Dunedin businesswoman Olive Tabor began her Patti's and Cream ice cream-making empire with a single white van back in 2018. Now she's celebrating the opening of a sit-down ice cream diner restaurant in George Street, on the site of the former Capers Cafe.

The business is in addition to her popular Scoop Shop in Mornington, and the mobile Patti’s and Cream food truck van.

Patti’s and Cream is expanding to open its first store in Eglinton Rd in Mornington tomorrow. "It’s exciting to not have something you have to drive to open," Patti’s and Cream owner Olive Tabor said.

St Clair residents and visitors will be familiar with the Patti’s and Cream ice cream truck parked on the Esplanade. "We’ve been really busy in the truck for the last couple of years and it’s got to the point where [I] really wanted to expand to a physical site and still have the truck.

Dunedin isn’t known for its tropical climate, but head to St Clair Beach on a weekend and no matter the temperature, you’ll find locals queuing for ice creams at the Patti’s & Cream truck.

On paper, it sounds easy: make small-batch, boutique ice cream by hand using natural, local ingredients. But when you're not a chef, have zero idea how to make ice cream and even less money, it could be foolhardy to try. 

Fortunately, Olive Tabor didn't let such minor details stand in her way and almost two years after starting Patti's & Cream in Dunedin, she regularly sells 100-plus litres of ice cream in a few hours. 

Giving up a full-time job to sell premium ice cream in Dunedin might seem like trying to sell ice to eskimos, but Olive Tabor is living proof that taking a risk can work. She tells Rebecca Fox about her journey.

Olive Tabor had never made ice cream in her life before she gave up everything to make the creamy frozen treat.

Patti’s & Cream owner Olive Tabor said people were starting to realise more food trucks in Dunedin were serving ‘‘restaurant quality food’’ rather than the traditional deep-fried fare, such as hot dogs and chips.

After working seven years in Nova Cafe, she decided to ‘‘go out on my own’’ to ‘‘test a concept’’ of selling burgers and small batches of handmade ice cream, using ingredients from Otago.

Patti’s and Cream’s 1984 Bedford used to be a paddy wagon, meaning those who found themselves in the back of it were generally fairly unsavoury. Now it’s sweet and savoury – after Betty the Bedford was made over by Dunedin Motor Homes and rather than the smell of truncheons, now detains you with the cinnamon scent of hand-made waffle cones and the rich aroma of fresh patties on the grill.