FAIRHAVEN – In the summer of 1986, Maggie and John Sweeney opened up a homemade ice cream shop in the village of Osterville on Cape Cod. Now, 37 years later, their daughter and her husband will follow in their footsteps with an ice cream venture opening in May.

“We've always had this in the back of our heads,” said Colleen Martin, who co-owns The Ice Cream Cottage with her husband Phil Martin.

“This was definitely a goal over the years of our marriage,” Phil Martin said, adding that he worked in Colleen Martin’s family ice cream store Maggie’s when they got married.

“I've been looking for a while for the right location and the right time.”

Colleen Martin said they have been eyeing the former Brady’s Ice Box on 12 Middle St. between Margaret’s and Elisabeth’s. After a seven year break, the former ice cream shop owned by the Bunker family reopened in 2021, but closed again indefinitely earlier this year.

“Once I heard that the restaurants were closed and sold, and that building was available, we jumped on it,” Colleen Martin said.

What will be on the menu?

The Martins and their seven children, aged 20, 18, 16, 15, 11, 9 and 6, will all be working together inside the shop which hopes to open by Mother’s Day.

“Our oldest is in college, so when he comes back, he'll be a manager for the summer. Then the other three right now who are in high school, are going to be working,” Colleen Martin added. “We have a crew, we’re calling them the Cottage Crew. If you can have your family, that's the best option.”

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According to Colleen Martin, the menu will include ice cream from Acushnet Creamery, soft serve ice cream, Hawaiian shave ice made from fresh fruit puree, homemade waffle cones, cookies and brownies.

The Ice Cream Cottage will also make their own hot fudge, whipped cream, and coffee drinks.  There will be a few food items such as hot dogs and quahogs and homemade chowder.

Phil Martin, who has worked for 20 years at Bishop Stang and helms the religions department, said he is always looking for work during the summer.

“I’m always looking for a summer job anyway, so this makes it easier,” he said. “I've got colleagues, students and a lot of people that are very excited that we're doing this and we have a lot of support. So it's great.”

Fairhaven deserves this ice cream spot

The plan is for Phil Martin to manage the store all summer with his kids working beside him, as Colleen Martin – an accountant for the Dartmouth Public Schools – will take more of a behind-the-scenes role, using her business degree to keep The Cottage running.

The Martins live less than a mile from the shop in Fairhaven.

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“We've been here for almost all of our marriage and this is right in the downtown, the heart of Fairhaven,” Phil Martin said. “It's near the bike path, Fort Phoenix, and we've just loved the area. We love Fairhaven and we feel like it deserves to have its own ice cream shop in that area.”

The store itself, a cute take out window on the water, seems like a little cottage – hence the reason for naming it the Ice Cream Cottage.

“We just want people to come and feel like they are welcome. They're a part of the family,” said Phil Martin. “Our family is happy to serve their families.”

“We just want it to be like a happy life, a sweet kind of place,” Colleen Martin added.

Preparing to open by Mother’s Day

Over the next month and a half, Phil Martin said they will be busy configuring and renovating the inside so it’s in perfect shape to serve ice cream.

“We gotta get a plumber and electrician to make sure everything is good. And our ice cream freezer is delivered. So a lot of it is getting the building itself up and running and then need to work on the sign,” Phil Martin said.

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“I just got the T-shirts ordered,” Colleen Martin added. “There's just a lot of little details that people don't really realize you have to do.”

Meanwhile, Colleen Martin said her parents have been giving them plenty of pointers including doing research on equipment and sharing building tips.

“They're just very excited to have it in the family again,” she said.

Standard-Times staff writer Seth Chitwood can be reached at schitwood@s-t.com. Follow him on twitter: @ChitwoodReports. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Standard-Times today.

This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Fairhaven's The Ice Cream Cottage prepares to open in May