John Marcelo during his Ducati motorcycle days
Sometimes, life gets its amusement by throwing us a curveball that not only changes our lifestyle, but also completely redefines our image. Such was the case in John Marcelo’s life where he morphed from a hot professional racer driving go karts, Ducati mortorcycles, and Italian Formula 3 cars like Dalara, to an almost domestic image of a hairnet-wearing ice cream maker.
Flavors on grocery shelves
Marcelo’s Microcreamery Ice Cream isn’t any ordinary ice cream. Consistent with the discipline required in his former career, Marcelo’s unique ice cream flavor selection reads like a short menu of Filipino desserts, meticulously curated and researched, using authentic ingredients, including fresh coconut milk, a familiar ingredient in Filipino dishes. It uses instead cow’s milk, making it friendly to the lactose-intolerant.
These five initial flavors are in the frozen section of select supermarkets: Bilo-Bilo, Suman at Mangga, Latik, Inutak, and Chocolate Champorado, the latter being the only Filipino flavor that contains condensed milk.
Marcelo at the First International Ice Cream, Gelato, and Soft Serve Festival at World Trade Center last October
John’s affiliation with ice cream goes back to his childhood days, when he would drop by ice cream parlors on every trip abroad and in his neighborhood. Ice cream was his favorite dessert. His lightbulb moment came when once, after a champorado breakfast, he decided to experiment with making champorado into ice cream. With reasonable success, enough to push his experiment forward, he slowly but surely, with more experimentation, decided to take the ice cream business seriously, deciding to study the marketability of ice cream flavors based on Filipino desserts. The authenticity of his ice cream, as he wants them genuinely Filipino, means purchasing fresh ingredients, like coconut milk, directly from the source, and in doing so, helping farmers market their produce, while creating a clean and healthy product.
John was keen on uplifting Filipino heritage through his products. What drove him to develop Filipino dessert flavors was when he learned that overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), after some time living abroad, developed cravings for Filipino desserts. Taking the dessert flavors and converting them into ice cream added a special touch to the local kakanin and desserts.
The homegrown flavors keep his Filipino buyers abroad connected to the taste of home. Moreover, John points out that the production facility is certified halal in compliance with Islamic Law, making the products acceptable in the Middle East and Muslim provinces in the country. He goes so far as to incorporate Arabic writing on the ice cream label. One of his collaborators for chocolate is Dubai-based chef Nouel Catis, who created the popular, robust Dubai chocolate bar.
The rising popularity of Marcelo’s ice cream does not stop with supermarket sales.
In October 2025, John launched the First International Ice Cream, Gelato, and Soft Serve Festival at World Trade Center, which attracted over 100 local and international participants. Its objective was to promote Filipino frozen desserts in the Philippines and to connect producers with international buyers and suppliers. Given the fair’s success, the Second International Ice Cream, Gelato, and Soft Serve Festival will be held in November. Collaborations with select restaurants and hotels in the country are also brewing.
Among the early outlets serving the ice cream is Romulo’s, a restaurant with an innovative take on Filipino dishes and heirloom recipes from the family of Carlos P. Romulo, the distinguished Filipino diplomats, a brigadier general in the Philippine Army and aide-de-camp to General Douglas MacArthur. Marcelo’s Ice Cream’s affiliation to the restaurant adds to John’s marketing vision of identifying itself as an authentic Pinoy product to be proud of.
John Marcelo with Nouel Catis, John’s wife Maritza, sister Deeda and her husband Alex Revilla
John jumps off from his initial success of the first five flavors. Already, he is scouring Filipino desserts in the provinces that can be made into ice cream. He is set on taking the Filipino sweet tooth “out there.” He considers his growing success a God-given blessing, as he carries his nation’s flag high, with each refreshing scoop.
