This Long Island ice cream shop has a new name and a full comfort-food menu — but the homemade scoops aren’t going anywhere.
What was once a sweet spot known for its homemade ice cream has officially turned up the heat.
The former Frozen Side, located at 3286 Long Beach Road in Oceanside, has been reimagined as Sizzle & Scoop — adding savory flavor to its already popular lineup of shakes and sundaes.
The new menu is all about comfort food. Burgers take center stage, with hot dogs, chicken nuggets, and grilled cheese (with or without bacon) rounding out the offerings.
Sides include onion rings and loaded fries, smothered in cheese, bacon and a drizzle of your favorite dipping sauce.
“I’ve been to all the other local burger places and realized it isn’t rocket science,” said owner Charles Mattina. “We can offer a good burger at a good price — plus, no one else has ice cream as good as ours.”
Mattina said the shift was born out of necessity, as rising costs made it tough to sustain a year-round ice cream shop alone. But the inspiration also hit close to home.
“I have a 7-year-old,” he said with a laugh. “When my wife got pregnant, I looked at my sales and realized it wasn’t going to cut it. If I wanted to stay on Long Island and have the best for my son, I knew it was time to think about new ways to bring in money.”
Mattina has been in the ice cream business most of his life.
He started scooping at his dad’s Carvel shop in Queens when he was 12, opened his own Carvel in 1992, and went independent in 2018 — rebranding as Frozen Side with his own homemade ice cream recipes.
After months of construction delays, Sizzle & Scoop officially opened its doors on Sept. 27.
“We were supposed to be back in business by the early spring, but the construction turned into such a headache,” Mattina said. “My loyal customers kept texting me, ‘when, when, when?’ I told them we’d be open by summer at the latest.
“Well, it took until the end of September — but thankfully, here we are.”
And while the menu might be expanding, Mattina promises the ice cream will stay exactly the same.
“We still make our banana ice cream with real bananas — no fake flavors. We make our coffee ice cream with real coffee. I still mix it all by hand, and that won’t change.”
Sizzle & Scoop is open seven days a week at 11 a.m. for lunch, dinner, and dessert.
Top: The former Frozen Side, located at 3286 Long Beach Road in Oceanside, has been reimagined as Sizzle & Scoop. (Credit: Andrew Rappaport)
