Handel’s Ice Cream, a growing ice cream chain known for its homemade flavors made fresh in-store, is getting ready to open a new location in San Diego at 4227 Genesee Ave.
The company’s new location is set to open in a former Starbucks space within the Genesee Plaza Shopping Center in the Clairemont Mesa neighborhood, according to documents recently submitted to the San Diego Department of Environmental Health and Quality. Franchise owner Josh Barton tells What Now San Diego that he expects to open the store in Spring 2027. Customers can expect a wide variety of homemade ice cream flavors, sundaes, shakes, cones, and frozen treats.
Handel’s traces its roots back to 1945, when founder Alice Handel began making ice cream using recipes developed with fresh fruit from her backyard garden in Youngstown, Ohio. The original shop quickly became a local favorite and remained under her ownership for four decades. The brand later expanded under new ownership and now operates more than 150 locations across 15 states.
The company continues to make its ice cream fresh at each store using many of the methods that helped establish the brand nearly 80 years ago. According to Handel’s, each location serves a rotating selection of flavors from more than 100 recipes. Popular offerings include Birthday Cake, Black Raspberry Chunk, Graham Central Station, Mint Chocolate Chip, and Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie.
Beyond traditional scoops, the menu features sundaes, Hurricanes, milkshakes, banana splits, ice cream sandwiches, dipped cones, and pints and quarts for take-home. Customers can also find sorbets, sherbets, and dairy-free options, including Chocolate Almond Milk and Coconut Milk flavors. The company regularly rotates selections, giving customers new choices throughout the year.
This will be an excellent landing space for Handel’s Ice Cream, given the shopping center’s established customer base and its location in one of San Diego’s most densely populated neighborhoods. The Clairemont Mesa location will further expand the brand’s footprint in the region while bringing another dessert option to the Genesee Avenue corridor.
