Husband and wife duo, Jessica and Alex Wood, have been slinging scoops of their handmade small batch French ice cream around the metro since 2021. You might have also spotted it on the menu at Billie’s Grocery, served alongside a stack of waffles. Now, their ice cream pop-up concept, French Custard, has found a permanent home in Brookside’s Morningside Shops and is expected to open at the end of the month (5905 Main st. KCMO).
French ice cream, or custard, is traditionally made with a base of milk, cream, eggs, and sugar. The result is a super creamy texture that sets it apart from traditional American ice cream. However, unlike fast food custards where the ice cream is pulled from a machine and isn’t frozen, the Woods are possibly the first in KC to pasteurize their own ice cream allowing them to forgo stabilizers and serve it as frozen scoops. One of the biggest benefits of pasteurizing their own ice cream base is the ability to control excess sugars from flavor to flavor. “Our ice cream is higher in fat and there’s definitely plenty of sugar in there,” says Jessica, “but you get a much cleaner tasting product that is just very balanced.”
Along with creating their own ice cream base, French Custard also makes their own candy for mix-ins, such as honeycomb and toffee. Two of their most popular flavors. Artisan ice cream flavors will include French vanilla (made traditionally with egg yolks), cereal milk, pistachio, lemon curd with homemade lemon bars, among others for a total of sixteen rotating flavors. Pints will also be available. The waffle cones will, of course, be made from scratch.
The small ice cream shop will be counter service only, and while it does not have enough space for indoor seating, they hope to have a few outdoor spots. The location is just feet away from the Trolley Trail.
