Our Story

Why Burnet Road?

Amy and Steve Simmons spent the greater part of 2003 and 2004 looking for a permanent home for Amy’s Ice Creams production facility. When they finally found the old Allendale post office, and Humble gas station with a for lease sign they called to beg the owners to sell. The Bohn brothers turned out to be Steve’s college buddy Chris’s cousins and a deal was made the next day. What they soon discovered is the beauty of the community they had stumbled into. The neighborhoods of Allendale, Brentwood, Violet Crown (a combination) and Crestview were brimming with young families and active seniors eager for neighborhood haunts.

The Gas station was first opened in 1945. It was a Humble station owned by Otis Hill (we have customers today that remember Otis pumping their gas). The Austin City Limit ran straight through both properties. The station became an ENCO, then a Mobil, then a series of used car lots.

Steve and Amy decided in addition to the production facility in the old post office, they would open an Amy’s Ice Cream shop in the old gas station. They wanted it to be a gathering place for friends, family and fun so they started to plan the playscape, cow sculptures, hop scotch, shuffleboard, movies, music…

Another burger place?

Amy’s has always believed that the most important qualities in a location are the community and the synergy of businesses located nearby. So even though Amy’s could easily have filled the entire gas station by itself, Amy and Steve started looking for a business that would complement the ice cream shop. Our fist choice always is Toy Joy (they were next to Amy’s for a stint in the late 80’s) but their existing shop was too close. A coffee shop….but our favorite Pasha is down the street. A burger joint (Amy and Steve LOVE a good burger).. but all of their favorites weren’t interested in a second location…so after 23 years could they handle a start up again?? Sure!

The Name and The Logo

The decision on the name was almost simultaneous with the decision to start the shop. Amy and Steve said it at the same time.. Phil’s. Phil Clay was Amy’s partner in Amy’s Ice Creams who had tragically passed away in February of 2003. He managed the production of Amy’s Ice Creams for the past 17 years- working out of some very tight space. You can imagine with the move from 2000 square feet of production to our new digs of 6000 sq feet there was a lot of “Phil would have LOVED this!”. Besides, Phil was a burger sort of guy. He loved a good simple meal with friends. Phil’s! It will be a memorial.

The original logo was originally commissioned in 1985 to work with the neon sign in The Cotton Club. Designed and painted by Kathryn Brown, who also illustrated “How to Grow Native Plants of Texas and the Southwest”, the original painting looks to capture the imagery of the west as well as the classic paint-by-number vintage affect. The original artwork will be on display at our Burnet location mid March 2015.