Catawba Island's Dockside Dairy has the family coney taste nailed down
After purchasing their ice cream shop on a whim a year ago, Kari and Kip Krupp think they have captured the classic taste of their coney sauce and are thrilled with the growth of the Dockside Dairy.
Dockside Dairy is a quick food and ice cream shop at 4261 NW Catawba Road, Catawba Island, near the Miller Ferry.
“The building and the ice cream shop have been here since the 1950s. Everybody knows it. It was started by Coach Cook. He was a local football coach, and people love to talk about Coach Cook. We went back to the classic coney dogs and chicken sandwiches. That’s our food base,” Kari Krupp said. “We sell a lot of hot dogs and coney dogs here. We have a lot of people who take the ferry who stop. It’s definitely a staple for a lot of people, a must-stop in the summer.”
The Port Clinton Chamber of Commerce and Main Street Port Clinton held a belated ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday. After the ceremony, the couple told their story about the belated event.
Kari Krupp is from Green Springs and Kip Krupp grew up in the neighborhood across from their new shop.
“Every offseason is going to be a little unique, but hopefully not as unique as last offseason,” Kip Krupp said.
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They opened July 4 weekend last year, a week after buying the business.
“We put a lot of effort into this," Kip Krupp said. "Kari has always wanted to own a small business. "
But getting to this point wasn't as planned as you'd think.
Innocently enough, they visited the area for ice cream. They walked around and the sign outside said, "For Sale."
"I said, ‘Oh, my God,’" Kip Krupp recalled. "(Kari) was a rock, pretty focused on getting this place. I was skeptical, but I’m thankful. We brought back the coney sauce and the experience has been pretty cool.”
Ice cream is in Kip’s veins. His father owned the Dairy Korner on Ohio 163 and Sand Road where Kip worked as a teenager. It’s also the source of their chili recipe. The building is no longer standing, but the homemade coney sauce is still served at Dockside Dairy.
“I worked at my dad’s place, when I was 14, 15 and 16 years old. We’ve carried on his coney sauce,” Kip Krupp said. “That was a big decision, because I can still remember the taste, and we’ve got the taste down now. I like it. Not everyone’s going to like it. Everyone has their opinion.”
Many local residents and visitors have fond memories of both shops and stop often to reminisce, glad to have aspects of both places evident at Dockside Dairy.
Kip Krupp encourages people to try the coneys, with the family recipe that is more than half a century old. He credits his wife with capturing that flavor.
“We had his mom’s recipe, but it didn’t have any amounts," Kari Krupp said. "So, we had to experiment, and we had some former employees who said they had the recipe. I think we’ve really got it right now. People love it."
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Both have day jobs. For the past 30 years Kip Krupp has been a production planner for USG, and Kari Krupp works in a medical office. Kip Krupp has also had what he calls a minimal food service background.
The aging building needed upgrades, and the Krupps have invested a lot of sweat equity in the property.
“You want to make money. You want to keep it going. So, you keep doing things to it,” Kip Krupp said. “We gutted the inside of that place. That walk-in was seven-by-seven and took up a lot of that interior space. We’re kind of unique, everything’s on casters in there, the machines got refurbished.”
The couple worked on creating modern efficiencies.
“We got a three-bin cooler and created some greater efficiencies. Of course, there’s the aesthetics on the outside. We repainted. That shed looked like it was ready to fall down. We put that walk-in between them, poured some concrete," he said.
“All those windows were blocked. You couldn’t see outside the windows. Being able to see out is a big deal.”
Foster Thompson agrees. He is in his third year working at the shop. He started the day after he turned 14, after his older brother had been working there.
“See that window, that looks on the bay? We can see all the storm fronts come in. They can get pretty big. When the parking lot’s empty, you can see the waves splash up. It can get pretty volatile with the mist and distant vapor,” Foster said.
His favorite part about working at the shop is getting the smiles when he hands people their ice cream.
“I remember as a little kid growing up around here and coming here all the time, getting that ice cream makes you so happy,” Foster said.
He lives in Columbus, but his family is in the area for the summer.
Kip Krupp gushed about his staff, including 17-year-old Ella Miller’s cooking skills.
“Ella, I can’t believe what she can do. She is so calm, cool and collected. She can get the fries and onion rings right every single time without overcooking them. She’s only been here this year, and she’s managing,” he said. “She’s phenomenal, and she’s such a nice kid.”
He also talked up Foster, who he credited with bringing continuity with his several years of experience.
“We’re blessed. We’re blessed. They are beyond their years, all of them. They are awesome,” Kip Krupp said. “It’s been hard, but we’re looking forward to some good years, especially if we can retain these kids. That’s the goal, create a positive work environment, make sure they are happy, and then in a couple years they can send their little brothers and sisters.”
Dockside is a seasonal shop open from Memorial Day to Labor Day. They use local products including Toft's Dairy and Twin Oast Rootbeer. Hours are Wednesday-Monday from noon to 9 p.m. The business is closed Tuesdays.
419-332-2674
This article originally appeared on Port Clinton News Herald: Dockside Dairy serves up ice cream, coneys with family history