'Watermelon lady' comes to Riverdale

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A new business comes to Riverdale.

Lady Sandía at 5906B Riverdale Ave. opened in October and celebrated its grand opening in November and it’s more than just a juice bar. They serve up an assortment of hot beverages, milkshakes and smoothies as well as other refreshments geared toward dieting, remedying common colds and providing mental and physical energy along with several Latin food options, like empanadas and churros.

They offer nine different ice cream flavors and also carry kosher ice cream and owner Nadia Dominguez, who lives in Mosholu by way of Mexico, said her business is currently tooling recipes to make their ice cream from scratch.

“We wanted to create a menu of options which [catered to] everyone,” Dominguez said.

Sandía, Spanish for watermelon, comes from Dominguez’ moniker as the “watermelon lady” due to the social media fame she garnered in 2023 from carving portraits into the oblong green and pink fruit. 

We were struggling really bad economically and at a family event, I got the idea to make a fruit table,” Dominguez told The Press. “Since then, people saw it and started asking for pricing and started carving names and cartoons until it hit me that I could carve a face."

Her first face was her daughter Aileen. 

After her first watermelon carving, she gained the confidence to create celebrity portraits, including late actor Chadwick Boseman, Colombian singer and songwriter Karol G and Mexican singer and rapper, Peso Pluma, to name a few.  

When she carves a watermelon portrait, Dominguez uses parts of the watermelon rind for the person’s hair and facial hair, if necessary, while using deeper and lighter parts of the rind for the subject’s face.

“It can take up to five or six hours to carve one person,” Dominguez said.

Several customers who have visited Lady Sandía since she opened continue to stop by, creating a loyal customer base.  

“They have freshly made smoothies, they have great food options, and I can’t wait to come back and try more,” customer Antonella V. said. “It’s beautiful. I’m happy to have a business like this in the neighborhood. It’s great to grab something on the go or to stay and enjoy.”

The tamales and empanadas at Lady Sandía also come highly recommended by customers of the new location.

“This is the best place in town,” frequent customer Wendy J. said. “When people visit, they need to try the empanadas and tamales — they are delicious.”

“Tamales are part of my culture and I love to expand and show my culture to others,” Dominguez said. “As for the reason we sell ice cream, it was because my daughter said to me, ‘let's make kids happy.’”

Atole, a hot beverage of Mexican origin, is also available at Lady Sandía, served with arroz con leche (Mexican rice pudding), champurrado (a hot Mexican beverage usually made from corn flour) or atema, a beverage prepared with stewed oatmeal, milk, water, cinnamon and sugar and commonly consumed in Central and South America as well as the Caribbean.

“It’s just an amazing atmosphere here,” Miguel C. said, another regular of Lady Sandía. “I highly recommend it — you have so many options and also great customer service.”

Since opening, Dominguez’s establishment hosted giveaways for people who have been diagnosed with cancer as well as individuals and families who have been displaced due to residential fires. In December, Lady Sandía hosted a Christmas toy giveaway, where Santa was on hand to distribute presents to local underprivileged children from the Bronx and Yonkers.

But Lady Sandía’s customers are not just from Riverdale. They come from all over the five boroughs and north of the Bronx border, according to Dominguez.

The fruit artist used to co-own Shelly Flower Shop in Yonkers with her mother before they sold the business in October to open Lady Sandía’s and operate it full-time.

“I just want to reach more people and continue to make more connections with the community,” Dominguez said.

She plans to open another Lady Sandía location sometime in the next six months.

You can follow Dominguez and her shop on Instagram @lady_sandia_nadia

 

 

 

Watermelon lady, fruit juice, smoothies, kosher ice cream

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