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Two-hour Trips From the MOV: Ice cream factory offers family fun

Photo by Amy Phelps Ye Olde Mill is a historic grist mill on the property of the Velvet Ice Cream Factory, that now serves as a restaurant, ice cream parlor, gift shop and interactive museum.

July is National Ice Cream month, and an ice cream factory is only 2 hours away in Licking County, Ohio, in the small city of Utica.

This year, Velvet Ice Cream will celebrate 104 years of business. The company was founded in 1914 by Joseph Dager and four generations of the family have since been involved. The factory is located on 25 acres of wooded land, and a historic 1817 grist mill with water wheel is the focal point of the grounds.

There, visitors can eat ice cream or have lunch in the restaurant or shop in the gift shop that also has an interactive museum on the history of ice cream.

The factory has a display area and windows in which visitors can watch as workers make the ice cream, as well as watch a video on the process. Tour guides also talk about the history of the building and the company on a short tour.

In a park setting are three shelter houses for picnicking and a playground for kids. Further down is a nature trail and two catch-and-release ponds that families can fish in.

Photo by Amy Phelps There are many different kinds of ice cream to try at the parlor in waffle, pretzel and cake cones.

“There’s no better way to create great family memories than enjoying ice cream together and spending the day at Ye Old Mill,” said Velvet Ice Cream President Luconda Dager. “Families love the free factory tours, our onsite restaurant, museum, playground, pond and hiking trails — and of course, hand-dipped Velvet Ice Cream cones, shakes, sodas and sundaes. It’s a wonderful and incredibly affordable way to spend quality time together.”

Carol Thress, director of sales and marketing for Explore Licking County, agrees, mentioning the company’s recent expansion. “It’s a great destination and we’re lucky to have it in our county,” she said. “They are very involved with the community.”

Thress said the ice cream factory isn’t the only feature of the county. “We have so many wonderful things going on in our community right now.” The county seat, Newark, has recently gotten $10M to restore its county courthouse. “The downtown square has gone through some amazing revitalization and renovations,” she said. The city also has the Canal Market District, a full city block open-air farmer’s market pavilion.

It is open on Tuesday and Friday nights from 4-7 p.m. “It’s truly the place to be,” she said.

“We have a strong local food movement happening in our community.”

Photo by Amy Phelps Older machines used in the factory to freeze and insert toppings into the ice cream are on display in the viewing room of the factory.

Next to the market is The Works Ohio Center for History, Art and Technology. It is a campus of buildings with an art gallery that is free to the public, with rotating exhibits.

The paid museum is not your ordinary museum, Thress said. “It’s very interactive for children with STEM displays, hands-on exhibits in which you can write code, see a robot move, build your own race car and so many cool and interactive things.” The second floor of the museum shows the history of the county and a glass studio is also on the property in which families can see how to create a piece of art out of glass. “It’s a fabulous place for families.”

Also nearby is Dawes Arboretum with 2000 acres of nature. “There is lots to explore, great hiking trails and storytime paths in which you take a hike and the markers along the way tell a children’s story,” she said.

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Hitting the Road: Velvet Ice Cream in Utica, Ohio, is Worth the Trip

Photo by Amy Phelps A factory worker prepares to move large ice cream containers for use in restaurants.

Getting there

* The Velvet Ice Cream Factory is 124 miles north of the Mid-Ohio Valley area. It’s about a 2 hour drive via 1-77N.

Eating

* Ye Old Mill in the factory has an ice cream parlor and a small restaurant. The city of Utica has Watts Restaurant, * The Pioneer Restaurant, Nick’s Village Pizza and C&E Pizza Factory. Nearby Newark and Heath have many chain and local restaurants.

Shopping

Photo by Amy Phelps A 1964 Velvet Clock sits in the restaurant and ice cream parlor inside Ye Olde Mill.

* Utica hosts several small shops and a distillery. Newark and Heath also have some small shops to visit.

Outdoors

* There is a nature trail and picnic area on the grounds of the factory. In Heath, the Newark Earthworks is a large park with burial mounds, much like in Marietta. In Newark, the Dawes Arboretum is a 2,000-acre tree museum.

Find It Online

* Licking County: explorelc.org

Photo by Amy Phelps A close-up of the wheel at the mill at Velvet Ice Cream Factory is shown.

* Velvet Ice Cream: velveticecream.com

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Velvet Ice Cream Hours

* July and August: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

* September: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

* October: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

* Tours not offered on weekends, major holidays and production not always scheduled on Fridays.

Photo by Amy Phelps One of the many displays in the museum shows old scoops and signs of Velvet Ice Cream.

Photo by Amy Phelps An interactive display shows children the 6 stages of making ice cream. When the handle is cranked, different pieces move.

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