Iowa All Over: Le Mars is ‘Ice Cream Capital of the World’

LE MARS — In Le Mars, Iowa, every day is summer.

The northwest Iowa town of 9,800 in Plymouth County is home to Blue Bunny Ice Cream.

The popular brand was born in 1935 when the Wells brothers — who had been making ice cream since 1913 — ran a 'Name that Ice Cream' contest in the Sioux City Journal. The winner won $25 for the name and depiction of the original Blue Bunny character.

The workers at Wells Enterprises, the largest privately held and family-owned ice cream manufacturer in the country, produce more than 150 million gallons of ice cream at two plants — one in Le Mars and the other in St. George, Utah.

More ice cream is made in Le Mars than in any place in the world, earning the city the nickname 'Ice Cream Capital of the World.'

Le Mars' connection to ice cream is proudly on display throughout the city, where banners proclaim, 'Life is Sweet in Le Mars.'

Fifty 6-foot-tall ice cream cone sculptures stand in front of businesses. You'll find a Girl Scout cookie ice cream cone, a rainbow cone and one with coins on it that sits in front of a bank.

In 2011, the Blue Bunny Ice Cream parlor moved to downtown Le Mars into the historic George E. Pew building, which opened in 1875, six years after the city of Le Mars was incorporated.

A giant sundae sculpture, topped with a bright red cherry, stands in front of the ice cream parlor. It's a favorite place to pose for pictures with your ice cream cone and a big smile.

The parlor attracts visitors from across the state. It offers traditional ice cream flavors such as butter pecan and cookies and cream, as well as 'parlor picks,' including the Tortoise and the Hare that is a fudge brownie topped with caramel and pecans.

On a late June afternoon, members of the Spencer freshmen softball and baseball teams poured into the parlor, still wearing their purple uniforms after finishing a game, lining up for a postgame treat.

Later, a family of five from Sioux City came in. The two girls pressed their faces to the display case, pointing at the flavors they wanted. After their order was up, the family found spots on stools at the counter.

The parlor's marble ice cream bar was salvaged from M & M Bakery and Café in O'Neill, Neb. The parlor's grand staircase leads to a second-floor museum that tells the history of the Wells company. The building is also home to a Blue Bunny gift shop and event meeting rooms.

If you go

What: Blue Bunny Ice Cream parlor

Where: 115 Central Ave. NW, Le Mars

Hours: April through September: 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 10 p.m. Sunday. October through March: noon to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m. Sunday.

For more information: Call (712) 546-4522 or www.bluebunnyicecreamparlor.com.