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From January:
A liquid nitrogen ice cream shop called Sub Zero that was planned for West Main Street in Patchogue Village is instead heading to nearby North Ocean Avenue.
The owners’ new plans for the shop were approved by the village Planning Board Tuesday night.
Sub Zero was first headed to the former Casa Di Maria Shoes location at 38 West Main Street, next to Bierhaus Patchogue.
“The buildout cost for that location exceeded our budget,” explained Charlie Zollo, also of Patchogue, who’s hoping to open Long Island’s only Sub Zero location with his wife, Colleen, and two sons, Alan and David, this coming April.
Sub Zero Ice Cream & Yogurt, a national franchiser based in Utah, was founded by a couple that had interest in customizable food, according to the company’s website. They had developed a method of freezing liquified ice cream using liquid nitrogen.
“Since Sub Zero ice cream is frozen so quickly, the ice crystals hardly have a chance to grow, which results in extremely small ice crystals and the smoothest, creamiest ice cream possible,” the website reads.
In a Sub Zero location, patrons get to create their own concoctions before the ice cream is frozen by picking their choices of flavors, creams, and mix-in toppings.
(See a video of Sub Zero ice cream being made below.)
Charlie Zollo said that being an electrical engineer, he was attracted to the concept, which gained nationwide notoriety after it was featured on the hit ABC show Shark Tank in 2013.
“I like the science of it,” Charlie Zollo said. “And I’ve always been a little bit of a foodie.”
That, he said, and his son David has a culinary background and a restaurant management degree, while his other son, Alan, has a business degree.
The family did plenty of research before choosing their hometown, he said.
“This is a great market,” Charlie Zollo said of Patchogue Village’s booming business district.
The Zollos do plan to keep Sub Zero open late to capture some of the crowd from 89 North Music Venue, as well as maintain lunchtime hours to attract families.
Concerns were raised by the Planning Board Tuesday night about the safety of the liquid nitrogen.
Zollo assured getting frosbit is not a concern.
“You can put your hand in it, splash in it, and it’s OK,” he said. “It would take about 30 seconds [of direct contact] before you start to feel the cold and then you feel the cold very quickly, but it’s more than enough time to move your hand.”
He also said the liquid nitrogen is stored in a “steel, double-walled vessel” that is prominently displayed within the shop.
“People like to come look at the tank,” he said. “But there’s really nothing that’s going to happen.”
Photo: Still from Making Sub Zero Ice Cream YouTube video by superdataman
