There’s a new (old) creamy whip in town.
Latonia’s Dari-Crest has been closed for the past two summers. Local educator Lynn DeMoss bought the shop in July 2024 and reopened it this spring.
“Dari-Crest has been a staple of the Latonia community for over 50 years,” DeMoss told LINK nky.
Officially reopened on April 8, the little creamy whip has persevered through multiple changes in ownership, a car crashing into the building in 2007 and more. DeMoss is intent on continuing the tradition and getting the community back out for ice cream.
DeMoss worked at Kenton County Schools for 29 years and at Covington Independent Schools for the last 4 years. She was working at 9th District Elementary and drove past the old Dari-Crest twice a day.
“I was just thinking, ‘When are they gonna open that place? I want an ice cream!'” DeMoss said.
Now, they’re open for business and continually working to improve it. The team at Dari-Crest plans to restore some of the former glory to the shop’s sign this summer. But the food comes first.
LINK asked DeMoss what Dari-Crest was best known for and what they’re serving up now.
“We’re really well known for our ‘eye cones,'” DeMoss said.
She’s referring to heaping cones of soft serve ice cream decorated with a pair of candy eyeballs. DeMoss says these are especially huge with kids.
“Those eye cones are fun, and they’re a local tradition that people know and trust,” DeMoss said.
They’ve also made some changes based on tradition. Dari-Crest has served a foot-long hot dog for years. DeMoss gave it a brand update.
The Latonia Long Dog is Dari-Crest’s foot-long delicacy piled high with chili, cheese, mustard, onions, relish and hot sauce. It’s $6 and, according to DeMoss, one of their best-selling menu items.
“I love seeing the kids outside of school in a place that they can have a good time and some ice cream,” DeMoss said.
Diners can get dinner and dessert at Dari-Crest from 3 to 9 p.m. on Monday through Thursday and noon to 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday, starting May 31. DeMoss said they’ll probably be closing in the fall, but that’s all up in the air. For now, they’re focusing on fun and food.
Keep up with Dari-Crest at instagram.com/daricrest.