Our Story

Harlem's first family-owned ice cream shop since 1983.

Sugar Hill Creamery grew from the heart of Harlem and the shared lives of husband-and-wife team, Petrushka Bazin Larsen and Nick Larsen.

Their life together started in Harlem, where they built a shop fueled by connection, chef-inspired craft, and the stories and cultures that make this neighborhood home. What started as one has grown into three Harlem locations — and a seasonal outpost in the East Village.

We exist to make life a little sweeter and our neighborhood a little more connected. With the same high bar of excellence established by Harlem's historic artists, entrepreneurs, and thinkers, we cultivate welcoming spaces that turn strangers into neighbors, neighbors into friends, and friends into family.

Here, flavor speaks. Stories are told. Culture endures.

Nick Larsen and Petrushka Bazin Larsen

What We Stand For

Our Values

  • We make our shop a place where strangers become neighbors, neighbors become friends, and friends can become chosen family — not because we tell them to, but because the space invites it

  • We honor Harlem's icons and the excellence they established in everything we do. We celebrate the cultures of our neighborhood — the many backgrounds, traditions, and stories that surround us — alongside our own, using our craft to honor and carry those stories forward.

  • Our Thoughtful Welcome is our signature. We greet people with warmth, guide guests through our menu, and cultivate spaces that feel inviting — where tables become places to connect, conspire, plan, and think

  • A neighbor isn't just someone who lives nearby — it's anyone who walks through our door. We believe a simple hello can turn a stranger into a neighbor, and a neighbor into a friend. We build spaces where that happens naturally — where connections form, collaborations begin, and people feel genuinely welcome. The world gets a little smaller every time we get it right.

Community

Harlem Resident Portraits

On the walls of each Sugar Hill Creamery location hang portraits of Harlem residents — neighbors, artists, educators, advocates, and community builders who reflect the cultures and stories that make this neighborhood home. Each series was commissioned specifically for that location by Brooklyn-based artist Audrey Moffitt, honoring the people who have shaped and continue to shape Harlem.

Central Harlem • 184 Lenox Ave

  • Ty Jones

    OBIE Award-winning Producing Artistic Director of the Classical Theatre of Harlem; creator of Uptown Shakespeare in the Park

  • Donjai Gilmore

    Photographer, educator, and host of Block Talk podcast, using Hip-Hop as a tool for social change

  • Lawrence Ben Miles

    14-year advocate for Harlem-based women-owned businesses at the NY Women's Chamber of Commerce

  • Grandma Dawn

    Retired NYC teacher and owner of Grandma's Place, a children's toy and bookstore on 120th Street

  • Devin-Norelle Escamille

    Model, speaker, and trans advocate (Ze/Zim/Zis) advancing D&I and gender-expansive inclusion

  • Christola Phoenix

    Lifetime Harlem resident, former nurse, and award-winning nonfiction writer preserving her story of the neighborhood

West Harlem • 3629 Broadway

  • Amir Figueroa

    Co-leader of Harlem Run, deacon, and youth mentor committed to the physical and spiritual health of the community

  • Yvonne Jewnell

    Co-founder of Harlem Fashion Week, creating a national platform for Harlem-based designers and models

  • Damany Mathis

    Music industry veteran turned educator, leading creative writing programs at Harlem Children's Zone

  • Louis Johnson

    Co-founder of The League and owner of Harlem Haberdashery, empowering young men and greening Lenox Avenue

  • Tammeca Robinson

    Founder of Harlem Cycle, Harlem's first indoor cycling studio, dedicated to generational health and wellness

  • Lashon Ruth Kempson

    Community health advocate promoting wellness and violence awareness through her business Life Runs Knowing

East Harlem • 1642 Lexington Ave

  • Jesús-Papoleto Meléndez

    Founding poet of the Nuyorican Poets' movement, affirming Puerto Rican-American identity through art

  • Carol Johnson

    Disaster Liaison for East Harlem COAD, connecting vulnerable communities to resources during emergencies

  • Felipe Luciano

    Activist, two-time Emmy recipient, former news anchor, known for his involvement with The Young Lords and The Last Poets

  • Juanita Lanzo

    East Harlem resident, artist, curator, and educator centering underrepresented voices from Caribbean, African, Indigenous, and LGBTQIA+ communities

  • Marcos Dimas

    Award-winning visual artist and co-founder of Taller Boricua, mentoring and empowering Puerto Rican artists since 1970

The People Behind the Pints

Meet THE Founders

 
Join the team

Petrushka Bazin Larsen

Co-Founder & CEO

Rooted in non-profit arts and community organizing. Petrushka keeps Sugar Hill grounded in its neighborhood mission.

Read More 
Image: Ajane Farrar

Nick Larsen

Co-founder & Chief Creative Officer

From stand-up stages to New York's top kitchens. Nick now runs ice cream procurement for his toughest critics: three kids.

Read More 
Image: Courtesy of Star Chefs
 

Sugar Hill Creamery In The Media

Catering

Expertly Crafted. Nothing Less.

Our catering team brings handmade ice cream to events of all sizes — corporate gatherings, school events, private residences, and more. Or rent our Lexington Ave location for a private party.

 
Catering Inquiry