Janet Impastato, left, and Tina Grello, pose in front of their storefront at 3127 Beach Blvd S.The news surrounding Tropical Storm Elsa isn’t all bad. Let It Be Ice Cream in Gulfport is offering “pay what you can” treats in an effort to ward off a potential melting crisis.
From 4-6 p.m. the store at 3127 Beach Blvd S. was filled with cones and sprinkles, some customers paying just coins for the ice cold sweets on Monday, July 5.
The idea came when owners Janet Impasto and Tina Grello recalled damage to the shop after Hurricane Eta last year.
“We had six inches of water and lost a lot of inventory,” Impasto said. “The last thing we need is too much ice cream.”
The owners plan to raise equipment off the ground, and hope that Gulfport develops a big sweet tooth in the event that Elsa prompts power loss and flooding.
For those that missed the ice cream special, Let it Be will do another “pay what you can” special from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, July 6.
“We’re playing it by ear. I’m not sure if we’ll do another,” Impasto said. “Either way it was a fun couple of hours for the community.”
Owner of Let It Be Ice Cream Janet Impastato points to where the water had reached outside of her business during Tropical Storm Eta late Wednesday evening, November 11, 2020. “Yeah, we took in a ton of water, but the community showed up in amazing, amazing fashion,” said Impastato. “It could have been worse.” Photo by Laura Mulrooney.
