It all started with an adventure in New Zealand.
Emilee Englert, who co-owns Perfect Day Real Fruit Ice Cream with her husband, Zach, recalls the first time they tried real fruit ice cream during a vacation in New Zealand.
“It was one of the highlights of our trip,” she says. “Our little family camper-vanned through the north and south islands, and each day, we had to find our next ice cream stop. Our business has been so fun to create because it was birthed from an epic family adventure.”
Once the Englerts returned home, they started building their first food trailer — and Perfect Day Ice Cream was born.
“We have been swirling real fruit ice cream at events and markets since last August,” Englert says. “On our one-year business anniversary, we opened the door to our first storefront in Kailua.”
The ice cream shop shares a space with The Collective; it opened its Kailua storefront on Aug. 1.
“We were connected to Brett and Lisa, the owners of The Collective,” Englert says. “While we never could have imagined opening an ice cream shop inside a tattoo shop, it’s a funky vibe that we’re in love with.”
As its name implies, the biz specializes in treats that feature real fruit ice cream. Customers can choose a locally made ice cream base — vanilla or coconut — and opt for fruits like banana, strawberry, mango and blueberry to be mixed in.
“We swirl them together on the spot in a cup or homemade waffle cone,” Englert says. “Our signature swirls are our own swirl combinations, decked out in toppings that perfectly complement the fruit ice cream and offer a unique twist on New Zealand-style swirls.
“All of our swirls can be made dairy free or vegan,” she adds. “We do not use any food dye in our ice cream or toppings, and we use local and organic products wherever we can.”
The business’s Kookaberry (mixed berry) blend is the top seller, with strawberry being a close second, according to Englert.
Signature swirls feature fun combos like acai swirl ($12), funky monkey ($11.25), and Maui sunset ($11.25). The acai swirl includes organic acai with Kookaberry fruit and a coconut base, topped with peanut butter drizzle, cacao nibs, coconut flakes and waffle cone bits.
The Funky Monkey ($11.25) features your choice of base with bananas and is topped with peanut butter drizzle and cacao nibs.
The Kailua store also offers coffees, matcha and bagels. Opt for cold brews ($6), coffee and ice cream floats ($8), or hot or iced matcha lattes ($7.50). The biz also serves bagels from Big Time Bagels, complete with schmears in various flavors like sundried tomato and honey goat.
Besides its Kailua storefront, the biz also has mobile trailers at the Kakaako farmers market and other pop-up events and night markets. Follow the biz on Instagram (@perfectdayicecream) for updates.
“It’s always a perfect day for ice cream,” Englert says. “To us, the ‘perfect day’ doesn’t mean a day without any problems; it means ‘complete.’ We hope that when you stop by Perfect Day, our real fruit ice cream completes your beautiful day in Hawaiʻi — just as it did each day on our adventure in New Zealand.”
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CONTACT
Perfect Day Real Fruit Ice Cream
407 Uluniu St. Ste. 101, Kailua
perfectdayicecream.com
Instagram: @perfectdayicecream
Open daily in Kailua from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Kelli Shiroma Braiotta can be reached at kelli@alohastatedaily.com.
