Gofer Ice Cream reclaims its Darien roots
Gofer Ice Cream will reopen at the location in Darien where it began five years ago.
The shop, after agreeing to shut its doors in order for the location owner to reconstruct the streetscape and shop exterior, has returned to its Boston Post Road location.
“I’m happy to be back in Darien, we took a chance by closing the doors, and we hope to welcome the Darien customers back,” said Jay Ragusa, owner of Gofer Ice Cream.
After a two-year absence, Gofer’s Darien location, which was once a seasonal operation, will reopen at 1020 Boston Post Road, ready to serve cold desserts year-round. The new shop features indoor and outdoor seating.
“Darien is the ideal place to debut our new premiere store,” said Ragusa. “Because we already established a presence in the community and a reputation for quality ice cream and service, we look forward to being well received again.”
The location is currently being renovated into a mixed-use development that will include several new retail stores, restaurants, and office space with parking in the rear of the building.
Gofer also has locations in Stamford and Greenwich.
The Gofer Ice Cream store is known for its red, white and blue cartoon logo of a gopher enjoying an ice cream cone.
Gofer is also using the new store to introduce the Gofer chocolate bar, featuring gourmet loose and boxed chocolates from around the world, and Italian ice.
“The highly anticipated reopening of Gofer Ice Cream at 1020 Post Road promises to contribute to the vibrancy of downtown Darien,” said Debbie Parnon, executive director of Darien Revitalization Inc. “We are excited about the impact Gofer will have downtown. Jay identified a niche market and responded by expanding his original menu of delicious ice cream to include a new chocolate bar and Gofer Italian ice. This is the kind of creative thinking we are looking to our merchants to engage in. Variety of merchandise and quality of goods and services offered by downtown merchants will encourage more foot traffic. Gofer has the added bonus of offering their customers an outdoor eating venue.”
In 2006, Gofer Ice Cream was named Best Ice Cream Shop in “The Best of The Gold Coast,” a people’s choice award encompassing Fairfield County.
“It’s an all-around upgrade for the whole Gofer chain,” said Ragusa. “The business is a fun business; people are always in a good mood. It’s a happy experience and the social return on investment is high.”
For Jay Ragusa and his Gofer Ice Cream chain, Darien was worth a return engagement.
The former UBS money manager turned ice cream store maven is marking the reopening of his Darien 1020 Post Road location today after a nearly two-year hiatus from the town.
With two other stores in Greenwich and Stamford, Darien's Gofer Ice Cream is re-opening in a downtown that is dramatically different from when the store shut its doors in 2006 to make way for new development.
"There's a lot more activity now, more people and more foot traffic," said Ragusa, 36, a Stamford resident who opened his first Gofer store in Greenwich in 2003. "That's what's giving us the confidence to do this."
When Ragusa first opened the Darien store in 2004, the operation was designed to be seasonal - providing a variety of soft-serve and hard ice creams during the summer months.
Since then, town officials have looked to increase the emphasis on foot traffic and discretionary spending in downtown Darien - with Gofer playing a permanent part in that plan.
New restaurants and retailers have opened up in the area. The Gofer shop is part of the Merrill Lynch building, a larger business development that includes the offices of Merrill Lynch; Pierce, Fenner & Smith; an Ole Mole Mexican Restaurant; Williams & Warren body and skin care clinic; and a Lucy women's active wear.
"This is a peek into the future of what we'd like to see downtown," said Debbie Parnon, executive director of Darien
Revitalization Inc. "There's some good synergy for a younger crowd. I'm very excited they (Gofer) are in the mix. It's all starting to come together."The 1,000 square-foot store will feature seating indoors and outdoors, Ragusa said.
In addition to the ice cream, the Darien Gofer will be the first to sell Italian ice and feature a gourmet "chocolate bar" of loose and boxed candies from around the world.
Ragusa said he developed the know-how to build his ice cream business from his experiences in his previous professional life.
After graduating college in 1993, Ragusa started working for UBS as a money manager. Shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, Ragusa started examining his other options, and he went back to an idea he had long considered.
"I always had an idea of opening up Gofer Ice Cream," he said. "I wanted to open something that had more of a hometown feel."
Now, "I'm basically managing my own portfolio," Ragusa said.
With its red, white and blue cartoon logo of a gopher eating ice cream, "Gofer Ice Cream" was actually derived as a play on words - telling people to "go for ice cream," he said.
Darien business observers foresee a lot of people in town taking Ragusa up on his suggestion.
"When he was at his old store, there were always people lined up standing around the corner," said Carol Wilder-Tamme, president and chief executive officer of the Darien Chamber of Commerce. "People will come from the movies and get their kids ice cream, or people coming from the restaurants can get dessert. . . . People always eat ice cream."
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Here we see a future counter bar area. Tile and fininshed look taking shape
Future Gofer Chocolate Bar Cabinet is in place
A few from behind dipping counter. You can see our front door in the distance as well as our future custom bench seating to the left.
Framing, plumbing, electric all set.... next week sheet rock.
First week of April Open is being scheduled.
New Ice Cream Bar. Soon you will be able to pull up a stool here.
Views from behind the counter area
