Sad news for those with a sweet tooth in the west Valley: Novel Ice Cream announced its downtown Peoria location would be "on pause for the foreseeable future," according to a video posted to the ice cream shop's Instagram page.
The Peoria location was announced in early 2024 and was originally expected to open that same year. Novel did serve out of a food truck in downtown Peoria, but no brick-and-mortar location ever opened in the west Valley. The physical location was previously expected to open inside Jefferson House in fall 2026.
The only reason given for halting the Peoria location in the Instagram video was "so we can focus on Tempe and a few other initiatives."
In the same video, Novel CEO Shawn Allard shared the upcoming Tempe location
would be opening before the end of the year.
The Tempe location will take over the former House of Tricks building in Tempe, also known as the Harry Walker house. When the building's original lot was taken over by an apartment tower, the house was lifted onto wheels and transported in its complete form to a new spot near Tempe City Hall.
The Republic reached out to Allard for comment but did not receive a response at the time of writing.
Novel Ice Cream currently has locations in downtown Phoenix and Mesa. The lauded ice cream shop is best known for the dough melt, comprising a glazed donut stuffed with ice cream.
Reach the reporter at eddie.fontanez@azcentral.com. Follow @ERFontanez on Instagram.
Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Award-winning Phoenix ice cream shop closes new spot before opening
