Jessica Baroni grew up in Lakeview, and she’s seen the neighborhood go through a lot. Now, she and her family are looking to join its resurgent business community when they open Bella Boo Ice Cream and Snowballs this October.
In addition to ice cream and snowballs, the dessert parlor will also feature several different scratch-made cookies and other treats. The parlor’s signature frozen treat are Potholes, which Baroni describes as more luxurious versions of the popular Dairy Queen Blizzard. Opening day Pothole flavors will include Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Carrot Cake, Banana Pudding, and Apple Pie.
Bella Boo will be located at 108 Harrison Ave. and share a building with Chris’ Specialty Meats. Baroni said the dessert parlor will have an outdoor grassy area that will be fenced off for families with small children to enjoy.
“If you’re there with your 3- or 4-year-old, it’s big enough and you’re boxed in enough that you can comfortably sit for 15 to 20 minutes and talk to a friend or your family member, instead of having to jump back in the car and eat on the go,” she said.
Baroni, who also works as a Metairie-based realtor, noted that Harrison Avenue is very walk-able, and it’s common to see families walking up and down the street. She added that Lakeview has grown a lot in recent years, and she’s happy for her family business to become part of that recent growth, especially given how the neighborhood was devastated by Hurricane Katrina.
“It was tough watching the rebuild after Katrina,” she said. “My parents had lost their house. They were actually saved from their balcony by flatboat after the storm. So looking back at pictures and just seeing, you know what it was and what it’s come back to is amazing.”
