From Bronx apartment to North Jersey: Mom and daughter build ice business

For one mother and daughter, ice cream is more than a sweet treat. It’s a way to share their culture and a taste of home.

Palmas Ice Cream in Hawthorne started with an idea born in a Bronx apartment. Belkis Concepción began making homemade ice pops to sell at her daughter’s hair salon. As word spread, so did the demand for her creations.

Her daughter, Rosa DeJesus, eventually saw an opportunity to turn that passion into a business.

Palmas Ice Cream now serves up unique, Dominican-inspired flavors, including passion fruit and sweet plantain. The family says the flavors are meant to bring customers back to familiar tastes and memories.

“You eat it and you’re like, ‘I’m back. I'm back in my neighborhood,’” DeJesus said.

The business is also a reflection of the family’s Dominican roots, which they are proud to share with customers as part of Hispanic Heritage Month.

And the family has even bigger plans. They hope to open more Palmas Ice Cream locations across the U.S. and eventually in the Dominican Republic.

For this mom and daughter, every batch represents family, culture and a love for creating something of their own.