Patty and Jim Holloway started Scoops & Swirls in 2009 with one ice cream maker, two recipes, and a whole lot of hope. Fifteen years later, it's become one of Savannah's most-loved neighborhood spots.
Patty Holloway grew up making ice cream with her grandmother every summer in Vidalia, Georgia. The process was simple: fresh berries, cream from the neighbor's farm, sugar, and patience. It wasn't fancy. It was real.
When she and Jim moved to Savannah after college, they missed that ice cream more than anything. They tried every shop in town. Nothing tasted like what she'd grown up with. So in 2009, they signed a lease on a little storefront on Broughton Street, ordered a used ice cream maker, and got to work.
The first summer, they sold exactly seven flavors. Georgia Strawberry, Madagascar Vanilla Bean, Dutch Cocoa Fudge, Mint Chocolate Chip, Coastal Blueberry, Peach Melba, and Lemon Basil Sorbet. Every single one sold out by 4pm on weekends. They knew they were onto something.
Word spread the way good things do in a small city. A mention in the Savannah Morning News. A loyal Sunday-after-church crowd. Then a feature in Garden & Gun magazine in 2013 that brought people in from across Georgia. The shop has been busy ever since.
Jim handles the dairy sourcing and operations. Patty develops every recipe. Neither of them has formal culinary training, and that's sort of the point. They cook like home cooks: tasting constantly, adjusting by feel, and refusing to follow a formula just because it's easier.
Every flavor starts with a real question: what's in season right now, what do we actually want to eat, and what would genuinely surprise someone? That's how Blood Orange Sorbet became a February staple and how Vidalia Onion Caramel (yes, really) became a cult favorite for one unforgettable month in May 2019.
The dairy comes from two farms they've worked with for over a decade. Meador's Dairy in Statesboro and Hollis Family Farm outside of Hinesville. Both are less than 80 miles away. Both deliver twice a week. The cream is so fresh it practically makes the ice cream itself.
They use no artificial colors, no stabilizers beyond what naturally occurs in good cream, and no shortcuts. If a flavor can't be done right with real ingredients, they don't make it.
Every business makes choices. Here are ours.
Every ingredient we use is something you'd recognize. No gums, no artificial flavors, no mystery additives. If it doesn't belong in your grandmother's kitchen, it doesn't belong in our ice cream.
We source from Georgia farms whenever possible. Our dairy, most of our fruit, and many of our specialty inclusions come from within 150 miles of Savannah. We've shaken the hands of the people who grow our food.
This is a family business and we act like it. Our kids have grown up in this shop. So have our employees' kids. We close on holidays that matter. We pay living wages. We take care of our people.
We donate to Savannah food banks every quarter. We sponsor three youth sports teams. We do free Pup Cups because joy doesn't need a price tag. Being a good neighbor matters more than another upsell.
We were doing this before it became trendy. Strawberry gets pink from strawberries. Matcha gets green from matcha. We trust our ingredients to look the way they taste.
Dogs bring joy. Ice cream brings joy. The combination is obvious. Our patio is dog-friendly and every visiting pup gets a free Pup Cup. It's been policy since day one and it's not changing.
Every batch follows the same path. Real ingredients, careful process, no shortcuts.
Fresh cream and milk arrive from our Georgia farm partners twice a week. Seasonal fruit comes from local growers or our own preservation from peak season.
Patty develops or refines each batch recipe in the back kitchen before production begins. Every new flavor gets at least three test runs before it hits the board.
We use Italian-made batch freezers for our churned flavors. Small runs, 4-6 gallons at a time. Each batch is tasted before it goes into the display case.
Ice cream is scooped to order, every time. Nothing sits under a heat lamp. We serve it the way it was meant: cold, fresh, and generous.
We've worked with the same two Georgia farm families for over a decade. That relationship means consistency, trust, and exceptional cream.
Located outside Statesboro, GA, Meador's has been a family dairy since 1948. Third-generation farmers Jack and Rachel Meador supply our primary cream and whole milk. Their herd of 80 Holstein cows is pasture-raised and antibiotic-free. Delivery arrives every Tuesday and Friday morning.
Just outside Hinesville, the Hollis family supplies our seasonal fruit inclusions and specialty cream for small-batch flavors. Tommy Hollis and his daughter Emma grow peaches, berries, and figs that we use throughout spring and summer. What we can't use fresh, Patty preserves herself for winter batches.
For flavors that go beyond our farm partners, we source from local specialty importers. Our Madagascar vanilla comes through a Savannah-based importer with direct farm relationships in Antsirabe. Our Dutch cocoa is sourced from a small-batch importer in Atlanta who visits the origin farms annually.
We've been part of this city for 15 years and that means something to us. Here's how we show up for Savannah.
Most days you'll find one or both of us in the shop. We love talking ice cream, hearing your flavor requests, and meeting your dogs.