Biggest tourist attraction in Cache Valley sees facelift
Cache Valley’s No. 1 tourist destination, the Aggie Ice Cream and Cheese sales store, is undergoing renovations that will provide for better service and relfect more school spirit.
“This new look will be a reminder of old traditions at Utah State University,” said Whitney Wilkinson of USU Public Relations and Marketing.
“The building was built in 1976 and has not been worked on since,” said professor Don McMahon of the nutrition and food sciences department.
The parlor still had the 1970s burnt-orange decor, he said.
“When people think Utah State, they think blue and white. The new decor will reflect that,” McMahon said. “We are hoping that people will have a better Aggie experience when they come here.”
The entire store, from the tile inside to the sign outside, will be redone, Wilkinson said. McMahon said new bar stools will also be installed.
The renovations will also help prevent customer “traffic jams” common in the summertime, he said, adding the line of people often extends outside the door.
Expected completion will be mid-February, hopefully in time for Valentine’s Day, McMahon said.
New machinery has also been purchased, he said, including two new cheese vats and a $42,000 ice cream cup filler.
The cup filler can fill 60 cups a minute, McMahon said. The new single serving cups will be used for university events, alumni and recruiting, according to a USU press release.
The cups are easier to transport and faster than scooping, McMahon said. There are also certain health food requirements when ice cream is being served, he said. Cups would make it easier to sell ice cream at such locations as basketball games, he said.
McMahon said the cups would be six of the most popular flavors – caramel cashew, chocolate chip mint, chocolate cookie fudge, cookies ‘n’ cream, cookie dough and strawberry cheesecake.
Aggie Ice Cream would like to offer more flavors in the cups, but freezer space is limited, McMahon said.
“A long-term goal is to expand the freezer area,” he said.
When the weather gets warmer, Aggie Ice Cream may invest in a bicycle so someone can ride around a sell ice cream cups on campus.
Another change will be the new look of the ice cream cartons, Wilkinson said.
Each carton will have a history of Aggie Ice Cream and the story of the students who made the ice cream printed on it, she said.
The front will also have a new design. The decision has been narrowed to two designs, she said.
Alumni have been voting and so far the two are “neck and neck,” she said.
Students have the opportunity to vote on the store’s new Web site, www.aggieicecream.com.
The Web site also allows people from all over the country to order Aggie Ice Cream, Wilkinson said. The ice cream is packed in dry ice and shipped overnight to any location, according to the Web site.
Soon people will be able to order cheese gift baskets on-line as well, McMahon said.
McMahon said he hopes the Aggie cheese will sell better in the remodeled store.
Higher cheese sales would allow more internship opportunities for students in the Nutrition and Food Science facilities, McMahon said.
All the profits from the store products go back to the department to help with research and teaching, Wilkinson said.
Currently the department has been researching new cheese products. Two new kinds of cheese have been created, McMahon said. Old Juniper is an aged cheddar cheese and Aggiago is a parmesean-style cheese.
The name Aggiago was suggested by a professor in the department, McMahon said. The name incorporates both the Italian flavor of the cheese as well as Aggie spirit, he said.
The Aggie Ice Cream and Cheese sales store has a long history at USU, beginning in 1888 in the basement of Old Main. It is a big part of a student’s experience at USU, Wilkinson said.
“Everyone has a memory and a favorite flavor of Aggie Ice Cream,” she said.
-ashschiller@cc.usu.edu