Oregon’s first Stella’s Ice Cream opens in Sherwood

SHERWOOD, Ore. — Sherwood’s residents have a new, cool option for specialty desserts.

The first Stella’s Ice Cream franchise in Oregon opened June 20 in Sherwood at the Langer’s shopping center.

“What sets Stella's apart from everyone else is our commitment to making premium ice cream with high-quality ingredients while providing outstanding service to the Sherwood community,” said Owner Jenifer Nelles. “Our core values are to be uncommonly kind, celebrate everything and to be ever progressing while always staying rooted in our local community.”

The Idaho-based franchise’s menu features waffle cones, sugar cones, dipped cones, or bowls with cookies and brownies, and more than a dozen ice cream flavors from vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry to local flairs like duck pond, Oregon trail, beaver dam, and Sherwood forest. There are also dairy-free and gluten-free options.

“While I love all of our flavors, including all of the dairy free options, I love our Oregon Trail flavor,” Nelles said. “It is a salted caramel based ice cream with chocolate flakes, granola and hazelnuts mixed in. It is the perfect combination of sweet, salty and crunchy. We make all of our ice creams at the store.”

The 10 classic flavors are always available, as well as a rotating flavor of the week. 

“That leaves us with the flexibility and fun to create six of our own flavors. Oregon Trail is one of those!” Nelles said.

Since Stella’s was originally named after a pet bulldog, the menu features a Bulldog Bowl challenge: If one person can eat $50 worth of ice cream — in 30 minutes with no bathroom breaks — they get it for free.

Nelles and her husband Eric decided about a year ago to open their own business, and came across the Stella’s franchise as an opportunity.

“We also had the chance to visit Stella's in Idaho on a few occasions as we drove through on our way to club lacrosse tournaments for our son, and we absolutely loved it,” Nelles said. “The ice cream, the service, the general vibe were all something we fell in love with. As we learned more about Stella's mission and their commitment to making good quality ice cream we decided it would be a good fit for us and Oregon.”

Nelles said they chose Sherwood because they have a lot of ties to the local community here, and felt the town is dedicated to supporting small businesses. 

“When we found our location, in the same parking lot as Langer's and right next to the Goldfish Swim School we knew it would be a winner,” Nelles said.

Nelles’ background is in insurance, while Eric has experience in food service and food sales. 

“We believe our 'corporate lives' have allowed us to take on this adventure relatively easily,” Nelles said. “We have learned a lot along the way and there are still many things we have to learn, but we feel like we're getting the hang of it pretty quickly.”

She said she found the City of Sherwood, Sherwood’s community, and the neighboring businesses to be extremely kind and helpful along their journey to opening.

“We hope we have created a place that is fresh, fun and a place to gather for celebrations,” Nelles said. “We strive to live up to our mission, "Serving All Kinds", by celebrating the unique diversity in our community and providing many ice cream options for those with dietary restrictions.”

Nelles said she and her husband plan to open two or three more Stella’s locations over the next few years.

“Our hope is our customers feel like family: warm, comfortable and loved,” Nelles said. “We want them to think of Stella's during all of their important life moments, the highs and the lows, because ice cream can always make life just a little better. We believe in kindness and strive to serve joy in every scoop.”

Stella’s Ice Cream

Where: 21558 S.W. Langer Farms Pkwy, Bldg B, Ste. 101

When: Noon-11 p.m.

Call: (503) 453-0399