SF Pops Finally Brings Its Gourmet Popsicles to SF

Rebecca Rouas

​Rebecca Rouas finally brought SF Pops, her Marin County gourmet popsicle stand, to San Francisco on Wednesday. Unfortunately, Rouas said it's her last day selling popsicles at markets this year because of impending cold weather, not that we're likely to notice the difference.

Rouas, 31, starting making popsicles in Larkspur in April from local fruit. Her excellent watermelon/mint popsicle ($3), for example, is made from Feather River Farms organic watermelons and Marin Roots spearmint.

Normally she sells in Marin County farmers' markets, which for her is better than doing nothing.

"I recently moved back to the area and was having a hard time finding work," Rouas said. "We grew up in a restaurant family. I thought, well, I'll make my own work."

Why popsicles?

"I was anticipating a hot summer," she said under yet another foggy sky. "I love to bake, but there are so many bakers. That market is saturated. But I didn't see any popsicle vendors."

Rouas says five years ago she tried an avocado-kaffir lime popsicle from Fat Face in Davis, and it rocked her world. She also makes an avocado popsicle, though hers is chocolate-avocado.

"My popsicles are straightforward," Rouas says. "It is the pureed fruit. I sweeten it with organic evaporated cane sugar. No additives, no preservatives."

I tried three, and watermelon/mint was best: it leads with sweet watermelon and finishes refreshingly with the mint. Sugar-free Meyer Lemon Ginger was too tart to eat. I also liked Blueberry Lemonade, which tasted mostly of blueberry, not that that's a bad thing.

Rouas plans to get her teaching credential from Dominican University this fall. "A popsicle-making teacher," she says; yes, it's a dream-come-true. While she has no more public appearances planned until spring, she's available for private functions. Her e-mail is sf.icepops at gmail.com.