Thursday, October 28, 2010

Change of Plans: Saturday's Free Show



Hey, everybody. So we received a phone call today from local magician/balloonist, Mark Deverges, that he is unable to perform his Halloween show this Saturday (congrats to the Deverges' for the new addition to their family!)...



No worries, however. By his good graces, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo has stepped up to perform in the happy new father's stead. The show will be Saturday, Halloween eve, from 3-4pm and FREE as always! Here's a video from a previous 23 Skidoo show at The Hop.

Hope to see you there!



Much Love,
Greg and Ashley
The Hop Ice Cream Cafe
640 Merrimon Ave
828 254 2224
AND
The Hop West
721 Haywood Rd
828 252 5156

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Gearing Up For Halloween

All shows herein will be at The Hop located at 640 Merrimon Ave.

*The Runaway Circus will perform music, juggling, and their all out hilarity Tuesday October 26th at 6:30pm*

It's nearly Halloween. Nature's shift in color confirms it to be true. And so we group together and gather around small fires with our friends, we somehow slow our pace and inch a little closer to family and loved ones to eat ice cream :). Our eyes are in awe of and minds aflame with the pallor of a changing season...
*Curtain Call Collective, Directed by Christopher Martin, will perform scenes from "Revenna" by Asheville's Stacy Curnow, Wednesday October 27th at 6:30pm*

Then, as if it could not get any better, we playfully prepare for grey days in down coats by outfitting ourselves in winsomely rediculous costumes. We parade around in them on bustling steets or in our favorite haunts. We play pranks and jokes on one another. We laugh. Just the thought of it sheds years from our demeanors, and thus we stop taking ourselves too seriously. There it is, a chance for the kid to reemerge.
*Asheville magician and balloon artist, Mark Deverges, will entice the mind with an exceptionally large balloon creation Saturday October 30th at 3pm*

For a day, a week, a full month even, we pull out all the stops to give our youthful spirit its moment in the crisp Autumn light. We create and interact in a completely different, yet not foreign way. We are seven, or ten, or twenty years old again. Just imagine how much enjoyable entertainment results as a product of adults letting go. We at The Hop hope to inspire such youthful Halloween enthusiasm in all of you in our own ice-cream-store way!

Much Love and Happy Halloween!
Greg and Ashley
*Me with Luminescent Orchestrii in front of The Hop Mobile, outside of our new location, The Hop West, 721 Haywood Rd*

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Fantastic Week Ahead!!

Alright, folks, here's a friendly, if lengthy, update...


First, The Hop West is officially open and running smoothly in West Asheville (721 Haywood Rd, in the former location of Two Spoons Ice Cream). It's so fun and rewarding for Ashley and I to serve you all in our new space, meet new faces (and their dogs!) and have wonderfully rich interactions with a somewhat different Asheville demographic. Already, we've made some awesome connections with other West Asheville business owners and plan to quickly become part of the Haywood Rd culture, as long as they'll have us. In our opinion, it's all about community and enriching the thriving scene which Ashevillians have created. Three days in... so far so good :).


Second, The Hop on Merrimon is as bubbly as ever being a hang out for families, UNC Asheville students and, we are so fortunate to say, many others. Last weekend Ashley took care of two Birthday Parties and we have two more scheduled for this weekend! A youth rock band, Double Take, proved their name to be a perfect fit as Merrimon Square patrons totally double-taked during the show on Tuesday (videos here). Also, we had excellent support for Health Adventure Day (20% of Saturday's sales were donated to this worthy non-profit)!

Now we look forward to the coming week. Here's the skinny...


Thursday, October 21st, 6:30-7:30pm, Curtain Call Collective, local children's acting troupe, will be celebrating the works of Lewis Carrol at The Hop with scenes from Alice In Wonderland, Jr (coming soon to Asheville Community Theater!), plus much more. Director Christopher Martin is so great at inspiring ability from his students and gives them a platform on which they can truly shine. All are invited to participate. This will be a blast! (Need proof? Here's some videos from previous Curtain Call Collective performances.)


Wednesday, October 20th, ALL DAY, is Autism Society Day. 20% of sales at The Hop AND The Hop West will be donated to yet another extremely worthy cause. In addition, the fundraiser hopes to raise awareness for this Saturday's Run/Walk For Autism. Stop by either location and feel good about being a part of people helping people :).

As ever and always, thank you all so much for being the best customers for which any entrepreneurs could ask.
Much Love,
Greg and Ashley

Thursday, October 14, 2010

FREE ICE CREAM FOR ALL!!!



It's time, everybody. The Hop West is ready to open in West Asheville. 721 Haywood Rd doors swing wide at 1pm Friday and will stay that way until 11pm. There will be live music from 6-8 by our good friends, Gavin Connor and Ryan Cox, members of one of Asheville's great bands, The If You Wannas.


In addition, four prints will be on display from local artist, Jarrett Rutland, whom we've commissioned to outfit the walls of the new location. The above photo is a sneak peek at what he will bring to The Hop West. Both Ashley and I were immediately drawn to his family-friendly yet funky pieces and are so very excited to see his finished products!

If you get the chance, come help celebrate with Free Kiddie Scoops on us! Hope to see you there!

Much Love,
Greg and Ashley

PS Can't make it Friday? Stop by either location on Saturday to help support The Health Adventure! 20% of sales from The Hop AND The Hop West will be donated to this wonderful Asheville non-profit!
-G & A

Friday, October 1, 2010

Breaking News!!!

West Asheville Ice Cream? Yes!!!


The Hop Ice Cream Cafe is dead excited to announce that we will be opening up a second location, "The Hop West", on Haywood Road in West Asheville. We have been contemplating our next move for a while now and the opportunity to become a part of the West AVL business community has now opened up to us. You can mark the date down for October 15, 2010 for our Grand Opening at the former Two Spoons Ice Cream location at 721 Haywood Rd. We will be open from 1-11pm and have live music, lots of friends, familiar faces, and free kiddie scoops of ice cream for everyone!

Ashley and I would like to express how supportive we are of Asheville as a whole, and thrilled to be a part of a close knit business community on the westside of town where we reside. We will continue to support the many events and benefits in the WNC area, using the The Hop West to reach out even more. Thank you to everyone who has shown us such inspiring support over these last couple of years. We look forward to building our relations with our many friends online and face to face. West Asheville... Here we come!!!

For more details about The Hop West, check us out on Twitter.

Thank you again, Asheville!!!
Greg and Ashley Garrison
Owners
The Hop Ice Cream Cafe
640 Merrimon Ave
828 254 2224
&
The Hop West
721 Haywood Rd
Coming Soon!