We have an inside scoop for you - if you’ve seen a totally ‘gram-worthy vintage ice cream truck around town with a remix to the classic jingle playing on the speakers, your eyes do not deceive you. Meet Kelley Menzes of Cherry On Top, who has brought back a timeless favorite to our community. We sat down with this creative genius to hear all about how she got started, and Cherry on Top’s story so far. Read on to melt over this sweet new favorite.

Tell us a little about you: What’s your family’s story, and what has your career looked like until now?

I come from a tight family of four children. I’m the third girl in my family and we have a younger brother. Both of my parents were teachers so we had summers off together every year, and that’s when we created so many of our family memories. Summer has always been magical and memorable to me. I grew up here in Fresno and attended Clovis Unified schools. I actually am now in education myself, working full time as a kindergarten teacher for Clovis Unified.

What sparked the idea for Cherry On Top?

I was driving out of town one day, and saw an old beat-up van that was turned into an ice cream truck, and felt that it had really lost its luster and excitement. For the next five hours of the drive, I couldn’t stop thinking about that truck. I just kept thinking that I could recreate this magic for our community, and from that moment on the hunt to find a truck began.

Why ice cream?

I remember as a child the excitement and thrill of hearing the ice cream truck, quickly rounding up your money, and running out to try to catch them in time before they turned the corner. It was such a fun childhood summer memory that brought so much excitement. I felt like our kids today don’t really know that feeling - and I wanted to create that for them. I wanted to bring back that excitement for kids and help mold priceless summer memories that will last a lifetime.

How did you get started? What was the process like?

I started the hunt for my truck over a year ago. It was a lot harder than I thought, because I had an idea and vision in my head of exactly what I wanted. I looked up and down the Valley for months. I was beginning to get a little discouraged, but kept on looking - and then I saw an ad for this truck and immediately contacted the seller. I instantly made arrangements to drive down to where it was, and as soon as I pulled up I knew I had to buy it! The truck was exactly what I had pictured it to be.

Cherry On Top is truly the first of its kind. What has the response been?

People have been SO excited about Cherry! She (Cherry) really has become her own little person around town. I’ll be driving, and kids are rolling down their windows waving and screaming, “Hi, Cherry!” Even the parents love it because they are the generation who grew up running after the ice cream truck, so it brings back great memories for them too. They see things that I have on the truck and make comments like “this was my favorite when I was a kid...”. It’s been so fun to see how excited kids of all ages are when Cherry pulls up. I love when we do park pop-ups, and I look around and see people coming together. The kids are running around with their ice creams playing, parents are standing around talking, and it’s so refreshing to see people up and off of their devices, and really enjoying each other.

What flavors do you offer? Any fan favorites?

All ice creams that we carry on the truck are all nostalgic items. We constantly change what is on Cherry, to always have new and exciting things. We carry things from basic popsicles, ice cream sandwiches, Bomb Pops, Choco Tacos, Characters faces and so much more! The Bomb pops are some of our biggest sellers. Kids also love the character faces with the gumball eyes. Our adult customers like our Choco Tacos, Snickers, It’s Its and 50/50 Bars.

Where can locals find you?

The best place to catch Cherry is through social media. We post on our Instagram page @cherryontop559, which is also linked to our Facebook. When we are not at private events, we always post our open times and locations for anyone to come chase Cherry! It’s part of the fun. We have named our followers Cherry Chasers, and the truck has become a huge success because of these loyal fans.

We’ve loved getting the story on this awesome new addition to the Fresno food scene, and can’t wait to chase down our next sweet treat.

Something Sweet: Cherry on Top