#philipsicepops

What's your name and what do you do?

I'm Katie Rachael Walker and I am the owner of Philip's Ice Pops.

What's the story behind the bike and the name? Not to mention the cute cat themed branding!

Philip’s Ice Pops is named after my cat Phil! He is 5 years old and is a real cuddler. I figured that the name went along with the fun and playfulness of the flavours. Plus who doesn’t love a good cat pun! I came across the bike pretty randomly while I was taking a trip to Hanlan's Point on Toronto Island. A bike shop owner named Manuel, who has lived on the island his whole life, was selling a old, rusty, orange vendors bike he had picked up in Mexico a few years back. I bought the bike figuring it would be a fun project to fix it up and turn it into the Philip's Ice Pop Mobile. Manuel took us on his rickety old rowboat with the bike to bring us across the harbour back to the city! My boyfriend and I scraped the bike down, repainted it white and polished up all the rusty spots. My friend Jake Bonnetta, who owns Woodchop, got together with his woodworking buds and made a custom insulted box for the front of the cart!

What were you doing previous to Philip's and why did you start making the pops?

I was a flight attendant for Porter Airlines for 3 years before Philip's Ice Pops started. I always wanted to be my own boss and was always looking for the right business to start. In the winter I bought an ice pop mold to experiment with different flavours with no intention of starting this business. After I served my ice pops to friends at dinner parties and hangouts, everyone raved about them and it grew into a business from there.

Your flavours include strawberry-basil, orange-vanilla and salted watermelon: did any previous cooking experience contribute to your flavour combinations? What flavours can we expect in the future?

We try to adapt our flavours to the Ontario harvest schedule to use the freshest, yummiest in-season fruit we can get our hands on. We just started our late summer flavours: Cantaloupe-Honey, Lavender-Lemonade, Peach-Ginger and Rhubarb-Strawberry. I don't have any professional cooking experience but I have always been surrounded by a lot of really great cooks. I have picked up a thing or two from my parents, brothers, and boyfriend over the years. I love cooking at home and experimenting with new flavour combinations, I guess this is just an extension of that!

Homemade popsicles are all the rage on blogs and Pinterest lately, why do you think there's been a resurgence in artisanal pop making? Did you derive inspiration from other homemade pop makers, such as People's Pops in NYC?

It is crazy how fast the ice pop trend is growing! I think people are looking for flavours that are a little more exciting and maybe even healthier. There are a lot of strange chemical ingredients in the ice pops we used to eat when we were kids, most people like that Philip's Ice Pops are made with fresh fruit and raw sugar. I still have yet to try a People's Pop but I do think there are similarities to Philip's Ice Pops in the sense that we are both making pops with fresh local fruit. It's on my list of things to do to get down to NYC to try one!

What is a typical day for you like when you're prepping a fresh batch of pops?

My weekdays starts at my production kitchen in Kensington Market. I start by prepping my workspace and machines then I head across the street to Augusta Fruit Supply for a fresh batch of fruit. I get to work making simple syrups and juicing all my ingredients. Once my batch of ice pops are ready to freeze I get my caffeine fix at Jimmy's Coffee around the corner. Sending emails, updating social media websites and paper work occupy about half of my day. After a few hours I go back to my kitchen to package all the pops and fill orders! By late afternoon I drop all my deliveries off at the respective shops and usually stay for a coffee or two while chatting with the business owners!

You started Philip's Ice Pops this past Spring: what has the response been like? Have you encountered any difficulties so far?

So far the response has been great! Even though we have only been opened for a few months we have covered a lot of the festivals and events! An interesting man I met at Pedestrian Sunday in Kensington Market the other day told me that my Peach-Ginger ice pop took him to another universe- he ate 6 pops that day! There are always little bumps along the way when you're starting a business, but that's the fun of it. In particular when the flood happened last month my whole kitchen was in 2 feet of water including all my freezers. I lost quite a few ice pops that day!

If I was interested in having Philip's at an event or party, would you be available for catering or do personalized flavours?

I will be catering a wedding at the end of the season with the Philip’s Ice Pop bike and customized flavours to match the couples wedding colours! We've done a variety of different events from office parties to a school dance! Ice pops are fun for everyone!

What are your favourite vendors in the city that you think don't get enough exposure?

There are really great vendors popping up throughout the city it is hard to pick a favourite! The Caplansky's food truck is a classic and I could never turn down one of their BBQ brisket sandwiches! It's my guilty pleasure.

And finally, what can we expect from Philip's Ice Pops in the next year?

Next year I am looking at turning Philip's Ice Pops into a mini food truck. I just found a small trailer that I am going to transform into the new Philip’s Ice Pops mobile. I am remodelling this 1960‘s trailer into a huge cat! Whiskers on the headlights and ears on the hood. I am sure I will get some “crazy-cat-lady” glances but it will be so much fun!

You can find a full list of cafes and shops that Philip's Ice Pops are stocked at on their website and Katie and Philip's Ice Pop Mobile will be at various events around the city this month, including:

Friday, August 2nd from 12-6 PM outside La Merceria

Sunday, August 4th at The Parkdale Flea

Wednesday, August 7th at The Night Market at 99 Sudbury

Every Thursday in August at The Open Roof Festival (weather permitting)

Saturdays & Sundays outside 214 Augusta Ave in Kensington Market

Be sure to follow Philip's Ice Pops on Twitter for the latest event updates and more! Thanks for talking with us Katie! I'll have to get my paws on a lavender lemonade pop soon as it sounds just purr-fect! (Sorry guys, I had to join in the cat pun fun!)