London’s Mrs. Softee

We've all had momentary thoughts of leaving everything behind to try some kind of fun-sounding job. Zookeeper? Clown? Professional shopper? Most of us, however, never get past the daydreaming stage.

The Lola's on Ice truck is popping up at London parties.

Richards has been titillating taste buds at corporate parties, birthdays, and weddings.

But last year, not long after the vague idea of selling ice cream from a truck drifted into the mind of London restaurateur Morfudd Richards, she found herself poking around on eBay, then bidding on a 1970s ice cream truck about 300 miles away in Cornwall. It was something of a whim to be sure, but as quickly as you can say "highest bidder," she found she'd won the thing.

Now, suited up in a rig that's known as Lola's on Ice, Richards titillates taste buds at corporate parties, birthdays, weddings, and other events, dishing out a wild wizardry of unusual flavors to curious - and curiously satisfied - kids and adults alike.

"I'd never made ice cream in my life," says Richards, who is in her 40s and has owned Lola's Restaurant in Islington for about 10 years. But chefs in her restaurant had. So with a truck at home and no business plan in mind, she made room in her kitchen last year and started experimenting. While Richards was happy to churn out favorites such as raspberry sorbet, it was the unusual combinations such as pineapple and chili that intrigued her.

She was equally fearless when it came to her truck, whose engine blew up on the drive home after picking it up. Richards decided the vehicle should have a psychedelic theme "to fit the era," so she painted butterflies and flowers on it. "I'd never done that, either."

While ice cream may be having its moment - goat's milk varieties are popping up everywhere and hip ice cream trucks can be found tooling around Los Angeles - Richards may be the only one who's making these particular vintages: A beetroot with black currant flavor, a chocolate-and-thyme ice cream, a wasabi sorbet, and a deconstructed pesto sorbet. Says Richards of her horseradish ice cream: "People love the fact that there's the hot spiciness within the sweet creaminess of the ice cream. It's a hot and cold combination."

You probably won't spot Lola's on Ice at a random street corner with a passel of kids on line - for now, Richards' goods are only available by reservation. Guests are encouraged to choose the flavors for their event. "I can't get too far out of London, and my truck only travels at 30 miles an hour," she says, which partially explains the wowed reactions of young kids and reminiscent gazes of adults when she passes by. But soon, Richards is hoping to branch out her icy ways in a more scientific manner by exploring molecular gastronomy. Her goal is to have "both a kitchen and a laboratory," she says. "We'll work on flavor combinations and study why something works molecularly."

Until then, Richards will continue entertaining guests with her experiments, maybe adding a dash of theater to her visits to parties - as if having a psychedelically painted ice cream truck showing up for your birthday wasn't exciting enough. "I could make it into a science lesson," she says. "If you add liquid nitrogen to a custard base, it turns to ice cream in 30 seconds, smoke and everything. There won't be any other ice cream trucks doing that."

Posted on September 04, 2006