New digs for The Hop

The Hop, an Asheville tradition for 31 years, has changed locations, moving from its Art Deco building in the Woolsey Dip on Merrimon Avenue to the Merrimon Square shopping center further north on Merrimon.

[wnc resident for peace]

Good ice cream BUT, still waiting for some organic options there....

[Doug in North Asheville]

The ice cream and service is great. However, I will never go back since they left the old "drive-in" location. The old location had style. Things that make Asheville unique are quickly disappearing. We are becoming another Charlotte and Atlanta.

[Free]

Doug in North Asheville wrote:

The ice cream and service is great. However, I will never go back since they left the old "drive-in" location. The old location had style. Things that make Asheville unique are quickly disappearing. We are becoming another Charlotte and Atlanta.

Agreed, now it's just another ice cream shop in a very unattractive office building. I used to take my children there when they were young after playing in Weaver park. That was such a treat for them,I'm sad to see other children will not get the full effect of the location and drive through.

[You scream I scream]

Doug in North Asheville wrote:

The ice cream and service is great. However, I will never go back since they left the old "drive-in" location. The old location had style. Things that make Asheville unique are quickly disappearing. We are becoming another Charlotte and Atlanta.

Particularly if you stop patronizing local businesses.

[Radar]

That's a really bad business decision on their part to move from the location that everybody knew and the location that stood out from everything else. My guess is they'll loose a good percentage of their clientelle. Not smart.

[the Hop]

The new location of the Hop has become a community center for people to gather, hang out, and enjoy a uniquely Asheville small business. Everything is still homemade, and now we carry all natural, locally baked pastries--- supporting another small business. Our coffee is organic, fair trade, and roasted especially for us. Our vegan treats have increased as we now carry vegan brownies and cookies to accompany our amazing soy or almond milk ice cream (also homemade in the store). The businesses in the Merrimon Square center are locally owned small businesses as well- Urban burrito, Zen Sushi, Manny's, Circle in the Square- all Asheville unique. Give us a chance and check out the difference we've made in our ability to serve the Asheville community. Our new, clean, air conditioned Hop, with more available parking, offers a better experience to our customers than the old dinky and dillapidated building could have ever offered. Thanks for the comments and give us a chance before you turn us down :)

[rickm]

Abandon them because they move? No way. Great ice cream, great service. It will be nice to go there and have parking, which the old one lacked, esp if that place next door was running nearly full.

Several places in that stretch of Merrimon have moved up a bit, like Paris Bakery. Did their business drop? Nope, it seems to have increased. Better parking and not having to back out onto Merrimon account for a lot.

[LKVP78]

Radar wrote:

That's a really bad business decision on their part to move from the location that everybody knew and the location that stood out from everything else. My guess is they'll loose a good percentage of their clientelle. Not smart.

Don't think so-their business should increase.
We sometimes passed up the old place because there was no place to park.

[Just-Wondering]

I remember driving through the Hop one afternoon. A woman with stringy yellow hair took my money at the window, then sneezed, then sucked the snot back up into her head.

'Are you sick?' I asked.
'I'm getting better,' she replied.

She handed me the ice cream cone, like a fool, I ate it. Several days later I came down with a horrid virus she had handed me.

That was the last time I ever ate there. From then on, everytime I drove past that cute building I felt sick all over again.

Just Wondering if I shoud -- Thank The Hop for your years of public service. Especially since they are monitoring this forum.