Sarasota

JavaCone Launching Family-Run Coffee and Ice Cream Concept

A new cafe concept blending coffee, lunch, and desserts is opening this summer.

Photo is from Javacone's website.

SARASOTA, FL — JavaCone, a locally owned, family-owned and operated coffee and ice cream shop from Stephen Vrondran, his wife Jemma, and their children Kayden, and Stephi, is targeting an early to mid-July opening at 5537 Palmer Crossing Circle, Sarasota, FL 34233 in the Palmer Crossing Shopping Center, Vrondran told Business Debut.

What to Expect

JavaCone will be a fast-casual coffee, pastry, lunch and ice cream shop with about 34 seats inside.

Guests will order at the counter, where menu boards, a refrigerated pastry case and a countertop case for croissants and other baked goods will be visible. Vrondran said the goal is to keep food ticket times around five to seven minutes, with drinks closer to three to four minutes.

The interior will have a modern design with a curved sofa, armchairs, tables and booth-style seating, Vrondran told Business Debut.

The menu will include espresso drinks, cappuccinos, lattes, cold brew coffee and refresher-style drinks. Vrondran said one of his personal favorites will be the Java Monster, made with two double shots of espresso and half the milk.

“You can really taste the coffee, but you have just enough milk, steamed milk and froth in there that it mellows it out,” Vrondran told Business Debut.

Food offerings will include pastries, croissants, chocolate croissants, breakfast sandwiches, beet salad, vegan and vegetarian options, and scratch-made frittatas called Cloud 9. Vrondran said the frittatas puff up in the oven, giving them a cloud-like appearance.

On the dessert side, JavaCone will serve premium ice cream with scratch-made skillet cookies, sauces, chocolate, caramel and other toppings. Vrondran said the goal is to build desserts around the ice cream rather than spend production time making the ice cream in-house.

“We want to be able to concentrate more on what we can make with the ice cream,” Vrondran told Business Debut. “We’re going to have these scratch-made cookies that will be in a little skillet, and then we’ll put ice cream, toppings, sauces, chocolates and caramels on top.”

Family Background and Sarasota Plans

The Vrondrans previously owned Kayden’s Candy Factory, a candy and ice cream shop named after their son, and Stephi Cocktails and Cuisine, a fine dining restaurant named after their daughter. After selling the restaurant and moving from Pensacola to Sarasota in July, Vrondran said the family wanted a smaller, more manageable concept that would allow them to spend more time together.

“This was a balance of being able to have something that’s smaller and more manageable, but still for us to be able to make a good living with and be able to spend more time with our children,” Vrondran told Business Debut.

JavaCone is opening in a former DIY space at Palmer Crossing Shopping Center. Vrondran said the surrounding restaurants complement the concept because JavaCone can serve as a coffee, dessert and treat stop throughout the day.

“We love Sarasota,” Vrondran told Business Debut. “We’ve met a lot of really great people, and we’re excited about bringing this new concept to the area.”

Vrondran said the Sarasota shop will serve as proof of concept for future expansion.

“As long as this does what we think it’s going to do, yes, we have plans to open more,” he told Business Debut.