Nibbling in NOVA: Helados Artisan

Helados Artisan is the Instagram ice cream of our dreams.

The last time I wrote a restaurant review was in the spring of 2017, and I’ll be honest I never thought I’d be coming back to this. Thankfully, a funky little ice cream page appeared in my orbit and just needed to be written up so here we are. 

Helados Artisan first appeared on my radar when a local friend sent an instagram reel of some seriously delectable looking ice cream. He explained that this was a local gem; word of mouth only, order through instagram DMs and the best ice cream he’d ever had. I have been a purveyor of ice cream for as long as I can remember and would like to consider Ben and Jerry important figures in my life so I was immediately intrigued. We finally had the mood strike this weekend and so armed with next to no information and a deep enthusiasm for chocolate I sent them a message. One of the owners, Andrea, promptly responded to walk me through the ordering process and soon we had our orders in for two half pints of ice cream. During pickup the other half of the Helados Artisan, Jon, filled me in on how this all came to be. 

Jon and Andrea both compete as body builders, abstaining from most sweets and junk food while training. At the end of 2019 when Jon finished a round of competitions his mother presented them with a carrot cake to celebrate. “We had a whole cake, we cut it up and froze it but we said what else can we do with it?” It turns out the answer was in a household ice cream maker they had. They combined the cake remnants with homemade cream cheese ice cream and made what Jon calls “our favorite ice cream we’ve ever made”. A year later when Jon finished another round of competitions and his mom gave them another cake they began to share and sell pints on their instagram. Their true soft opening was December 2020, when they presented a Hot Cocoa flavor with chunks of peppermint. They sold 30 pints in mere weeks, a rousing success for a couple making ice cream on the side of full time jobs. When asked how two body builders got into the ice cream business the answer was a laugh from both of them. “Where did we learn to make ice cream? A lot of research. We aren’t “foodies” but we really value food.” Jon and Andrea described that as people who show incredible restraint while training, they really value getting to eat what they want when they get the chance. “Our most creative ideas are when we’re in prep and we have been restricting ourselves from anything sweet. The whole point of our ice cream is to make one pint of ice cream to kill all the cravings at once.” 

Their ice cream rises to meet that challenge, it’s thicker than your store bought options and absolutely chock full of the tasty fillers. If you’ve ever found yourself wishing your chocolate chip cookie dough was less vanilla ice cream and more cookie chunks, these are the people for you. “Our quality control is impeccable because we make every batch, ours also has more mix ins” according to Andrea they want every pint they produce to have lots of flavor, textures and fillers. They found their ideal setup to be limited batches, once a flavor is sold out it’s gone and they are on to try a new option. They’ll bring fan favorites back, but their primary goal is to try new things and curate that sense of uniqueness. Andrea explained that their freezer size helps drive that mission, “We can only hold so much ice cream, once that flavor is sold it gives us space to make a new flavor.” It also allows them more creative freedom to try new flavors that might not be as popular. By making limited batches if a creation doesn’t sell as well as intended they have the ability to change gears more easily. Some flavors may not be widely liked, but have a cult following for those that do love it. Their Sweet Potato recipe regularly sells out when they bring it back, but it’s often a few customers buying multiple pints and savoring them until the next time Helados has some in the freezer. When asked what their personal favorites are Andrea was leaning toward their chocolate based “Kitchen Sink” flavor. “I am not a chocolate ice cream person but it has all your favorite candy in it! At the beginning it seemed like a lot of flavors but it’s just perfect.” Jon meanwhile opted for their Golden Ape flavor; a medley of coffee, caramel, and pretzels that they based on another ice cream maker they know and have learned from up in Philadelphia. 

As for our dining journey with Helados Artisan we opted to try the Sexual Chocolate and I’ll Be Missing You flavors. Sexual Chocolate was a smorgasbord of M&Ms, hot fudge, brownie bites and base of a vanilla ice cream with butterscotch hints. It was creamy with occasional crunches of M & M's and a great mix of the chocolate for me but with enough contrasting flavors that it didn’t taste like a block of fudge (my usual dessert habits). The I’ll Be Missing You flavor was a peanutty mixture of cookie butter ice cream, Girl Scout cookies and swirls of physical cookie butter. It was an immediate hit for those in the household who like peanut butter and was a great craving fix for us when we craved a little salt to our sweet. Overall it was the perfect after dinner treat when we wanted something more adventurous and special. We’ve eagerly followed their instagram stories since then, and the next time we’re craving ice cream they’ll be our first message. As mentioned earlier, this ice cream thrives on add ins and combinations so when you have a craving for a dessert that covers all the bases Helados is happy to help. And remember to act fast if you see a flavor you like, as soon as it’s gone it’s officially retired unless Jon and Andrea decide to resurrect it. Feedback is also an important part of their process, as when they’re in prep for competition they can’t always taste as they go and have to rely on customer reports, both good and bad. “Thankfully we haven’t had negative feedback but we love all feedback. At the end of the day we want every single person to like it.” Small businesses are heavily reliant on their communities, so it’s important that they listen to what their customers have to say.

We finished our interview discussing the future, where they hoped to see Helados go. “Ideally we’d like to have a scoop shop, but we want it to be a window not somewhere you come and sit down.” They want to create a space where people come and get their treat before continuing on their day.  Jon and Andrea have a strong belief that Helados Artisan should be a part of a local community, rather than a large-scale brand. “We never want to be in a grocery store, maybe a farmers market. We want to build that sense of community rather than commercialization.” Jon likened their goals to Carl’s Frozen Custard in his hometown of  Fredericksburg VA, to become a family memory that is shared from generation to generation. The nostalgia and act of talking with loved ones while you wait in line is the ultimate goal for Helados. Creating a product and experience that others love as much as they loved their first pint of carrot cake ice cream. This is a passion project for both of them; they have full time jobs and Helados Artisan is something they enjoy doing, “we do this so that you have a great time while eating it”. It’s safe to say they’ve achieved that goal. Their ice cream was fun to order, great to eat and they have such wonderful energy it’s hard not to be excited about where they’ve started and where they’re going. 

When looking for a dessert experience in the NOVA area Helados Artisan should be first on your list. Visit them on Instagram @helados.artisan