PENN YAN, N.Y. (WENY) -- On this week’s episode of Twin Tiers Scoop, WENY visited a TikTok-famous Finger Lakes ice cream shop that’s shaking up summer treats with a rich and unexpected ingredient, duck eggs. 

Tucked away just outside Penn Yan, The Spotted Duck is more than just a roadside custard stand. It’s a family-run farm-to-cone operation that’s been serving up scoops with a story for nearly a decade. 

“We’ve been here for almost 10 years,” said owner Sam Solomon. “It was started by a family that had a local goods shop in downtown Penn Yan and they needed a way to bring more traffic in, and so they both grew up on organic dairy farms and decided to try making ice cream. And they had chickens and they had ducks, and they did it with chicken eggs.” 

But when the recipe was tested with duck eggs, everything changed. 

Solomon explained that custard made with duck eggs has a noticeably richer and creamier texture than traditional ice cream. 

“It also has some more health benefits, like from omega-3s and protein,” Solomon said. “You wouldn’t really taste that in comparison to an ice cream made with chicken eggs, but the richness and the creaminess; our customers are often saying that that’s really what makes the difference.” 

The Spotted Duck is also mindful of allergies. The custard is made without peanuts, and staff are attentive to gluten sensitivity concerns ensuring more visitors can enjoy a scoop safely. 

And it’s not just humans who go crazy for custard. Doctor Grey, one of the shop’s many friendly animals, is often first in line for a sample particularly obsessed with a flavor called Fleur Bleu. 

The Spotted Duck isn’t just a name it’s a lifestyle. From ducks and chickens to Alejandro the peacock, the animals are part of what makes the place feel like home. And the farm’s commitment to authenticity doesn’t stop there. 

“What people don’t realize is that we make all of the ice cream here,” Solomon said. “A lot of places say they have homemade ice cream. But we, we truly do it from A to Z. So we don’t bring in base mix… We make it all one single stovetop batch at a time in one five gallon [pot], so it is truly like the most small batch production that you can possibly get.” 

That small-batch magic is in the hands of Ardys, a former pastry chef now crafting the shop’s seasonal scoops. And just in time for summer, she’s debuting a new mint flavor sourced straight from the farm. 

“So as of  Friday June 20th, we are officially putting the Ditch Mint Chip on the menu,” she said. “It’s my personal favorite flavor. It’s so refreshing in the summer. I think, truly, we are the only ice cream shop that I’ve heard of that handpicks [mint] to make the base mix, and then we put dark chocolate chips in there as well. It’s the most refreshing flavor.” 

From its quirky cast of animals to its creamy duck egg custard, The Spotted Duck proves that when it comes to summer treats, it takes a flock to make something truly special.