Royal Ice Cream’s cold treats have global appeal
PHOTO | steve laschever
For over 90 years, the Orfitelli family has owned and operated Royal Ice Cream in Manchester. Third-generation James Orfitelli runs the business today, but he's looking for a new buyer as his retirement looms.
Stan Simpson
Photo | steve laschever
A Royal Ice Cream employee places cookies on a large baking pan.
PHOTOs | steve laschever
Benny Castillo and Cherish Laureno dip dessert treats in chocolate.
Michael Orfitelli Sr. migrated to Manchester from Italy in the 1920s at 16, knowing that hard work and ingenuity would be his formula for success in a new country.
After working at a dairy company for a few years, Orfitelli decided to go off on his own. In 1926, Royal Ice Cream, a small manufacturing plant on Warren Street, was launched. Orfitelli, who had no formal education, later developed a patent for a spring-loaded pint-filler, owned several multi-family real estate properties and a prized 1952 Buick.
His business initially had about 30 delivery routes within a 10-mile radius of Hartford; convenience stores and mom-and-pop operations were primary customers.
Over 90 years, Royal Ice Cream evolved. Its range of ice cream novelties and specialties expanded, along with its customer base, which is national — there's even business in China.
One thing has not changed: An Orfitelli is still in charge.
Third Generation at the Helm
James “Jim” Orfitelli — Michael's grandson — has been running things since 1987. The third-generation business these days generates sales of $2 million a year making ice cream desserts, including sorbets, mud pies, cake rolls, tortoni and spumoni.
Michael Orfitelli's hard work and his six-day-a-week business kept his family comfortable for almost a century.
“His idea of a break was to go from making popsicles to working on his patio,'' said James Orfitelli, 63, recalling what one of his grandfather's associates once told him. “He was a hard-working guy.”
Wearing a hair net and a white smock jacket, James Orfitelli said a strong work ethic from his 12 fulltime and four part-time employees is what keeps the operation thriving — and it's something he too tries to model.
Hands On Philosophy
“I'm not just here in the office, putting orders on paper and barking them out through a window,” Orfitelli said. “I work with them shoulder-to-shoulder every day. I bend down to pick up the trash out of the drain. I take the garbage out to the dumpster. They don't do anything that I wouldn't do, or haven't done already. I expect them to give me a good day's work and respect the fact that I'm working with them too.''
A stint in refrigeration school as a young man was beneficial. When a freezer acts up or another piece of machinery is on the fritz, Orfitelli can fix it.
Back in the day, Royal focused on personal deliveries. As a teenager, James Orfitelli started in the business on the road. Today, Royal is all about manufacturing specialty products and dealing with distributors and food operations, such as Sysco, New England Ice Cream, and Shamrock Foods. Trucks now come to the 20,000-square-foot plant to pick up pallets of ice cream for delivery to such places as New Orleans, Colorado, Arizona, New York and China.
Special ice cream sandwiches — 46,000 of them — were made for this year's Masters professional golf tournament in Augusta, Ga. Picture two sugar cookies sandwiching peach ice cream, with peaches in them.
Two Signature Delicacies
Royal produces about 500,000 gallons of ice cream a year. It has two signature Italian-style delicacies:
• Tortoni — Rum-flavored ice cream, topped with toasted macaroon crunch and a red cherry, in a five-ounce cup.
• Spumoni — A four-ounce rum-flavored wedge of vanilla and chocolate ice cream with whip cream, pistachio ice cream, black and red cherries, raisins, roasted almonds.
Ice cream is one of those products in which there is almost universal appeal. Few, though, realize the elaborate process involved — gallons of 14 percent butter fat mix pumped into flavor tanks and then sent to a whipping machine, before it is infused with just the right amount of air for taste quality.
“Everyone loves ice cream. I just love the business,” Orfitelli said. “There's no greater feeling than when a production day starts and runs smoothly; the product is being packaged and everything is running well.''
The company recently completed a deal with a New Orleans company to manufacture $200,000 worth of ice cream chocolate cookie sandwiches — one with vanilla bean ice cream, the other with creole cream cheese.
No Fourth Generation
Though he enjoys the business, Orfitelli concedes retirement is on the horizon — and no other family members are interested in taking over. Royal can be consuming. Orfitelli and his wife Cynthia raised their four children in a three-bedroom Cape on the same 3-acre parcel that is home to the business. For 38 years, Orfitelli has walked from home to work.
About $500,000 of remodeling upgrades were completed eight years ago, including computer-driven compressors. For someone interested in owning an ice cream business, Orfitelli said, Royal provides a great opportunity.
“The potential for this business is off the charts because there aren't a whole lot of people doing this,'' he said. “And we have a good name in the industry.''
Stan Simpson is the principal of Stan Simpson Enterprises LLC, a strategic communications consulting firm. He is also host of “The Stan Simpson Show” which airs Saturday, 5:30 a.m., on Fox CT — and online at www.fox61.com/stan.
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