Jonesboro, AR — (JonesboroRightNow.com) — June 26, 2025 — Meet Me On Main is an initiative by the Jonesboro Media Group, parent of Jonesboro Right Now, and First Horizon Bank – located in the historic landmark building at Main Street and Washington Avenue at the unofficial entrance to downtown Jonesboro.
A section of Main Street was closed Sept. 25, 2024, due to concerns about the safety of the former Citizens Bank building across Main from First Horizon.
The building was condemned, demolished and the lot and streets around it improved. Main Street reopened May 13, 2025, much to the excitement of downtown business owners, operators and downtown residents.
JMG and the First Horizon Foundation are promoting and supporting the downtown businesses with a series of articles. This is the final article in this series, but the JMG and First Horizon still urge you to visit and support these businesses.
This week’s featured business: Scoops
For nearly three years, Eric Roberts has served up dessert at Scoops, his ice cream shop located at 324 S. Main St. in downtown Jonesboro. A lifelong Jonesboro resident, Roberts opened Scoops in September 2022 and has since built a loyal customer base drawn to both the generous portions and the nostalgic charm of the downtown shop.
Scoops specializes in Blue Bell ice cream, offering a variety of flavors.
“The bestseller that I have is Blue Monster. It’s cookies and cream with chocolate chip cookie dough, and it’s blue just like Cookie Monster from ‘Sesame Street.’ Kids, parents, the elderly, they all love that one,” Roberts said.
Scoops also offers the classics. “I have all the staples: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, those do well. The butter pecan does really well. Hot candy does really well,” he added.
Ice cream is sold by the scoop, but customers quickly learn that one scoop at Scoops isn’t your average serving.
“Our portion sizes are fairly big. It surprises a lot of people when they come in for the first time and they order two scoops and they’re like, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa, I only ordered two.’ They’re big portion sizes,” Roberts said. He noted that milkshakes are also a popular item, especially during the warmer months.
Although Roberts is the main force behind the counter, he does get a little help during peak times. “I’ve had a couple of really good, hardworking high schoolers that needed a first-time kind of summer job while they aren’t in school and they’ve been a big help,” he said. He’s called on family in a pinch, too. On a busy weekend, you might see his mother or aunt behind the counter.
Recently, Scoops updated its summer hours to Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 1 to 8 p.m.
But not everything has been sweet for the ice cream shop. Last year, Roberts made the difficult decision to close for nearly five months due to the road closure on Main Street caused by safety concerns at the former Citizens Bank building.
“I did not have to close my doors, but it just made a lot of sense. I mean, there’d be days and weeks where I’d see just a handful of customers, and so it wasn’t worth my time being down here when I could be doing other things,” Roberts said.
He said the location’s proximity to the blocked area made access nearly impossible. “Some days you just physically could not get to this part of downtown. It was awful. And so, I was just happy to close and wait until everything opened back up.”
Roberts reopened Scoops the same day as the city’s ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the street’s reopening.
“I was ready. Things are going great … we’ve been having good success. A lot of busy festivals have been going on since then. People are able to get downtown so they can eat. And if they’re eating, they come to get dessert afterwards.”
A portion of the Meet Me On Main promotion effort is being provided by First Horizon Foundation, the private, charitable foundation of First Horizon Corporation. Founded in 1993 to serve the communities in which First Horizon operates; the Foundation has donated more than $150 million across the First Horizon footprint.
The grants are invested in a way that responds inclusively to community needs and promotes progress and prosperity across these impact areas: arts & culture, education & leadership, environmental sustainability, financial literacy, and health & human services. The Foundation has awarded nearly a quarter million dollars in Northeast Arkansas over the last few years.