Amy's Ice Creams is a privately owned chain of

ice cream Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as ...

shops in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

with headquarters in Austin. The ''

Austin Chronicle ''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogra ...

'' described Amy's as a "quintessentially Austin institution" which "dominates the local ice cream scene." Amy's ice cream is owned by Amy Simmons.Pope, Colin. "Amy Simmons." '' Austin Business Journal''. Friday October 30, 2009
1
Retrieved on February 27, 2010. The readers of the ''

'' have voted Amy's the best "reader's ice cream" eight years in a row.

History

Known colloquially as Amy's, Amy's Ice Creams was started by Amy Simmons in 1984. While in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, as a premedical major at

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...

, Amy worked for Steve's Ice Cream. After Steve's Ice Cream was purchased by a larger corporation, Amy decided to go into business for herself. Amy and her business partner Scott Shaw eventually decided to open their ice cream shop in Austin. They wrote a check for the lease of their first store on Guadalupe Street in Austin. Amy has since opened fourteen more locations, with the majority of them in Austin, one in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

, and one in

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

. The Houston location was formerly at The Rice Hotel. In 2009, owner Amy Simmons stated that she does not intend to rapidly expand the chain. In 2017, the company reported a $9 million revenue.

References

External links

Amy's Ice Creams
{{Austin Ice cream parlors in the United States Restaurants established in 1984 Companies based in Austin, Texas