Renowned chef Noel McMeel sprinkles a bit of magic on Co Antrim ice cream maker

A chance meeting with renowned chef Noel McMeel, culinary director at the luxury Lough Erne Resort in Enniskillen, provided ice cream maker Ben Boyd of Ben’s Ice Cream Studio in Toomebridge with a hugely encouraging boost for the Co Antrim family business.

Ben, 22, met the top chef when he was staying at the hotel with his fiancé.

“I had an opportunity to talk to Noel about my ice cream there and to seek his advice about supplying the hotel’s superb Catalina Restaurant, voted Northern Ireland’s Best Restaurant,” explains Ben. “We both come from the Moneyglass area, which is close to the base of my business in Toomebridge village.

"He was immensely supportive and helped with flavour combinations. We subsequently supplied some of our ice cream to him and are hoping to see it on his menus.”

Noel McMeel has a longstanding record of supporting locally sourced produce and has included Dromara’s Abernethy Butter; Broighter Gold Rapeseed Oil from Limavady; O’Doherty’s Meats of Enniskillen, the creator of multi-award winning Irish Black Bacon in particular; Cavanagh Eggs from Newtownbutler and Baronscourt Venison, this year’s winner of the Northern Ireland Regional Golden Fork in the UK Great Taste Awards.

Ben, who comes from a catering background, first started thinking about starting his own business at school and, in 2017, decided on a career in ice cream at the age of 17. He was then forced to put his business plans on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“It was a disappointing blow which held up the development of my small business,” he remembers.

However, he continued to ‘flesh out’ his thinking during a stint at the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise at Loughry, near Cookstown, and subsequently at the famed Carpigiani Gelato University in Bolognia, Italy.

“I learned a huge amount at CAFRE and then at the specialist university in Bolognia, which equipped me with knowledge of ingredients and process as well as business management skills,” he continues.

Established in 2003, the university in Bolognia aims to educate students in the art of artisan gelato and soft serve ice cream. “It’s recognised internationally for developing successful gelato entrepreneurs around the world,” Ben says. “It certainly set me up to realise my dream of becoming a successful creator of quality ice creams,” he adds.

Benefiting from the knowledge and confidence instilled by CAFRE and the Italian university, Ben set up his first Ben’s Ice Cream Studio in Toome in March 2020. He was encouraged and support by his family circle including brothers Kevin and Conor and sister-in-law Sinead, all three now making a major contribution to the small business.

It is founded on a strong commitment to source as much of the ingredients as possible from other local enterprises. The milk, for example, is supplied by Drayne’s Farm, outside Lisburn, which also produces quality ice cream.

“Drayne’s has been very supportive of my ice creams and encouraged the business,” Ben says. “It’s a good example of our focus on ensuring that every ingredient that goes into our product is looked after from farm to finish, from the cows that our milk and cream come from, to the cone that used for scoops in our three stores."

The consistent quality of the ice cream with its original and outstandingly flavours has ensured the popularity of the company, which now has additional small studios doing good business in Magherafelt and Portglenone.

Ben’s role is now to monitor the ice cream making process, ensuring each of the 16 flavours that he has created is consistent in every batch. He also leads the marketing activities for the studios, constantly coming up with creative flavours and ideas.

“Our aim is to provide a destination where people can get away from the day-to-day stresses and treat themselves as well as others to a delicious ice cream treat. We believe that nothing tastes better than putting a little joy into our community,” he adds.

"I am delighted to say that people around the three centres in which our studios are located are immensely supportive of our ice cream products.

“We are essentially a family-run business that provides homemade and locally sourced treats, and we are dedicated to making our community a happier place - one delicious scoop at a time.”