Start Summer With Rita’s Ice And Support Pediatric Cancer Research
By Francesca Bartolomey 
June 14, 2010 
5 Comments
Many things divide New Yorkers. Where can you find the best pizza? Which borough has the better baseball team? But with summer practically here, I think it appropriate to tackle the question: where can you find the best ice cream? Surely there are lots of great options out there, but what do you get when you combine delicious frozen treats with an amazing cause?
Rita’s Water Ice.
(The author has been informed that in order to appeal to a more national audience, Rita’s has dropped the “Water Ice†part of its name and is now simply “Rita’s Italian Ice.†I cannot abide that. To me it shall always be Water Ice. Whatever that is.)
Many of you may be unfamiliar with this particular institution. After all, what in the heck is water ice? I grew up with the stuff and I still don’t know. But what I do know is that no summer is complete without Rita’s.
With franchises located all across the United States, including New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Texas, and D.C., Rita’s serves up cool refreshments of both the standard variety (custard and ice) and their own innovative creations (like the Misto and the Blendini). Rita’s has every flavor of ice you could want including banana, watermelon, blueberry, root beer, key lime and even Swedish Fish and marshmallow PEEP-flavored ice.
But apart from its fantastic frozen delights, what sets Rita’s apart? Its commitment to a cause begun by an adorable little girl named Alexandra Scott. June is Alex’s month at Rita’s which means that franchises all across the country sell paper lemons to support Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. Rita’s employees are even bedecked in yellow Alex’s t-shirts for the month to draw more awareness to the cause.
Rita’s is a corporate sponsor for Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation and has singly raised more than $2 million to date for the cause. Alex was barely a year old when doctors discovered that she had neuroblastoma, a type of pediatric cancer. She was only four years old when she decided that she wanted to host a lemonade stand to raise money for a cure. Thus, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation was born and since then, it has raised millions of dollars for childhood cancer research.
Little Alex lost her fight with cancer at age eight, but through her Lemonade Stand and generous donations by corporate sponsors such as Rita’s, her memory lives.
Rita’s grew out of Pennsylvania and spread to the mid-Atlantic states, but New York City was graced with its first location when Josh Teitelbaum set up shop on the upper west side on Valentine’s Day 2010. Educated at the University of Pennsylvania and then George Washington University Law School, Josh didn’t seem to be headed for a future in dessert. As an M&A lawyer turned entrepreneur, Josh was looking for more than a change in career – he was looking for happiness. He found it in the simple act of giving a kid an ice cream cone. But rather than just open up the hundred thirty-seventh Tasti D-Lite (that number is completely made up), Josh chose to bring a little bit of his college experience to New York.
With its signature ice, its rich, creamy custard, and its commitment to pediatric cancer research, Rita’s has endeared itself to the upper west side community and there are tentative plans for more locations in the city.
Stop by Rita’s sometime during the month of June and purchase a paper lemon for $1 to support Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation – we did! (You even get a free bag of Mike and Ike candies while supplies last when you support the cause.)
*Special thanks to Nicole and Nathan, the wonderful Rita’s workers who tolerated my seemingly endless picture-snapping with grace and good humor.
Photos by Francesca Bartolomey for Appetite for Good.
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Great reason to make a trip to UWS! Sit in the park while enjoying some delicious water ice and supporting a good cause… what else can make for a better summer day?
I think it’s always great when we can do something we love that also helps others. I haven’t been to NYC in like 13 years now. Wonder how much it has changed?
I’m with you in supporting great causes like this. Thank you for sharing this post.
Great cause and great post…thank you:)
Really great cause, thanks for sharing.