Rookie’s, a handcrafted ice cream sandwich dessert experience, has opened in Roanoke in the bottom of The Patrick Henry at 611 S. Jefferson St.
The ice cream shop always has a rotating menu of five flavors of cookie and 10 flavors of ice cream.
Jordan Nickerson, owner of Rookie’s, said he began looking for a space in Roanoke last year to expand the business which he started four years ago in Forest.
“Its way easier to open a store in a city where people know us,” he says. “There was some crossover in the customer base and then, honestly, we fell in love with Roanoke. It’s a sweet spot.”
Nickerson said customers have the ability to walk up to the outdoor window and order or can come inside and order at the counter.
Rookie’s is known for always having fresh, baked daily cookies and curating a dessert experience to create memories in a beautiful space.
“It really is a total vibe that it’s like right across the street from the park, it’s nestled in downtown and there’s a walk up window, so you don’t even have to come inside if you don’t want to, especially with COVID,” he says.
Whether it’s a cookie or ice cream craving or both, Nickerson says Rookie’s is the sweet tooth paradise.
“When you can have a memory attached to one of our spaces, that’s really cool for us because we all remember going somewhere and getting ice cream as a kid, so we’re trying to facilitate more of the space to host people and curate an experience for people to see their friends hang out with their family and have a memory or a laugh over something,” he says.
The spring menu features the classic chocolate chip cookie, lemon crinkle, snickerdoodle, confetti and triple chocolate. Ice cream flavors include black raspberry, strawberry, vanilla and cookies and cream, lemon crunch and mint chip.
Rookie’s is open Thursdays through Sundays 11p.m. to 10 p.m. Visit their website here or their Instagram.
About the Author:
Rachael Smith is an award-winning journalist with a print journalism degree from Radford University. She serves on the Marketing Committee for the Young Professionals of Central Virginia and has a passion for telling stories and discovering hidden gems.
