It was another rainy November in Vancouver. No one batted an eye at the dreary skies. Yet, a little ray of sunshine was destined for Kitsilano that winter of 2013 – Rain or Shine Ice Cream opened on W 4th Avenue. The city was thrilled to have a boutique ice cream shop in their midst and Rain or Shine quickly became the talk of the town. Since then, ice cream lovers have had a great time keeping up with Taco Tuesdays, fresh waffle cones, and chasing the Malted Milk Chocolate Honeycomb at Rain or Shine’s new Cambie location.
It has been a treat to watch the shop evolve, but what about its inventors? What ever happened to the husband and wife who boldly opened an ice cream shop in Vancouver’s rainiest season? Do they still love ice cream? Do they have a cat? Do they have Netflix? All of these news articles and Vancouver food blogs never have the answers to these important questions.
While Rain or Shine Ice Cream’s co-founder, Josie, waited for a school field trip to arrive at the Kitsilano shop, we sat down and had a chat. Turns out, since Rain or Shine first opened in November 2013, Josie has become a mom! She’s currently on maternity leave from being a school teacher. And then, we asked all of our pressing questions…
Who is your favourite Disney character?
I might be dating myself, but probably Arial from the Little Mermaid. I loved her when I was a kid.
Where’s a place you’d like to visit?
I’d love to see South America. I’ve been to Central America before just because it was smaller, but since then, I’ve also changed my perspective on travelling. I’d like to stay somewhere for a longer period of time as opposed to spending a few days here and there. Peru would be cool!
…Do you like the rain?
Yes…but I like the sun a lot more!
Where do you get your inspiration for flavours?
Everywhere! From the things that I eat…pretty much everything that I taste I ask, “How can I turn this into ice cream?” We also look for unique flavour combinations that people will be willing to try…and then actually have a full scoop.
Have you considered creating a Waffle Cone Scented Air Freshener? This place smells like heaven.
Oh! No…but that’s an idea. I did make some lingerie for a friend’s bachelorette that had Rain or Shine lines like “Wanna Spoon?” and “Get Your Lick On,” so maybe we’ll start selling clothing or something fun like that!
What is something unexpected that came from opening Rain or Shine?
We always expected our busiest hours to be during the afternoon, especially on a hot sunny day. But our busiest hour is always 9-10pm!
Do you watch Game of Thrones?
Game of…Homes?
No, Game of Thrones.
No…but my sister won Game of Homes! Team Char and Sean!!
What is your favourite restaurant on a rainy day?
I like eating pho when it’s rainy because it’s nice to have a hot bowl of soup. There’s a place on W Broadway by Kingsgate mall that I go to – it’s great because it has vegetarian pho.
How many countries have you eaten ice cream?
(Laughs) Every single country I’ve been to. I took a trip to Italy with a girl friend and we would share a ½ litre of ice cream because it was basically cheaper than ordering separate scoops!
Have you had deep fried ice cream?
Yes…and it’s good! But unfortunately, kitchen space is already tight here and we don’t have the right permit for a deep fryer.
Do you have ice cream every day?
Yes! But oddly enough, it’s hardly in my freezer at home. Friends come over expecting me to have buckets of it, but I always forget to bring it home from the store!
What are your most popular flavours?
Salted Caramel, Brown Butter Snickerdoodle, and our Cambie store has an exclusive Malted Milk Chocolate Honeycomb that we can’t see to make enough of!
Are there any new flavours on the horizon that we can look forward to?
Things that involve berries! Last week we ordered 100lb of super-sweet strawberries and the Strawberry Mint Sorbetto has already sold out.
GASP!
…So I’ve ordered 900 more pounds of strawberries.
(HOORAY!)
I’ve also want to experiment more…maybe something like Black Current?
So there you have it, Foodies! Turns out the owner of your favourite ice cream shop is just as awesome as the ice cream itself. Happy feasting!
