Sutter Creek Ice Cream Emporium

The Sutter Creek Ice Cream Emporium closed its doors after decades as a Main Street landmark. Opened in 1997, the parlor was housed in an 1858 building that once served as an office for mining magnate Alvinzo Hayward and had been voted the best ice cream in Amador County.

The menu ran from old-fashioned sodas, sundaes, floats, and splits to the signature Huckleberry ice cream — the one flavor made from scratch in-house. Brownie sundaes, waffle sundaes, and gourmet slushies kept things interesting, with options ranging from nickel candy all the way up to a mega split with four bananas and eight scoops. Fresh fudge was made on-site, and a full lunch menu of sandwiches rounded out the offerings alongside morning coffee and pastries.

A 1918 Milton Upright player piano with over 400 rolls provided the soundtrack, cycling through ragtime classics when live musicians weren’t performing. The shop had deep ties to the annual Sutter Creek Ragtime Festival and a family-friendly atmosphere that made it a Main Street landmark for decades.