Nothing beats the heat better than ice cream. So when temperatures go up, folks try to cool down, at one of the Hudson Valley's favorite ice cream destinations; Alleyway.

Julian Hom, the owner of Alleyway Ice Cream in Saugerties, says he loves introducing people’s tastebuds to new and unique flavors like mango sticky rice, white chocolate passion fruit and tahini halva. Hom’s business has remained strong despite the pandemic; last summer he says lines stretched around the block.

“It’s so hard to believe but people say all the time. They’re like, ‘I read about you online or some magazine and we drove like four hours from Rochester to come here just to try your ice cream,'“ Hom said.

But despite a booming business, Hom may have met his match in the form of inflation. He says he’s paying more than 55 percent extra for things like gloves, spoons, and cocoa powder. It’s something felt by restaurant owners, and ice cream spots across the state and country. According to statistics from the US Bureau of Labor, dairy prices are up 15 to 20% more than last year.

“Milk is more expensive, the chocolate is more expensive, cups are more expensive, spoons are more expensive," Hom said. "But we’ve still been able to not raise our prices.”

And with gas prices spiking, those 200 mile roadtrips for ice cream may melt down. So Hom is doing more to encourage locals to grab a scoop.

“Making sure people who are local have a good time, enjoy our ice cream," he said. "Hopefully we can keep our standards high and when gas prices do eventually go down, people will be willing to make a trip up here again.”

As Hom prepares for business to ramp up during his hottest and busiest season, he says he’s expecting to make a little less per cone. But it’s worth it if it means keeping his prices steady for customers. Because nothing brings a smile on a hot day quite like ice cream.

“What we’re doing seems to be working so we’ll keep it up," Hom said.