A new dessert shop has rolled into Santa Maria, offering customers both a sweet treat and a hands-on experience.
Rolld Ice Cream, a specialty shop known for its made-to-order rolled ice cream, recently expanded from Santa Barbara and opened its first Santa Maria location. The shop, located at 471 Betteravia Rd., allows customers to watch their ice cream being created on a frozen plate and rolled by hand in front of them.
The business is owned by Orcutt natives Lucy Genge, 22, and Peyton Krasner, 24, a couple who said their goal is to bring something positive and memorable to the place they grew up.
“Honestly, we just wanted to be able to provide something fun and great, something happy for the community that we grew up in,” Krasner said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re old or young, happy or sad — everybody loves ice cream. It’s going to cheer them up. We all have memories of being a kid, going out with your family, getting ice cream, and just having a fun experience,” Krasner said.
Rolld Ice Cream specializes exclusively in rolled ice cream, a style made by pouring a liquid base onto a subzero metal plate, mixing in ingredients and shaping the frozen product into rolls.
“We only do rolled ice cream. We don’t do soft serve or yogurt. It’s a cold plate at -22 degrees. We take the liquid base, mix toppings depending on the flavor, spread it, freeze it, roll it up, and serve it with whipped cream and toppings,” Krasner said.
Beyond the product itself, the interactive preparation is part of the appeal.
“We make the ice cream fresh right in front of you so that adds another fun aspect. It brings out the inner child in everybody,” Krasner said.
The idea to open in Santa Maria came after the success of their Santa Barbara storefront, which followed earlier pop-up and catering ventures that began around 2022.
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“We originally started as a pop-up tent doing private events, then got a trailer for events and catering. After saving money, we sold the trailer and got our first location in Santa Barbara,” Krasner said.
Genge said the decision to expand closer to home was driven by demand from friends and family.
“Over the past year, we realized how much we wanted to bring it to Santa Maria where we’re from. Friends and family kept asking about it but couldn’t always go to Santa Barbara. So we decided our next store would be here,” she said.
The shop offers eight flavors at a time, including four classics and four rotating options that change weekly. Genge, who develops the rotating menu, said customer favorites and seasonal trends guide her creations.
“One super popular flavor is the Dubai chocolate pistachio — we added it last summer and never took it off because people love it. It’s our No. 1,” she said.
Other flavors range from dessert-inspired combinations like brownie batter and salted chocolate chip cookie to more unconventional options, along with fruit-based and seasonal selections.
The shop features a clean, minimalistic design with white and yellow tones meant to evoke warmth and happiness, while keeping the focus on the ice cream-making experience.
“We’re all about kindness and providing a great experience. If you come in feeling down, we want you to leave happy and satisfied,” Genge said.
