Our Story
This is not your average Korean-American story.
I want to start with the word, noona. Noona means “big sister” in the Korean language. I have brothers, both younger and older, and they have definitely shaped the woman I am today!
I named the company after this word, because it stands for everything I am passionate about: preserving our roots and coming together through story-telling and the sharing of good food and family recipes.
I love to cook, but there’s something special about making sweet treats. You can cook for a party of one, but it feels quite strange to make ice cream or banana bread for one. I believe sweet treats are made with others in mind.
In 2014, I found myself at a crossroads, trying to figure out my professional love and career path. At the time, I was working in operations management and found myself immersed among entrepreneurial spirits. It gave me a drive to make a difference in my life and create something beneficial to others.
In 2016, Noona’s was born out of a need for a diverse ice cream selection at food stores. I wanted to see flavors that represented different cultures in more impactful way. I also wanted to see flavors that represented my Asian American background and knew that I could use my skills to focus on Asian American flavors, so I started making my own ice cream and flavors. I wanted to see quality and more real food (not flavorings) in ice cream, so I made it a focus to learn and seek more knowledge on ingredient sourcing and building relationships with farmers.
At Noona’s, we’re committed to making all our sweet treats in a way that uplifts people of color and reforms our food culture. Diversity is delicious. The unique story of where an ingredient or flavor comes from is compelling and should be celebrated.
All our recipes celebrate our Asian American story and global food experiences with others. Some of our flavors are based on classic Asian recipes while others are new flavor combinations I created and wanted to share with you because they are unique and in celebration of someone or something that deserves the spotlight.
- Hannah
aka noona
Learn more about the inspiration for Noona’s and get our Toasted Rice ice cream recipe @Food52.