Put a Cherry On Top: Taylor's Battles Back From Blaze

When the Chester Main Street building that inhabits a handful of apartments and businesses caught fire in March, a single question rang out from the masses once all persons and pets were accounted for.

How’s Taylor’s?

The iconic ice cream shop has served sweet-seeking passersby from near and far for decades, and has been owned by Ron and Margaret Klein since July 2002.

Taylor’s isn’t just an ice cream parlor, though. It’s a family-run, family-focused small business that embodies the town it sits in the middle of.

So when word got out it would be a while before the Kleins could serve ice cream again, customers were devastated.

And so were the Kleins.

A candle sitting too close to a set of drapes on the morning of March 8, when the area received a fresh blanket of snow, ignited a blaze that tore through the upstairs apartment, leading to fire, smoke and water damage to the corner business below.

Residents were displaced and Taylor’s was forced to put the scoopers back in the drawer.

At first, it only seemed like a few weeks until cones and cups could fill up again with the shop’s famous flavors. But with each passing week came a grimmer outlook.

“It was very frustrating,” Ron Klein said about the amount of time it took to rebuild the business.

The frustration started when Klein found out the original architect on the project underestimated the damage, and told the business owner there was no structural damage to that side of the building. To Klein’s dismay, there actually was, which required a much lengthier rebuilding process.

It wasn’t until June 10 when Harrington Construction showed up to begin work – already a month into the busy season – after a back and forth between insurance company, owner, and landlord.

The summer months wore on and the ice cream stayed in its buckets. There was no timetable until recently as to when the shop could begin scooping again.

“He was very upset to see the slow process,” Margaret Klein said of her husband about the eight-month transformation.

‘Family’ Reunion

The Kleins have 13 children. Well, sort of. 

Ron and Margaret Klein have three sons of their own, all grown up now. But they’ve got 10 employees at the ice cream parlor, who they affectionately call their “kids.”

The atmosphere behind the counters is a loving one, so much so that former employees have volunteered their time to return for the shop’s grand reopening.

“One of our girls who’s at college found out we were reopening,” Klein said, “and she called us and said she’s coming home for the weekend. She said she wants to come back and help out.”

Just like the owners, employees have been watching and waiting along the way, seemingly invested in the business as much as the Kleins.

“It’s a family business,” Margaret Klein said. “It’s one big family here.”

During the always-busy summer months, Taylor’s has about 10 revolving employees, Klein said. When its doors open to the public on Saturday, there will be six employees serving the sweet stuff.

“I’m a little nervous, but I’m very excited,” said Klein, who’s been in the ice cream business for nearly 20 years. The manager-turned-owner of Taylor’s ran his own Baskin Robbins franchise in the mid- to late-1990s in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Customers will be getting “all the flavors they had before,” Margaret Klein said, “including the pumpkin ice cream. You have to have that for the holiday.”

For more than eight months, the bustling Chester parlor that produces homemade ice cream has been quiet. On Saturday, Nov. 23 at noon, cones will once again be filled to your liking.

The grand reopening is set, and the community is ready to embrace a taste as cold as the November temperatures.

Black and white tiled floors remain, while the popular partition wall has been removed. A window that once peeked out into the gravel parking lot is now a side entryway for customers.

The Kleins, true to their word, will honor coupons that would have expired while the business was closed, and won’t be serving scoops on Thanksgiving Day.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held at noon Saturday with Chester Mayor Bob Davis, as the Kleins brew ice cream from what were ashes less than a year ago.

Opening weekend will give 10-percent of net profits to the Chester Volunteer Fire Department, and another 10-percent to the Chester Food Pantry, Klein said.

Taylor’s will be helping the community, just as the community has helped the shop for so many years.