves up 104 custom-made flavors of gelato and sorbet options that are housed under different flavors and seasons, including banana pudding, mint chocolate chip, beet ginger, wheatgrass lemon coconut, key lime pie, peach cobbler and candy cane. Some non-dairy and vegan options are available like mango, honey lavender and strawberry beet.
To honor McGill’s impact in his life and the Philadelphia food scene he crafted French Toast Bites gelato strawberry and French Toast Bites gelato strawberry stracciatella since she founded French Toast Bites. In addition, Thomas wants to uplift fellow restauranteurs by partnering to infuse their special treats into gelato or sorbet. He’s already collaborated with the Cheesecake Lady and Bean 2 Bean Coffee Company.
Furthermore, he’s also working with local clothing designers to sell their brands such as Troy Shirts and gelato-scented candles inspired by Cloud Cups that are made by his fiancée Victoria Pickens. He aims to help not only the Black community but others who he feels are underrepresented and deserve a platform. Next month, Cloud Cups will be providing a fun and immersive experience for residents in the area with their new gelato-making workshops.
At this time, the hours of operation for Thomas’ shop are Wednesdays to Sundays from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. As the weather gets warmer, more days will be added and the store’s hours will likely change. Cloud Cups can also be ordered and delivered through Uber Eats, DoorDash and via its website.
“Thank you to everyone who came out last night for our friends + influencer soft opening!! Thank you to our business partners, PR team, interns, photographers, videographers + vendors for helping make it such a great event,” Thomas captioned an Instagram post following the grand opening event. “HUGE special thank you to @shepardheff + @dopeski_mcghee for holding us down and taking care of all our guests. Not all heroes wear capes!!! We couldn’t have done it without y’all and appreciate you so much.”
