Inside Philadelphia Water Ice's factory in the Northeast: "Water ice everywhere"
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Philadelphia is in the throes of its fourth heat wave of the season, with temperatures feeling like triple digits Friday. When the weather gets that hot, many turn to a summertime staple to find relief — water ice. One business in Northeast Philly hasn't changed its recipe in more than three decades.
Owner Robert Kaleck remembers when Philadelphia Water Ice started as a single water ice stand. Now, the business produces more than 40 flavors and is sold at Citizens Bank Park during Phillies games and in stores across the country.
The process starts at the factory on State Road in Northeast Philadelphia.
"It's all made here," Kaleck said. "Just the highest quality of ingredients from all over the world. Thirty-six years, never changing formulas, always keeping it the best."
It is one of the sweetest assembly lines, with the scent of sugar lingering in the air.
"I leave here smelling like cotton candy and rainbows every day," Josh Blitzstein said. "Starting in April, we're running 24 hours a day. Once we breach 90 degrees and above, water ice is king."
Blitzstein is the production manager and Kaleck's cousin. Family is definitely part of the secret recipe, and that extends to everyone behind the line, too.
"We've had the same people working here for years and years and years," he said. "We have employees who have been here for 20 years. Our employees are our family."
But what sets Philadelphia Water Ice apart?
"It's an icier, cooler, more flavorful treat than you might find in some other areas," Blitzstein said.
Philadelphia Water Ice has two new mystery flavors this season — mermaid and cosmic ice. But the best seller is mango, followed by cherry, blueberry and tropical rainbow.