Helados Chupi Chupi, the Puerto Rican-inspired ice cream brand that started as a father-daughter kitchen project, is leveling up from pink dessert carts and supermarket shelves into a cafe serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Co-founder Yara Encarnación announced the news alongside her father, Alex Encarnación, during a Hispanic Heritage Month celebration segment.
Yara and Alex Encarnación joined hosts Rachel Malak and Abby Urban for the segment, where sweet frozen treats were served up as part of the celebration, according to PHL17. During the appearance, Yara announced that Helados Chupi Chupi is launching a cafe that will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, marking the brand's biggest leap yet from its frozen-treat roots.
From a Family Kitchen to the Storefront
The business traces back to 2018, when it started in the Philadelphia kitchen of Yaralexis “Yara” Encarnación and her father as a family ice cream experiment, eventually expanding from church sales into local retail stores, according to Impacto Media. Yara has said she began making ice cream with her father at age 9.
The brand built its early popularity around Boricua-inspired handcrafted popsicles in traditional flavors like guava, coconut, passion fruit, tamarind and non-alcoholic piña colada, alongside natural juices, empanadas, churros, mini donuts and handcrafted chamoy sauce, per the same outlet's report. That range of offerings gives the family a menu foundation as they expand beyond frozen treats.
Carts, Supermarkets and Cultural Partnerships
Before opening its brick-and-mortar cafe, the company operated without a storefront, distributing products in local Philadelphia supermarkets and sending its signature pink dessert carts to private celebrations and outdoor festivals, the Impacto Media report notes. Those mobile carts remain available for events, according to the company's own listings on its website.
Helados Chupi Chupi also built credibility through local institutional partnerships. The brand operates as the official food and beverage concession partner for the Esperanza Arts Center, serving theatergoers in the Teatro Esperanza lobby during Latin American cultural performances in North Philadelphia. In July 2023, the company was selected as one of eight featured local artisanal ice cream vendors alongside historic maker Bassetts Ice Cream for the annual Reading Terminal Market Ice Cream Festival on Filbert Street, according to a post from Bassetts Ice Cream.
The brand has also been a regular vendor at La Placita Philly, an outdoor weekend community flea market in the city's Fairhill neighborhood, as WHYY has reported.
Latino-Owned Businesses in Greater Philadelphia
The cafe's launch comes amid the presence of Latino-owned businesses across the region.
Hispanic or Latino residents make up approximately 15.6% of Philadelphia's population of more than 1.57 million people, according to 2024 American Community Survey estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. The announcement also arrives during Hispanic Heritage Month.
Specific details on the new cafe's address, opening date and full menu have not yet been released.
