New family-run business with homemade ice cream opens in Rockford’s Midtown
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — A new family-owned business specializing in homemade ice cream and other sweet Mexican treats has opened in Midtown.
La Michoacana Denisse, 528 Seventh St., opened its doors for business on Saturday. It fills the the space left vacant after the closure of Kimberly’s Homemade Ice Cream & More, which shut down in July 2022.
Wendy Hernandez, 22, runs the business with her mother, Elida Hernandez, and their husbands.
“We’re new in town,” said Wendy Hernandez, who came here from Elgin about three years ago. “We’re just a small family that’s bringing this up.”
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But her goal is to grow, with a dream of one day adding more locations around the region.
“I just want to make everything big,” she said. “Open other ice cream shops, and just grow, grow grow.”
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Elida Hernandez had run Midtown Gyro House, 226 Seventh St., until it closed roughly two years ago. She then went to work at an ice cream shop about an hour’s drive away before the family decided to open their own business, Wendy Hernandez said.
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Homemade ice cream is the specialty, but the menu expands beyond that with other sweet and savory eats made in house. You can get ice cream bars, walking tacos, specialty yogurts with fruits, mangonadas, shakes, natural juices, horchatas and aguas frescas, which are a sweet blended fruit drink.
“We want to make everything fresh, every single day,” Wendy Hernandez said.
The shop also has daily specials. This week there were mangonadas, banana splits, and yogurt with mango, pineapple, nuts and strawberry.
The business is named after Wendy Hernandez’s 2-year-old daughter, and its logo has a likeness to the toddler, too.
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The shop is at the corner of Seventh Street and Fifth Avenue, near Ernie’s Midtown Pub and the Rockford Public Schools administration building.
Hernandez said she’s been pleased with the response so far. They opened their doors without much marketing on Saturday, but had people find them through social media and come try it out. One customer, she said. came from as far away as Aurora.
“We’ve been having people come and go all day,” she said. “We’re blessed to be here.”
Fast facts| La Michoacana Denisse
Where: 528 Seventh St., Rockford
Opened: Saturday, June 24, 2023
Phone: 815-670-0440
Hours: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily
On the web: Facebook page HERE.
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas.
