There might be only one location in the city that offers a variety of ice cream and sells fried okra inside a former (renovated) gas station.

River Breeze Dairy Freeze opened as a seasonal business on Good Friday in 1980 at 10800 E. Jefferson Ave.

Owner Clausel Maxwell, though originally from Alabama, moved in with Detroit relatives at 22-years-old to work in the automotive industry. He bought the former gas station that was closed for 12 years and renovated the facility himself to create the popular summer stop.

“At the time when I started this I saw a need for an ice cream parlor in the area,” says Maxwell. “And it has been up and down, but it still has been pretty profitable.”

River Breeze Dairy Freeze is open from April to October, which worked for Maxwell, who wanted to supplement his primary income, but didn’t want to work year around. He retired in 1997.

Maxwell first came to the community before the 1967 Detroit riot and remembers a variety of businesses thriving in the area.

“That’s when the area started making a lot of change – like a lot of pawn shops, clothing stores, anything you wanted – it was all in this area,” he says.

Apart from selling soft serve dairy on waffle cones in the shape of cartoon characters or in sundaes, River Breeze also sells hot dishes like nachos, foot-long hot dogs, fries, fish dinners and a southern favorite, fried okra.

“My menu has grown over the years and it’s sustained me … without totally depending on ice cream,” says Maxwell.

While he makes it clear he loves ice cream, it wasn’t the passion for opening up the parlor – owning a business was. In Alabama, Maxwell says he grew up around a little restaurant his parents owned, also known as a dance hall. In Detroit, his uncle had a number of Mister Softee ice cream trucks, so owning businesses seems to run in the family.

Delorise Maxwell, his wife, helped out early on in the business. “I did some of everything that had to be done,” she says, including cooking, cleaning and preparing the ice cream when needed.

Helping out with her husband’s business can be stressful at times, but interacting with the community helps ease some discomfort. She says she has watched some of the customers grow older, and their children also come and visit the parlor for ice cream.

“I get a chance to mingle with some of the customers and they are friendly,” she adds. “Even though a lot of them have moved out of the neighborhood, a lot of them still come back. That’s nice to see, and it’s nice for them to come back and see us. They’re always happy to see us when they come, and that’s a plus.”

The shop stays open until the weather turns, so you still have a chance to get in a few more licks of its delectable ice cream.

Editor’s Note: Our Small Shops section is sponsored by Bank of America.

To learn more about Bank of America’s many programs and resources for small business owners visit: https://www.bankofamerica.com/smallbusiness/business-financing.go

  Bank of America, Detroit neighborhood business, River Breeze Dairy Freeze, Small Shops