FLAGLER BEACH, Fla.(October 8, 2022) – Adieu, for now.
Ready to take on her life’s next great adventure, Karen Barchowski and daughter Madison celebrated one last hurrah as the owners of Sally’s Ice Cream in Flagler Beach on Saturday night under a nearly full moon and a rocket launch.
Surrounded by well-wishers and families who have grown up coming to the oceanfront ice cream shop, Barchowski had managed to keep her composure for most of the day, except when a itty bitty little boy came up to thank her.
“He came up to me and said, excuse me, I just wanted to say thank you and good bye. So then I knelt down and said what’s your name? He said, Robert, you can call me Robbie and then he just hugged me and wouldn’t let go and kept saying I just want to thank you for this, and that made me cry,” she said.
“I only cried twice today – him and when I was giving my little dedication to my Madison.”
At the party organized by friend Erica Rivera, the more than 50 guests in attendance raised a toast while gathered in the alcove of outdoor seating, as the line for ice cream stretched past the shop’s brightly illuminated sign.
Sally’s has been a haven for kids in the community who have flocked to the shop, and Barchowski, opened her heart and business to the PRIDE community supporting them with ice cream socials and a safe place to gather in fellowship according to Flagler PRIDE Vice President Eryn Harris.
“I’ve come here for a long time and decided to have ice cream socials for Flagler PRIDE here in 2020 because of how much of an inclusive symbol Sally’s has been for the community,” said Harris. “It’s just been really awesome the support Karen has had for us. She comes out, hangs out with us at the socials, she buys some people ice cream sometimes and been really involved with the community.”
She’s hopeful the new owners will maintain the same welcoming atmosphere.
“My hope for the future of Sally’s is they keep that inclusive vibe,” she said. “The heart of Sally’s isn’t lost when she’s up in Vermont. I don’t really expect it to be that way either. I just hope that she enjoys her environment in Vermont.”
For Barchowski, a professional chef, it’s a chance to go back to her roots, literally. Purchasing a 28-acre farm in Vermont where her whole family can be, she’s looking forward to gardening and growing the farm-to-table vegetables for the restaurant ‘Revolution Kitchen’ she and her daughter Madison will co-own.
“We bought a farm last year in October with our best friends from Oregon and they’re up there already and it’s a nice big property. My mom’s up there now, my oldest daughter Kate and my granddaughter Ellie, are there,” she said. “Better quality of life and more of that community support.”
Right up her alley, Revolution Kitchen is a vegan and vegetarian restaurant, highly rated in the state of Vermont. Loving the menu and the vibe, Barchowski says they’re going to take some down time, catch their breath and open in April 2023 after the fall 2022 purchase.
“These people have done an amazing job with it and they’re the loveliest people. We’re going to take that on, add what we really want to do as well, and feed people,” she said.
“Their recipes are amazing. What we can grow on our farm, because we have an agricultural license, I’ll be able to use in the restaurant. Our hopes are, as we grow, a lot of what we grow on the farm I’ll be able to feature on the menu but then there are a lot of really cool farms around there. There’s this one farm, I really like, a Black owned farm called Soul Fire Farm in New York and I’d really love to support them and have them teach me,” said Barchowski.
With all the makings of a Hallmark Christmas special, the love and positivity surrounding the closing of one chapter to open the next has been gifted to the next generations of Barchowski’s family.
Madison, who is expecting a baby near the Christmas holiday, is thrilled about the prospects for the future. Seeing her mother as a role model and mentor, the chance to partner with her on the new venture is a dream come true.
“It’s really awesome and that I’m doing it with her,” said Madison with anticipation. “I’m buying into the business with her and I’ve always wanted to own a business with her since she owned the Zen Den when I was little. It’s like a dream come true I get to do this with her.”
“She’s just incredible. She’s always worked so hard to give me anything and everything and she taught me how to work so hard to have Sally’s and there literally nothing she wouldn’t do me or anyone else. She’s incredible and I want to be just like her when I grow up.”
It’s an exciting time for the family as the start the next chapter of their lives, but fortunately we haven’t seen the last of Barchowski, who still has roots in the Sunshine State in addition to fond memories of good people.
“I always just try to do what we do, with our hearts. I tell all the customers, we shine this brightly because we’re just reflection of what we’re getting from them. It’s them shining on us. We’ve always had such amazing support. How does anybody get that lucky?”
