After Michelle Noel was downsized from her corporate sales job a few months into the pandemic, she decided to take it upon herself to tackle Lakewood Ranch’s ice cream accessibility problem.
It’s not that the ice cream in that part of Manatee County leaves anything to be desired – far from it. Big Olaf ice cream, which has a location in Lakewood Ranch, is the stuff of local beach vacation legends. There’s also Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt, D’Lites Shoppe, and in Palmetto, American Honey Creamery & Coffee Co.
But the issue, Noel said, is that there still isn’t enough ice cream to go around.