Emack & Bolio’s Ice Cream: Where Flavor Meets Rock-and-Roll
Sitting at 37 Kent Place in Chatham, Massachusetts, Emack & Bolio’s mixes creative ice cream with rock music culture. The Cape Cod locations carry on the unique spirit that began when Bob Rook founded the original shop in 1975.
How It All Started
Emack & Bolio’s began in Boston’s 1970s music scene. Rook, a civil rights lawyer and self-described hippie, first made ice cream in his basement for friends. The quirky name honors two homeless men Rook helped as a lawyer. The business grew from these humble beginnings to locations worldwide, with the first Cape Cod shop opening in Wellfleet in the early 1980s. The Chatham location came later, opening in the late 1990s.
What’s On The Menu
The Chatham shop offers over 75 rotating ice cream flavors made without artificial hormones. Some standouts include:
- “Deep Purple Raspberry” – black raspberry ice cream loaded with white and dark chocolate chips
- “Space Cake” – vanilla cake batter mixed with chocolate crunchies
- “Moby Dick Bar” – a whale-shaped frozen treat locals love
For non-dairy eaters, they make coconut cream-based vegan options that don’t skimp on richness. Their “Chocolate Thunder” and “Minty Madness” flavors use organic ingredients that please both plant-based eaters and those who can’t have dairy.
They also offer:
- Live-cultured yogurt made with non-fat milk
- Seasonal flavors like pumpkin spice latte ice cream
- Fresh fruit sorbets sweetened with pure cane sugar
Fun Facts and Stories
- The shop’s red-eyed moose mascot, Stoney, has been with the brand since 1975
- Stoney has a brother named Mack who’s “on the loose” on Cape Cod
- According to local legend, a moose (now known to be Mack) was spotted surfing off Cape beaches in the early 1980s
- After a naming contest judged by Cape Cod locals, Stoney’s brother officially became “Mack”
- Locals believe Mack might live in Wellfleet, though he’s hard to pin down because he’s always chasing the next wave
- The Chatham location keeps things old-school with a cash-only policy (but there’s an ATM on site)
Emack & Bolio’s isn’t just selling ice cream – it’s serving up a piece of Cape Cod culture with each scoop. From vegan options to local legends about surfing moose, this shop shows that dessert can be both tasty and full of character.