Charlie Lin said he and his wife Stella Sheng opened Churn & Bake in 2022 with the intention of figuring out the baking side of the business. Lin said they tried a few things like baking cookies and pies but they’ve come to realize the business is primarily an ice cream shop.

“We bake all the toppings we put in our ice cream, like the brownie bites, cookies, all that stuff, but we're 95% ice cream,” Lin said.

The background

Lin and Sheng hired Chelles Macarons to cater their wedding. Eventually, Lin started selling macarons for the business wholesale as a part time job while he kept his full time job. The idea of selling macaron ice cream spurred Lin to rent an ice cream store's kitchen where he learned how to make ice cream. When the ice cream store closed, he had a decision to make.

“I had about 25 or 30 wholesale customers, I didn't want to let them down, because they really liked my product,” Lin said. “So I was like, maybe I can build a store and keep my day job. But once the store opened, it was too much. So pretty much a few months after the store opened, I quit my day job and started doing this full time.”


On the menu

Lin draws from his Chinese American ancestry when developing the creamery’s flavors.

“I felt like the Chinese dessert scene was always underserved,” Lin said. “It's always fortune cookies. It's not very cutting edge or innovative. My favorite dessert growing up was ice cream. I felt like marrying the two together would make sense. We highlight East Asian and Southeast Asian flavors.”

There are always 32 flavors of frozen treats available. Some of the popular Asian-influenced ice cream flavors are Vietnamese Coffee Rocky Road, Ube Coconut Crunch and Thai Tea. Lin added that Thai Tea is his favorite flavor. Other options include salted caramel, chocolate brownie batter and strawberry cheesecake. Non-dairy vegan options, such as lychee sorbet, are also available.


The details

All menu items are made in house. Lin said the process of making their Vietnamese Coffee Rocky Road includes brewing an ice cream base with their Vietnamese coffee and espresso blend for 48 hours, then the grounds are filtered out. After the mixture cools, it is put in the ice cream churn. When that process is complete, marshmallow cream and fudge striped cookies are added.

Going forward

Lin is very appreciative of the community support and his staff.


“We’ve been really lucky in the quality of our employees — how much they care and the passion they have for the store,” Lin said.

Even after experiencing burst pipes, broken freezers and other obstacles, he’s glad he took this path.

“I encourage everyone to chase their dreams but it's hard to chase your dreams, it's a lot of work,” Lin said.

Over the next five years, he plans on increasing his wholesale business and hopes to open a second store.


“Everything we do is quality over quantity,” Lin said. “Our second store will be very well thought out. I’m in no rush.”