A beloved Kansas City ice creamery is looking to expand its Johnson County presence.
This week, Betty Rae’s Ice Cream announced plans for a new Johnson County shop in Merriam — which will aim for a May opening. The shop will double as a production facility and test kitchen for new flavors.
Betty Rae’s will operate at 5740 Antioch Road
- The ice cream shop will open in a new space at Merriam Town Center, off of Johnson Drive and Antioch Road.
- Betty Rae’s will also operate near IKEA and the recently-opened Five Below store at the busy Merriam shopping center.
- It will share a parking lot with Dick’s Sporting Goods, Home Depot and Cinemark Movie Theatre as well.
The Merriam shop will double as a production facility
- In addition to serving up to 26 flavors of homemade ice cream, the Merriam shop will also function as a production facility — which will create five to seven new jobs and raise production abilities by 300%.
- It will also serve as a “test kitchen” for new customers to sample new flavors before they’re widely available at other Betty Rae’s locations and provide feedback.
- These test flavors will rotate on a monthly basis, and will be available alongside the shop’s other more well-known flavors — of which, owner Matt Shatto said, his personal favorites are butter pecan and chocolate brownie.
- “We have a book of over 300 recipes — some of which we release on an ongoing basis, and some of which never really see the light of day,” he said. “This provides a great opportunity for us to make this space a little bit more unique, and really provide (our staff) with creative flexibility to come up with new and fun ideas.”
This marks the second Betty Rae’s in Johnson County
- The popular ice cream shop originally opened in 2016 in Kansas City’s Waldo neighborhood.
- The shop opened its first Johnson County storefront in Olathe this past October, and Betty Rae’s also has another location in Kansas City’s River Market.
- As a Johnson County resident himself, Shatto said he hopes to see Betty Rae’s continue to grow its regional presence both in and out of Johnson County.
- “I think Johnson County has a whole lot to offer,” he said. “Whether it’s Johnson County or other counties around the metro, we think there’s a great deal of opportunity for Kansas City’s premium ice cream. Our goal is to get it closer to those mouths that want to enjoy it.”
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