On a rather ordinary road in Medford, among the farmland, parks and business fronts lies an ice cream place radiating with potential—and happiness. As soon as you enter through its doors, Happy Place Homemade invites you into its joyous celebration of ice cream, donuts and coffee. It has garnered a renowned reputation in the two short months since its opening, and for good reason.
Happy Place Homemade is situated on 690 Stokes Road, taking up the space that used to belong to a bank. Their homemade menu focuses on soft-serve ice cream, providing their own unique spins on the classic American delight. One notable example is the Happystack, which is best described as soft serve stacked tall with a donut topped with a dollop of more soft serve; another is their take on a parfait, simply called a Perfect, which is two servings of soft serve, two toppings and a drizzle. Happy Place also offers a wide variety of donut and coffee options, and their signature Homemades are refreshments with distinct flavor profiles. The establishment is family-owned, with most ingredients being locally sourced. On top of that, the menu is refreshed monthly, with their “test kitchen” being a part of the menu where experimental new items, up to three at a time, are updated weekly.
One of owner Tyler Gerber’s goals for Happy Place is for it to be a landmark in Medford, and by extension, the rest of South Jersey. Growing up in Medford, Gerber always thought his hometown needed a true community hub.
“I was like, you know what? Medford needed a place that they can really truly be proud of,” he said.
Gerber leveraged the business skills he sharpened while attending St. Joseph’s University, his general interest in cooking as well as his time spent touring ice cream facilities in Philadelphia, among other things, to create the idea behind Happy Place Homemade.
Another one of Gerber’s goals is the customer experience.
“Our number one thing that we focus on is [the] experience that you have when you come into Happy Place’s doors. I want you leaving happier than when you walked in that door,” said Gerber.
Part of that comes with Happy Place’s interior, which is home to impressive detail. Right at the entrance is a giant “Welcome to your Happy Place” mural that doubles as a sitting area. From there, the interior opens up to the extravagant main room. The floor is made up of angled 24-by-24-inch black and white diamond-shaped porcelain; on one side of the room are blue diner-style booths and granite tabletops, while on the other is the area to order in front of TVs that display the menu fluidly. The ceiling is mahogany complimented with neon pink lighting. It is a pleasant surprise to walk in, as every intricate part attempts to grab your attention. Immediately, you get the sense that Happy Place feels modern yet at the same time vaguely nostalgic.
That feeling of nostalgia is something Happy Place is calling “new nostalgia,” the main philosophy present in their brand, menu and interior decoration.
“[New nostalgia] is this blend. It’s truly a blend [of] the old and the new,” Gerber said. It combines the neon diner look of bygone eras with the premium modern aesthetic of today, while also mixing classic chocolate and vanilla with new original flavors.
In my experience, there has been a lot to like about Happy Place Homemade but by far my favorite part was the soft-serve ice cream. I tried the Irish Cream & Espresso Twist ($6.50), the House Favorite Happystack ($10.50), a Strawberry Shortcake Happystack ($10.50) and a Mint Fudge Brownie Perfect ($9.50). In each one, the ice cream was consistently creamy and beautifully airy. The flavor profiles were rich; the best among them were the Happystacks, with my personal favorite being, fittingly, the House Favorite. It is composed of a chocolate and vanilla twist, a glazed donut, mini chocolate chips and hot fudge, and I loved the excessively-chocolate flavor. The texture of the donut in the presence of the soft serve only augmented the treat further. The Strawberry Shortcake—composed of a strawberry and sweet cream twist, a strawberry donut, cinnamon streusel and a strawberry drizzle—was a close second for me for many of the same reasons.
“I would…say a happy stack, in general, perfectly epitomizes Happy Place and what it’s supposed to be,” Gerber said, and I would have to wholeheartedly agree.
I also tried a box of classic chocolate donuts ($16) and a Minted Pineapple Homemade ($5); both were delectable but not as outstanding as the
soft serve. The Homemade had a handwritten “You’re Loved” message with a heart all done in Sharpie, which I found cute.
Beyond the food, the ambience at Happy Place was appropriately splendid. Both times I went, the place was bustling. Families came in with their children roaming about joyfully with their ice cream and there already seemed to be regular customers chatting about their days with the employees and owner Tyler Gerber. For such a recently opened establishment, the current engagement with the community is certainly strong and will only continue to grow.
“Just the other day…my neighbor’s three kids were… like ‘We want to go to Happy Place,’” Gerber said, “that’s what does it for me; that’s literally why I built this business.”
I will undoubtedly be returning to Happy Place to enjoy the wonderful soft-serve ice cream again. Everything on the menu is at an affordable price—for a family of four, it costs a little over $50. Admittedly, Happy Place is a decent distance away from Cherry Hill, but I found the experience entirely—and happily—worth it.
