Novelty ice cream rolls into Homewood

Selling ice cream can be fun, according to Greg and Hannah Slamen, purveyors of rolled ice cream — a popular Asian street food — at Lucky Cat Rolled Creams.

Greg Slamen said he enjoys seeing people “getting their ice cream and really enjoying it” and that “being able to spread joy has been awesome.”

After selling their creations at pop-ups beginning in May, the couple will soon open a store in downtown Homewood.

And Hannah Slamen can’t wait.

“Ice cream makes people really happy, and I'm excited about coming in everyday,” she said.

At press time, the Slamens hoped to open in early February in a storefront on 18th Street formerly occupied by Scoops.

Greg Slamen grew up in Homewood, graduated from Auburn, earned an MBA at UAB and works in IT. Hannah Slamen, from Sacramento, California, earned a degree in photography from UAB in 2004.

Except for waiting or bussing tables in college, neither has food-industry experience, but they have a strong desire to open a restaurant.

And with two kids — their son Canon, age 5, and daughter Magdalena, age 8 — ice cream’s a good fit. In 2016, while researching the possibility of opening an ice-cream shop, the Slamens saw a YouTube video about rolled ice cream.

“It kind of captured us,” Hannah Slamen said.

The sweet treat is made by pouring batter on a cold steel pan, adding toppings, cutting the ice cream with metal spatulas, rolling the slices and serving them in a cup. The ice cream is topped with treats such as fruit, honey and chocolate sauce.

“The experience is as much about watching it being made as it is about eating it,” Greg Slamen said.

In April 2017, the Slamens bought their own pan and began creating their own varieties.

And Homewood should be a great location for their shop, Greg Slamen said.

“Ice cream is an impulse buy, so you want foot traffic, you want to be visible, and you need lots of parking, so this is really the perfect location,” he said.

In addition, Lucky Cat is a “family place,” he said, and in Homewood, they are “close to a lot of young families and schools.”

The couple wants Lucky Cat to be “cozy and comfortable” and a “neighborhood hangout spot,” Greg Slamen said.

“We want people to come and sit, enjoy and stay for a while,” Hannah Slamen said.

Lucky Cat will be kid- and family-friendly, but the Slamens want to offer something extra for adults. They plan to request an alcohol license, which would allow them to offer treats that blend ice cream and alcohol, such as stout floats and “boozy ice cream” milkshakes. This request will have to go before the city council.

The store may stay open until about 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and serve as a place for wine and dessert, but hours had not been set as of press time. 

Lucky Cat will be located at 2908 18th St. S. For more information, go to luckycatrolledcreams.com.