Santa Cruz County, California — Alongside nearly a dozen new downtown restaurants featuring carefully curated farm-to-table menu items, two new spots dedicated to soothing one's sweet tooth have opened their doors in Santa Cruz.  Both locally-owned shops are designed to feature a singular product, crafted with care – bringing the total number of sugar-forward businesses in Downtown Santa Cruz to a half-dozen.  Now, frozen dessert and chocolate lovers can celebrate concurrently, with the opening of Nico's Real Fruit Ice Cream and Ashby Confections.

Since 2004, Jennifer Ashby has crafted handmade sweets for her Scotts Valley-based Ashby Confections. This year, she is elevating her exposure with a move to pedestrian-friendly Pacific Avenue in the heart of Downtown Santa Cruz.  Her success has earned her numerous awards and a loyal following of chocolate lovers.  The Marsh Bars are her specialty: marshmallows dipped in chocolate and rolled in graham cracker on a pretzel stick.

Nearby, Portland-based Nico's Real Fruit Ice Cream opened its second location on the Monterey Bay, following its other Central Coast shop on Cannery Row in Monterey.  This New Zealand-style ice cream begins with a vanilla ice cream base blended with frozen fruit into a smooth soft serve. Choices of fruit include strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and marionberries, which can be topped with spicy tajín, sour chamoy, graham cracker dust, coconut flakes or rainbow sprinkles. 

These two downtown shops join four others which exclusively feature ice cream, cookies, and candy: The Penny Ice Creamery, Mission Creamery, Pacific Cookie Company, and It's Sugar.

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Getting There:   

Located along the Central Coast, Santa Cruz County, California, is approximately 70 miles/113 km south of San Francisco and 349 miles/562 km from Los Angeles. Many visitors choose to take scenic Highway 1 along the California coastline to Santa Cruz or Highway 17 through the Santa Cruz Mountains. Visitors can also choose to fly into San Francisco International Airport or San Jose Mineta International Airport.   

Press Contact:  

Christina Glynn, Director of Communications  

Visit Santa Cruz County   

Phone:  +1.831.429.7281 ext. 112.  

Email:  cglynn@santacruz.org.  

Mail:  303 Water Street, #100, Santa Cruz, CA  95060