Happy Ice brings unique frozen creations to Anaheim’s ‘Happiest Place on Earth’
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A Happy Ice location just outside the “Happiest Place on Earth” at Downtown Disney seems like a natural fit for the Philadelphia-style Italian ice shop.
For founder Lemeir Mitchell, the opening day of his newest location, which took place last Friday on Juneteenth, was more than a serendipitous accident. It felt like a graduation for the tattoo-artist-turned-entrepreneur.
Mitchell founded Happy Ice in 2017, first as an ice cream truck that was followed by a Los Angeles brick-and-mortar shop on Melrose Avenue in 2020.
Happy Ice is known for serving a special frozen treat that is not quite Italian ice, not quite sorbet, but rather a dairy-free, nut-free, vegan dessert known as “water ice” in Philadelphia, where Mitchell grew up.
Its texture is highly specific, like a snow cone but with a creamy mouthfeel like ice cream. When Mitchell moved to California, he couldn’t find anything comparable.
“I always tell people that I selfishly started Happy Ice for myself,” he said. “It’s for me, so I can eat it all the time.”
His brightly branded trucks and the rainbow-colored shop on Melrose kept Mitchell busy. As business was booming, he began studying Disney’s distinct approach to hospitality.
“I basically decided in 2021 [that] I wanted Happy Ice to be the Disney of ice cream,” said Mitchell. “And at the time, that didn’t let me be in Disneyland; it was more like it let me be the ice cream brand that spreads joy and gives you an experience, like Disney.”
He dived into texts like “Be Our Guest: Perfecting the Art of Customer Service” from the Disney Institute and Robert Iger’s book, “The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company.” Mitchell was determined to make his water ice business stand out as more than just a place to get a cool treat.
Not long after he began his crash course in Disney-style customer service, he received an email from Downtown Disney. By 2022, the Happy Ice truck was locked into a month-long pop-up at the Anaheim dining and shopping destination, a gig that eventually stretched into three months.
“From there, every summer we came back. In 2023 we came for three months, in 2024 we were back for three months. In 2025, we didn’t do it, but that was because they asked us to become permanent,” Mitchell said. “So we have been working on this location for the last year-and-a-half.”
Operating a pop-up at Downtown Disney was like an internship, in a way. Mitchell said he used the gig as an opportunity to put in the work to show Disney what Happy Ice, an independent, Black-owned business, was capable of achieving.
“I definitely took my partnership with Disney as a responsibility to Black culture. If I go inside Disneyland and I crush it, I am professional and I create great experiences that add to the value that Disney brings to the world, then that will most likely open more doors for other people like me, that look like me,” said Mitchell.
Happy Ice’s opening on June 19 in Anaheim was the culmination of years of studying and preparation.
The concept of the shop’s opening having been a commencement also hold special significance for Mitchell’s family. In 2019, his older brother, Kevin, was killed in a motorcycle accident a week shy of his graduation from Penn State University. Mitchell has the initials “CBK” for “College Boy Kevin” tattooed on his body, and you can find the letters on a small heart with wings on the shop’s window.
For Happy Ice Anaheim’s official ribbon-cutting ceremony, Mitchell even wore a cap and gown.
“My mom and family never got to see Kevin walk in his cap and gown,” said Mitchell. “So I wore the cap and gown so my Mom could see me walking in it, in this moment.”
The Happy Ice menu features flavors like Time Machine, which blends cherry, mango and pineapple flavors for a retro scoop reminiscent of a Big Stick and a red, white and blue All-Star that mixes cherry and blue raspberry.
“At Disney, we also launched an all-natural line, so parents don’t have to worry about red dye 40 and high fructose corn syrup,” Mitchell said.
The bestseller so far as been off the Joy-lati menu, which features sundae style Happy Ice treats with fresh fruit and ice cream.
“The most popular Joy-lati, is our banana pudding,” said Mitchell. “It comes with banana pudding we make from scratch, layered with our house made banana ice. We add Nilla wafers for crumble and top it off with a banana slice.”
On opening day, the line for Happy Ice stretched through Downtown Disney. Mitchell said he is still processing the emotions of celebrating his accomplishment, the memory of his brother and the significance of opening a Black-owned business on Juneteenth. He is also proud that he was able to forge a partnership with the very company he worked hard to emulate.
“I feel like I am successful at Disney not only because of the work I put in, but because of the Disney partners and the support I received. They treated me like a cast member, and I really could feel that that wanted me to successful.”
In other words, Mitchell couldn’t be happier.
Happy Ice is located near Parkside Market at the Downtown Disney District at 1569 Disneyland Drive, Anaheim. It’s open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.
