Our Story

“You can’t buy happiness, but you can buy ice cream, and that’s kind of the same thing.”

As kids, we each loved chocolate dipped cones. Growing up, the only place to get them was Dairy Queen and if you got lucky, you’d find a location that also offered Cherry or Butterscotch dips.

After Nathan graduated from The Culinary Institute of America in 2010, he and Audrey brainstormed various directions his career could lead. One of those ideas was of an ice cream shop with lots of different chocolate dip flavors and toppings to really create a unique ice cream experience. Though a fun concept, we didn’t take it seriously and Nathan’s career path led him to fine dining. He’s worked at Daniel and Union Square Café in NYC, The Fearrington House Restaurant and [ONE] Restaurant in Chapel Hill, M sushi in Durham, and Herons at The Umstead in Cary.

In 2017, we started Simons Says Spread This, an artisanal nut butter company after a trip to Germany reminded us of the incredible selection of nut spreads we’d each experienced while living in Europe. Friends and family encouraged us to turn our hobby into a business and we started selling our spreads in shops and markets around the Triangle. We discovered during the process of trying the butters with different foods, that when melted and poured over ice cream, they set like Magic Shell. We started thinking maybe our dipped cone shop idea from years ago could become a reality.

In 2018, we started writing a business plan, searching the Triangle for the right location and seeking out a business loan and an architect. Despite the process being put on hold in 2020, we’ve finally made that dream come true and have opened Simons Says Dip This in Downtown Durham, NC  to share our passion with you!