Shanice Carbon is setting out to provide an establishment for people to enjoy their favorite childhood slushies with a bit of an adult twist at her new lounge on Sweeney Street.
The Frozen Lounge, located at 1738 Sweeney Street (previously home to Gene’s Health Food), provides a venue for people to have alcoholic slushies while enjoying live music or just a spot for casual meetings.
Carbon said the idea came when, after taking her kids to get slushies in the summer, she would add an alcoholic shot to hers when she got home.
Carbon said she’s also focused on creating an environment that allows a no-pressure experience to talk to others.
“I want to go somewhere where me and my friend want to go out and have a drink and we can find a location that is nice, smooth, cool, not too rowdy,” Carbon said. “Just calm, cool and collected so we could just come in and just have a drink.”
The Frozen Lounge had a soft opening in mid-March to test how the space performed, and Carbon said she heard numerous praises from those who came by.
Currently, she has a small appetizer menu with fried pickles, dips and other snacks — but the drink menu is where the variety lies.
Guests can find banana-, cherry- and cotton candy-flavored slushies along with Oreo- and Dreamsicle-flavored ice cream shakes to pair with vodka, bourbon and a plethora of other liquors. The lounge also has a variety of beers available as well.
The lounge seats 50 people, but Carbon said that the drinks can also be ordered to-go to enjoy at home.
There are also some recipes Carbon is releasing on her Facebook page as the grand opening on April 15 approaches.
Hosting the soft opening and receiving the license to sell alcohol was a surreal moment for Carbon, as she said it felt like the perfect jumpstart to the business plan.
“Now, I know for sure what I need to do and I’m ready to get started. I’m ready to make people feel good about coming in somewhere and feel comfortable,” Carbon said.
The Frozen Lounge will have special hours for the grand opening: Friday from 3:30-11 p.m. and Saturday from 1:30 p.m.-12 a.m. but closed Sunday.
Regular operating hours will begin the next week. The lounge will open Wednesday-Saturday starting at 3:30 p.m. most days. It will close at 11 p.m. Wednesday and at midnight Thursday-Saturday. Sunday hours will be 2-8 p.m.
The facility will also open exclusively to those ages 21+ to ensure the safety of those not legally allowed to drink.
