The Handel’s truck parked outside its beloved ice cream shop in Berwyn’s Bronze Plaza.
For two decades, Handel’s Ice Cream has been the western Main Line’s unofficial town square, where neighbors become friends and outdoor lines are braved – even in January.
In 2020, flush with success, Handel’s went mobile, peddling its prized homemade scoops in a retro-cool ice cream truck to community gatherings in Berwyn and beyond.
This year, an even bigger step: an expansion to Delco.
Owner Buck Buchanan, who raised his family in Devon, has bought the former home of Al Pastor in Havertown.
The Mexican cantina closed in January after an abbreviated 22-month run. (The original Al Pastor remains popular in Exton.)
The property was owned by Conshohocken Brewing Co. which operated the Town Tap brewpub in the space for the four years prior.
The Havertown Handel’s will operate much like its Berwyn flagship: walk-up counter service only and outdoor seating on an adjacent patio.
With his two children, Casey Buchanan and Haley Masciantonio, in the family business, Buchanan has been looking to expand for years.
He considered storefronts in Ardmore and Narberth but fell hard for Havertown where his daughter, Erin Gietl, and four grandsons live.
Buchanan says Havertown reminds him of Berwyn Village – a place with “strong family values, some large families, medium-sized homes and a real sense of community … It’s my favorite little community. If I ever left Devon, I’d move to Havertown.”
Still tweaking blueprints and seeking township approvals, the Buchanan family hopes to open the Havertown Handel’s this summer.
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