From sports to ice cream: Three young entrepreneurs aim to boost harbor tourism

There’s good news for all Aalborg residents who love good ice cream, summer vibes and trips to the east coast.

Three young men have set out to make Hals even more popular – both as a holiday destination and as a year-round town.

At 6 o’clock Monday morning, Joakim Gramkow Brader, Ejner Geir Mosen Poulsen and Jacob Starcke were already dressed in work clothes.

After almost a full year of waiting, they have finally received the building permit needed to transform an old sportswear shop on the harbour in Hals into a modern ice cream dairy with a café.

“We’ve been looking forward to this, so now we can finally get properly started,” says Joakim Gramkow Brader, who owns the business together with his partner, Ejner Geir Mosen Poulsen.

Together with their mutual friend, Jacob Starcke, they want to create a modern and cozy spot on the harbour in Hals that can attract both tourists and locals – and bring even more life to the town.

Opening one year later than planned

Originally, the doors were supposed to open during the Easter holidays this year.

That was before they knew it would take an entire year for the municipality to grant permission to convert the shop into a café.

However, the waiting time hasn’t been wasted. The three young men have attended ice-cream courses – and at the same time worked on a major project further down the harbour.

A year and a half ago, Joakim and Ejner took over the operation of Restaurant Havkatten, which they have since renovated with acoustic ceilings, new grout and a large wooden terrace.

This is also where Jacob comes into the picture. He is currently a waiter at Havkatten but will be responsible for the daily operations of the ice cream dairy.

“We see huge potential in Hals. It’s a bit of an unpolished gem, and we believe we can help create another place people want to drive out to,” says Joakim Gramkow Brader.

Since taking over the restaurant, they have doubled the turnover at Havkatten – and now they hope they will soon be able to serve homemade ice cream to guests.

32 different ice cream varieties

Hals’ new ice cream dairy will be located right across from Meny – down toward the harbour.

Half of the premises will be dedicated to the production itself, while the rest will be set up as a café with seating. There will also be a new outdoor terrace.

“We have no experience with ice cream, so we’ve been attending lots of courses and fairs. At New Year, we’re heading to Italy for training,” says Joakim, who together with the other two spends all his free time on the renovation.

When the ice cream dairy is ready by summer, another municipal step awaits: an occupancy permit.

That can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months – but the men are hoping for the best.

“We’re not naive anymore, but we hope it will go quickly,” says Joakim Gramkow Brader.

When they open, it will be with 32 different ice cream varieties – all produced locally at the harbour in Hals.

“It has to be a place people want to drive out to. We hope we can help show even more people how lovely Hals is – and create even more life in the town,” says Joakim.

What the new ice cream dairy will be called is still uncertain. But you can follow the project on their Facebook page.