Nana's Serves Up More Than Just Ice Cream

If you have a job you truly love and enjoy, it doesn’t feel like work at all. Such is the life for Dianne Mann, the owner of Nana’s Ice Cream, Gelato & Candy Bar. A former investment banker, Dianne spent many days at Narragansett Beach with her children, often stopping at Nana’s in the Pier Marketplace for ice cream. When her children were in high school, Dianne purchased a beach house in the Pier and then in 2006 bought their favorite ice cream spot. According to Dianne, “I’ve been in flip flops ever since.”

Since 1985, Nana’s has been serving ice cream in Narragansett. After a trip to Italy with her daughter in 2006, Dianne added gelato into the mix. Gelato has a smoother, creamier texture than ice cream and because gelato is made with milk instead of cream, it’s actually healthier and only contains 1-4 grams of fat. Dianne makes her gelato in small batches and imports many of her ingredients from Italy (everything except the milk and sugar). Customers looking for gluten or lactose free products love the dairy-free fruit flavors like Blood Orange, Raspberry, Mango, Passion Peach or Passion Fruit. Nana’s signature gelato flavor is called “Nana’s Kiss.” This fan favorite is chocolate mixed with Snickers, Kit Kats and Hershey Kisses. Because Nana’s gelato has become such a crowd pleaser, Dianne now caters wedding receptions with her signature gelato bar. This season, Dianne has added three new flavors to her gelato repertoire – Key Lime, Cannoli and Coconut Mango.

Even though gelato is the current trend at Nana’s, the homemade ice cream still has its fans. The most popular flavors are Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough and Cake Batter (contrary to the nation’s most popular flavor – vanilla). Kids go crazy for the blue Cookie Monster and pink Bubble Gum flavors. Other popular flavors include Salted Caramel Chocolate Pretzel and Monster Mash, which is mixed with malted milk balls, M&Ms and cookie pieces. If you want to jazz up your ice cream, you can try a Koala Sundae, which is served in a homemade waffle cup bowl, or the Beached Whale Sundae, which is served in a sand pail and topped with brownies, bananas, whipped cream, nuts and a cherry.

Nana’s has expanded from its original spot in the Pier Marketplace to additional stores in North Kingstown, Newport and Galilee. All of the locations serve premium ice cream, gelato, soft serve and candy. For Dianne, the best part of owning Nana’s is being part of people’s memories and watching the families come back year after year. She says, “Everyone who walks through our door is smiling and hap- py.” That sounds like reason enough to come back time and time again. 28A Pier Marketplace, Narragansett; 250 Sand Hill Cove Road, Narragansett; 6710 Post Road, North Kings- town; 348 Thames Street, Newport; 500-1900.

You Can Run a 5K and Drink Wine Too
On September 21 at 11am, Jonathan Edwards Winery in North Stonington is hosting a very unique event called Vino & The Beasts. When you combine one part 5k, one part obstacle course and one part wine tasting, what do you get? A day of fun!

You don’t have to be an extreme sports junkie to take part in this event. Participants are allowed to run, jog or walk depending on their level of fitness. The water stations will feature samples of wine (water will be available too), and at the conclusion of the race, there is a wine festival complete with food, music and of course wine. The 5k run/walk will send participants through the rugged terrain of the vineyard in scenic southeastern Connecticut. The racecourse features 10-11 obstacles including some that will get you both very wet and very dirty (think crawling under wires suspended over a mud pit). Because some of the obstacles involve climbing (like Mt. Vino, a 12-foot climbing wall), race organizers recommend the participants should add some strength training into their regular workouts.

For the $75 entry fee, you receive a Vino & The Beasts dri-fit shirt, Beast Run race bib with timing chip, event wine glass, tote bag and there is an after-party with live music and a complimentary wine tasting. Prizes will be awarded to the top performing athletes (overall and in each age group) and for best costumes. Race organizers say, “bring your running shoes that can get muddy, your craziest costume and beastly attitude.” Be sure to register soon because this one of a kind event is sure to sell out. Registration begins at 8:30am. 74 Chester Main Road, North Stonington, CT. 860-535-0202.

Send all food, beverage, restaurant and chef news to Stacey Place at ridining@gmail.com. Follow Stacey on Twitter @ridining. Find further adventures in dining on Stacey’s website.