Ice cream isn’t just a summer thing in New England — it’s a year-round passion. And we’re always thrilled to find a new spot — especially when the ice cream is terrific. That’s the case with Jamie’s Ice Cream Co. in Cambridge, the fun new sibling to the Brookline walk-up window right next to owner Jamie Siracusa’s other business, the coffee shop Brothers & Sisters Co.
Siracusa, 30, grew up in Connecticut and studied business at Emmanuel College. She opened the Brookline cafe at just 23 after working in several coffee shops after college. During the pandemic, she added a take-out window for coffee and pastries and started tinkering with creating recipes for ice cream. Her first flavor? Banana pudding.
Texture is a primary focus here, says Siracusa. Unlike many scoop shops that use pre-made ice cream bases that typically include stabilizers and gums, the team here makes the bases from scratch, churning the frozen treats in-house. “People started noticing the difference,” Siracusa says.
Siracusa’s ice creams are dense and rich with big flavors, studded with outsize bits of nuts, fruits, or candies. The pistachio is nutty and buttery and embedded with whole pistachios; brown sugar cookie dough is littered with bits of dough. Dump Him is loaded with cookie dough, Oreos, M&Ms, brownies, and toffee sauce. The strawberry is a rendition of a strawberry milkshake. “You need a glass of water with the ice cream,” says Siracusa.
The new Cambridge location is cozy in pastels and doubles as a cafe. It opens at 7 a.m. for coffee, pastries, and breakfast sandwiches and brings together the entrepreneur’s two Brookline businesses in one cheery, hangout-friendly spot. 86 Kirkland St., Cambridge, 857-706-1122 and 7 Station St., Brookline, jamiesicecreamco.com.
Ann Trieger Kurland can be reached at anntrieger@gmail.com.
