Ice cream will never go out of season, especially in a country where hot is practically the only temperature. And where flavorful scoops and cones are commonplace, those behind Coldfolks at The Corner House in San Juan look to be that new kid on the block serving even more decadent dollops of the frozen dessert—in waffle cones and cups.
These vessels, caramelized and crisped to perfection, complement the new dessert stand’s ice cream with added texture and flavor. Our favorites? Dulce de Leche, Oreo Cheesecake, Strawberry Basil, and Tiramisu.
Coldfolks prides itself on having all its flavors made from scratch at the Afters Gelato and Coffee dessert cafe in Tomas Morato.
“We don’t skimp out on the ingredients. Every bite has an ingredient. It’s overindulgent. That’s the concept of Coldfolks,” says owner Vincent Fideles.
Coldfolks started with 12 flavors but has since expanded its menu to include the likes of mango yogurt and red velvet
From Afters to Coldfolks
Fideles previously worked as a software developer for a little over two years. During that period, he launched his own Zagu franchise before opening Yohgee Frozen Yogurt in Mercato. In 2012, he opened Afters Gelato and Coffee in Tomas Morato. During the pandemic, the business pivoted to providing online deliveries, supplying restaurants and cafes, and catering. It wasn’t until Fideles’ friend who owns The Corner House in San Juan asked him to open a new ice cream brand that Coldfolks eventually came to life in October 2023.
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Vincent Fideles
“I love desserts. Even though I’m an IT graduate, I studied making gelato. It’s really my passion to make ice cream,” says Fideles.
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The anatomy of ice cream
While they take pride in creating their ice cream from scratch, it wasn’t always like that. Fideles says the shift was inspired by a hard-learned lesson. Before the pandemic, they would order pastes and other processed ingredients for their ice cream. However, once supply lines were cut and these weren’t so readily available anymore, their team shifted to producing from scratch.
Dulce de leche
Strawberry basil
Mango yogurt
Oreo cheesecake
“Because of the pandemic, we lost ingredients due to the lack of imports. From the moment we decided to make things from scratch, we haven’t faced any more problems with sourcing,” says Fideles, noting that the new process has even led to creating a self-sustaining ecosystem between Coldfolks and Afters. How? For one, their Oreo cheesecake flavor, which is one of their best sellers, contains actual cheesecakes they prepare and sell in the Quezon City cafe.
This passion to sustain their food business, according to the dessert entrepreneur, includes the goal of making Coldfolks the Asian counterpart of Ben & Jerry’s. Though a lofty target, Fideles has made steps to ensure his growing brand takes after the characteristics that have made the American ice cream line renowned worldwide—that is, the generous amount of mix-ins and chewable bits inside each scoop.
Tiramisu | Photo courtesy of Coldfolks
To illustrate, the crunch of their salted caramel flavor comes from digestive cookies they bake in-house. The tiramisu flavor is also made from the actual tiramisu sold in Afters. “The mascarpone is made from scratch. The ladyfingers are made from scratch. It’s a deconstruction of a tiramisu. We use the basic ingredients of tiramisu and turn it into ice cream,” says Fideles.
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Coldfolks moving forwardThe Coldfolks of today is actually not yet the fully fleshed-out vision Fideles had in mind. Described as an ice cream bar, the Corner House dessert stand was meant to have several stations: one, where visitors can select their packaging (cup, waffle cone, and waffle cup); second, where the specific ice cream flavor is selected; and lastly, where toppings such as frozen fruits, cereals, and Oreos can be added. It will come, however, Fideles reassures.
More recently, Coldfolks also added a new item to their menu, Lava Cake a la Mode, which comprises an actual lava cake made in—you guessed it—Afters, and is topped with an ice cream scoop of choice and a chocolate hard shell sauce.
The Coldfolks logo
For Fideles, The Corner House branch is the first of many more stores
Outside added services, the Coldfolks owner is also anticipating the release of more ice cream and yogurt flavors. And with his eyes set on expansion, he is also looking at opening more branches, with locations in Rockwell and Molito, Alabang as likely candidates.
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