Olivia Green welcomes customers into her new ice cream parlor in the Town of Herndon.By Mercia Hobson
When it comes to eating ice cream, the top priority for most individuals is undoubtedly the combination of great taste and the right texture — hard to do with vegan ice cream.
Olivia Green of Arlington, a Michelin-starred pastry chef, perfected this with a plant-based ice cream that is dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegan. Not only that, Green made no sacrifices as chef and owner of Crème de la Crop to achieve what she described on her LinkedIn page as the "creamy, dreamy texture of real-deal ice cream."
Green aimed to create gourmet desserts for everyone, especially those with dietary restrictions. "As a lactose-intolerant pastry chef, I thought this was the perfect problem for me to solve," she said.
Green recently opened her first storefront ice cream parlor in the Town of Herndon, using her skills in food manufacturing, food and beverage operations, food allergies, veganism, and entrepreneurship. The store focuses on small-batch, made-from-scratch ice cream, ice cream sandwiches, and other frozen treats.
Green shares the commercial kitchen space at 273 Sunset Park Drive with Chelsea Tan Hweii Chiee, owner of Chiboo Bakery. Chiee sells gluten-free, almond-flour-based gourmet French macarons in classic, fruity, floral, tea, and seasonal flavors. Chiboo Bakery is a professional, women-owned bakery, similar to Creme de la Crop.
The shop is an 11-minute (0.6-mile) walk from the Herndon Station on the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Silver Line and right off the Fairfax County Parkway.
Green was scooping Grasshopper and Banana Nut Brûlée ice cream, filling pre-orders, and serving scoops with waffle dunkers and sammies on Saturday, Sept. 2. Green worked between customers to prepare for Crème de la Crop's grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 9 at noon, alongside Chiboo Bakery.
"Chelsea and I are very excited to have everyone come and celebrate both of our businesses at our ribbon cutting. … Everyone is invited," Green said, referring to the mayor of the Town of Herndon, council members, and town staff, including Dennis Holste, the Town of Herndon's economic development manager, members of the Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce and everyone else.