Service was AMAZING and the ice cream is authentically homemade!!! Can't recommend more

such a great experience trying all the flavors and it was the most flavorful I've ever had!! the flavors are all very local and amazing, and the owner was super friendly and willing to give as many samples as you want! so worth the treck to stop here. read more

Our trip to Our Founding Farmers was EXCELLENT! Sure, there's ample parking and the building is really cute. But, dang, the customer service was amazing!!! Jacq and Ashley were energetic, enthusiastic, and incredibly helpful, providing samples of anything we wanted to try. I thought maybe that vibe was a once-in-a-lifetime thing, but the employees exuded the same passion when we returned the next day. Don't even get me started on the ice cream...When they say their ingredients are locally sourced, they're not kidding. They have a flavor called 'Your Neighbor's Lemons' because it's LITERALLY made using lemons from a neighbor. Other amazing flavors I tried include 'G-Snap', 'Choc + Chili', 'Lilikoi', and Cinnamon Toast Crunch'. I can't say enough good things about this place. You won't be disappointed! read more

Unfortunately, this was a very uncomfortable experience. We ordered the cherry ice cream, which was okay (you could tell it was homemade, but nothing special). The bigger issue was the price: $7 for a single scoop and $11 for a double, which felt extremely high for the quality. The interaction with the man behind the counter, who appeared to be the owner, is what really ruined the visit. Someone in our group needed to use the restroom and was told it was for paying customers only, which was fair. After they came back out and went to purchase ice cream, he said, "Well I was gonna charge you for the bathroom anyways, so you may as well get something," in a very rude tone. There were additional comments that made the situation increasingly uncomfortable. He also attempted to hand out samples to everyone in our group. Some of us declined, and when we didn't immediately take them, he said, "Okay, never mind," in an upset tone and put them away. When another employee asked if we wanted to try anything specific, he dismissed us by saying, "No, they don't want to try anything," without letting us respond. To make matters worse, we watched him step outside and yell at multiple cars that parked in front if they weren't immediately coming in to buy ice cream. To be fair, the woman working there was kind and polite, but the overall experience felt hostile and off-putting. Between the attitude and the very high prices for mediocre ice cream, this is not a place I would return to or recommend to others. read more

Actual food review at the end! The beginning is the experience I had with the owner! Pulled in to the parking stalls in front of the building. I parked all the way on the left in front of the yoga studio that's connected to the ice cream shop. My daughter and her boyfriend hoped out the car first and started to head up the street real quick to check out another shop she was looking for. I was going to take my younger 2 in for some ice cream and walked around the back of my vehicle to talk to my daughter to double check where they were going and to let her know we would be in the ice cream shop when she was done. Well, I guess the owner of the shop assumed we weren't going to be coming in for ice cream because HE CAME RUNNING OUT OF HIS SHOP! Lol he started yelling at me how if I wasn't going to have ice cream that I needed to move because the stalls were for paying customers only and only people that were "Supporting Local Businesses" could park there. Um buddy, that whole row of shops is local businesses first of all, and how crazy of you to assume that I wasn't going to have ice cream . I was literally standing at the back of my car talking to my kid before I came in with my younger ones. When I tried to tell him I was just talking with my kid real quick he KEPT INTERRUPTING ME WITH A CONDESCENDING TONE. Talking about how if I'm not going to come in and support a local business then I need to move. After about a minute of trying to tell this guy I was going to come in I just shook my head and smiled then moved my car to directly across the street. WHEN I TELL YOU THE AMOUNT OF SELF RESTRAINT I FORCED MYSELF TO HAVE! We just moved back to Big Island from Waianae and I was showing my kids where I grew up and went to school. I decided to join my daughter to the shop she wanted to check out real quick. But don't be worried! I am a petty B. And my kids still wanted ice cream so I took my kids to get ice cream. I walked in and there was a sweet girl behind the counter. She greeted us and asked if we'd ever been there before for. I told her no and that I would have been in earlier but I had to move my car and park across the street because that guy came out and assumed we weren't going to get ice cream. Her eyes got big when she realized we were the people. Lol poor girl. She offered us some samples but we refused and just asked for traditional "homemade" chocolate ice cream. While she was making the kids ice cream the guy came out, who I figured out to be the owner, and noticed I was there. He avoided eye contact and helped some guy in the lobby. He then walked in front of the counter directly in front of me, stood facing me and then stated out loud "If there is anyone that's just standing around not being helped, I could help you!" I looked behind me and there was only one couple in the lobby who was already eating ice cream at a table. I looked at him and he avoided eye contact again and then said when no one answered him "I would hate for anyone to be standing around not being helped!" This time I looked directly at him until he made eye contact with me. He then cleared his throat and then asked me directly if I needed help. I kind of smirked and pointed at the girl and said "what do you think she's doing?" He looked to his left then cleared his throat and said oh, ok and then walked away. In the end the kids said they prefer Meadow Gold. Lol His chocolate ice cream tasted like frozen chocolate milk with chocolate chips in it. Nothing special. I would not recommend this shop. Not just because of the owner but because the price does not match the quality. One small scoop for 8$. Go across the street to the other ice cream shop. I heard theirs is better anyways. I haven't tried it yet but when I get back to Kohala I will! P.s. it looks like all his good reviews are because he gives away a bunch of samples. Maybe I should go in there and sample everything then just walk out haha. Jk I'm not gonna do that but for real, I don't know where this guy is from, but it's definitely not Hawaii. For him to yell at potential customers is not how we do business in Hawaii. The only time I've ever been chased away from a business was by the foreign vendors at the Stadium Swap Meet in Oahu. lol if you don't buy something fast enough they tell you to move haha. Definitely not local. I will make sure to take my business next time to an actual local business owne. Not a rude disrespectful transplant. Aloha read more

Awesome experience. Different flavors and fun. I would recommend. If visiting make a stop read more

Our Founding Farmers - Front of store - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

Yummy ice cream with lots of interesting flavors. The staff is very adamant on trying all the different flavors which I did not mind. I ordered a vanilla macnut which was delicious. The ice cream is really good, however a little expensive, a single is 7 and a double is 11. Worth a stop if in the area or driving by. Seems like they get their ingredients from local producers. ,nice out door seating area and some spots inside, casual. read more

Our Founding Farmers - Vanilla macnut - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

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Incredible artisan quality ice cream. Flavors that feel like your bitting into fresh fruit on the farm. So fresh! Friendliest service on the island in my Opinion. Must come and try!! read more

Our Founding Farmers - Mango strawberry - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

Warning: The ice cream will change your life and quite possibly ruin all other ice cream for you forever! It's so creamy and flavorful it's hard to handle your facial expressions. The folks who work there are SUPER friendly and happy to provide samples of multiple flavors so you know how they operate (flavor-wise) and to ensure you get the perfect flavor for your tastebuds. $7 for a small (one flavor) or $11 for a large (up to 2 flavors). The small might look small, but this isn't regular ice cream, and it's actually the perfect treat. PROS: Ice cream will blow your mind Original flavors Bubbly water, energy drinks CONS: Zero! read more

Our Founding Farmers - Storefront - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

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The ice cream is incredible here at Our Founding Farmers. This place is a must stop here on the Big Island. The service is also awesome. This is hand made ice cream with local produce making the flavors. read more

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DO NOT come here !!!!!! The owner is odd. Spend ur money elsewhere and very pricey. Ice cream is nothing special. First thing I told him was I have a peanut allergy. I kept asking him to try the M&M's because that's usually my favorite flavor, but he showed me every other flavor. Besides the one I asked to try and at the end I said I'll take the M&M's but I had no idea they had peanuts and I walked out of there and ate ice cream that had peanuts in it. We had told him that we were all going to split two scoops of ice cream and when my friend went to go use the bathroom, he screamed at him and then told us you guys are all going to have to pay or is he a paying customer and we told him we're just buying one ice cream like we're all splitting and he had a huge problem about it. We weren't even planning to use the restroom. Just one person used. read more

When we reached Hawi, our first stop was at Our Founding Farmers ice cream shop. My wife had a scoop of chocolate and a scoop of ginger snap, while I had a scoop of mango and a scoop of passion fruit. All four of our ice cream scoops were delicious. The guy in charge gave us at least 4 samples to taste while we waited to order and we didn't request any of them. Outstanding service. read more

We went there today. The was the best ice cream I have ever had! The service was excellent as well.

Delicious ice cream with both local fruity flavors and classic flavors. Come here after the Pololu Valley hike for the perfect cold treat! Upon walking in, we were greeted warmly and they proactively suggested flavors to sample - ginger snap, lemon, strawberry, lilikoi. We then also tried the matcha and mint chip. All the flavors were good. I ended up getting a double (2 scoops) with strawberry and matcha - winning combo! Strawberry is fruity and has actual strawberry chunks. Matcha is a great balance of tea-flavor but also naturally sweetened with local honey. Easy parking spots right outside (their own lot) and clean bathroom was well. Plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. read more

Our Founding Farmers - Strawberry and matcha - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

Fantastic ice cream made with local ingredients, but beware of the prices. $50 for ice cream for 4 people! Prices were not listed anywhere in sight. read more

Mark is amazing and so is his ice cream!!! It's the best I have ever had! He makes this stop an event that is worth the drive!

The BEST ice cream EVER!!!!! Seriously Amazing!!!! Fig & Nut Chocolate & Chili Lemon Lilikoi Ginger Smap ALL read more

Our Founding Farmers - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

Wowwww!! FRESH!! Homemade - like something your family would put out that was a treasured recipes passed down... AND the best part of that is that they're using locally sourced fresh produce to make these amazing flavors that are so intense you're going to be amazed... maybe be blown away is a better way of saying it. There wasn't one I didn't like.... Even the spicy one and I don't like spicy.?? yeah that's right a spicy one!! flavors like gingersnap, starfruit, lemons, chocolate, and chili Oreos lilikoi, matcha, cinnamon, toast, crunch, papaya, fig nut, mint chip, sere, numb, cherry, mango, Rocky Road, pistachio, maple, want it, M&Ms, pralines and cream, strawberry, peach, dragon, fruit, black cherry that's just to name a few... AND IF YOU'RE A FARMER-they have a board of fruits that they're looking for so that they can make more of the same! Because they make some astounding flavors!!! Those fresh flavors make a total difference! Meanwhile, service is amazing! The owner is on top of it. He is given samples so he can find what suits you best! Attentive, friendly knowledgeable wish we had this back at home!! Ambience stellar I love this place. It's cute. It's clean. It has plenty of room for a group and seating outside as well! We are super excited to find this place and I know we're gonna be back before our vacation is over... come here and check it out! You won't be disappointed read more

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We were on a quest for ice cream while visiting the big island, and stumbled upon our founding farmers while driving north bound through Hawī. The lovely lady working behind the coolers immediately asked if we had any allergies which was much appreciated as someone with food sensitivities. She offered us about 5 different samples varying from Waimea strawberry to ginger snap, all made in house from locally sourced ingredients. The scoop sizes were generous and came in 1 or 2 scoop cup options. It was $7 per scoop, or $11 for two which seemed steep, but whatever were on vacation and the service was phenomenal. There was plenty of outdoor and indoor seating a designated parking lot. Additionally, they've got a bathroom, which was near impossible to find in the rest of the town area. Definitely recommend if you're in the neighborhood to make a stop for a sweet treat! read more

Our Founding Farmers - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

Amazing people ! Let try every flavor b4 you choose what you want. One of the best Ice creams I've ever had. Amazing flavors not overly sugary and refreshing! read more

I travel all over hawaii for work and i have to tell you, this is by far the best ice cream I've had in all of hawaii. If you are looking for the "basic taste the same everywhere" Ice cream, this place may not be for you. But if you are looking for ice cream created from scratch from whatever fruit and ingredients are in season, this is your spot. My only regret is that it's all the way up in Hawi. So worth it. For the record, i had the Lilikoi ice cream and the star fruit ice cream. so good! read more

Greeted by a friendly server who offered several samples. I chose a mix of lilikoi and dragon fruit to sample the local flavors and wife had chocolate. Everything was great but I am tough ice cream/sorbet rater. If I was in this area I would stop again. read more

Our Founding Farmers - lilikoi/dragon fruit and chocolate - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

HIGHLY RECOMMEND! This is the probably the BEST ice cream store we've ever been to! Mark and his team were so friendly, welcoming, and knowledgeable of the local produce used in their ice cream. The combination of flavors are unlike anything we've ever had, and we couldn't be happier that we stopped in today. We will definitely be back. Mahalo... read more

Best ice cream I have ever had and the customer service is next level good. They offered us endless taste tests of over 10 flavors each. Must try the chocolate+chili read more

The ice creams & sorbets here are made with many local ingredients & offer flavors unique to Hawaii. They are generous with samples & explanations of the flavors, too. I ended up choosing lilikoi but next time I'll get ginger or papaya. Great service & delicious ice cream! read more

Delicious ice cream with amazing local and tropical flavors. Truly artisanal and flavors crafted with care. Treat yourself to a double scoop bc it's so difficult to choose. We had strawberry, matcha, peach, ginger snap and lilikoi--liked samples of the choc chili, papaya too--so hard to choose. Go as a group and share. Support this amazing business and spread the word. Will def come again PS paradise ice cream started in Hawi--one day, hope to see this business grow like paradise ice cream read more

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delicious ice cream & such friendly amazing staff!!! Highly recommend. The ice cream is Unbelievable.

Local ice cream and sorbet shop. Fantastic, friendly and informative guy walked us through samples and flavors. We had ginger snap, chocolate chili, and strawberry that actually tastes like strawberries. So creamy! What a find for a local shop. It's a must try. read more

Our Founding Farmers - Scoop of ginger snap and scoop of strawberry!! - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

The finest hand made ice cream in Hawaii nei! This is not your average ice cream offered elsewhere in town; this is an entrepreneur who has discovered tropical flavors never ventured before. Mark has accomplished a major feat; he uses local and exotic fruits as well as offers classics like seasonal peach, Hawaiian Chocolate mint and rockin' rocky road. Each made with a personal passion for core creamery! Mahalo Mark! You have elevated the art of a favorite pastime for children and families, lovers and friends. Yes. Go here. Say hi to Owner, the ice cream extraordinaire, Mark! Yahoo. read more

Our Founding Farmers - Mochi Approved! - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

Just left Founding Farmers ice cream shop on the north end of the Big Island in Hawi... what a find! They offer homemade ice cream and sorbet using all local ingredients. The owner was wonderful and the flavors incredible! The ambiance was perfect! read more

Our Founding Farmers - Front of Shop - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

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By far the best ice cream we have ever had. Each flavor is created by hand with the freshest and most luxurious ingredients. We tried so many flavors, they're all amazing, but settled on lilikoi, which is divine! read more

Our Founding Farmers - A scoop of likikoi ice cream. Incredible! - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

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Hands down, best ice cream I have ever had. Staff are very generous with letting you try the numerous flavors. I assume many if not all the ingredients are local. I landed on mango and pistachio and each bite had me smiling. So creamy, so perfect. The staff were kind and the ambiance is charming. mahalo!! thank you! read more

The nicest people and the absolute best ice cream we've ever had (and we eat ice cream as often as we can, no matter where we are.) They gave us samples of several different flavors without our even asking. We got the pistachio and the ginger snap, both of which were outstanding. Nice covered tables outside to sit at. At the time of this review, Yelp showed them closed on Monday, but we walked by and they were open. Don't miss! read more

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i wish i could buy these in pints on the mainland. first of all the service was amazing, we tried pretty much all of the flavors available before picking our top three. we were originally going to share one but we could not decide on a single flavor and ended up getting three... i am still astounded at how they managed to perfectly capture the flavor of each fruit. i love papaya but never see papaya flavored items. this ice cream tasted like i was eating the most delicious papaya in ice cream form. the dragonfruit was so refreshing and tasted like the sweetest ripest dragon fruit and the seeds added the best little crunchy texture. the lilikoi was perfectly sweet and sour. plenty of seating inside and some outside. i dream of this papaya ice cream. read more

Our Founding Farmers - papaya, dragon fruit, lilikoi - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Hawi, Hawaii

Ice cream was great! Owner gave us many samples before we chose the ones we wanted. Good size portion. One flavor for $7 or two flavors for $11. Nice little patio to sit on while eating. read more

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Nice and tasty house made ice cream with a ton of local and unique flavors. Staff was friendly, and gave us three different samples to try unprompted. read more

Great service, lots of samples to very flavorful ice creams and sorbets! The strawberry is a must taste! A little pricier but worth it.

Staff was awesome & the homemade ice cream hit the spot!! It is a must stop when you are passing through Hawi.

The icecream is good but rude owner. We went there to buy some Smart water for our dog. We were going to get a bite to eat and then go back for ice cream. I went to use the bathroom and in front of about 10 people, the owner said it was a customer bathroom. I told him we were buying water (btw it was expensive for water). He again snapped at me and said they sell icecream. I guess our purchase doesn't count as a customer. And he assumed we weren't going to buy more. I am a local and repeat customer. I don't agree with embarrassing and belittling people. I will never enter this store again. read more

We stumbled on Our Founding Farmers while walking in Hawi and I'm glad we did. I was surprised when the first question Mark asked us was "do you have any allergies?" - but I understood why when he started to hand us samples of many, many different flavors. All were delicious; the fruit was local and fresh, and the ice cream was wonderful! It was relaxing until it was time to choose a couple of flavors - narrowing it down was *tough*, but I finally went with Lilikoi and Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate. Yummy! I plan on going back on my next trip to the Big Island. read more