Willard ice cream shop expands to Tiffin

TIFFIN — Sweet Smitty's has been a smashing success in Willard, and a second location soon will be open in Tiffin. Adam Ryman of RBK Properties, owner of both Sweet Smitty's, among other restaurants, said the company "purchased a subset of restaurants in December 2024," including the VC Tiffin Cameo Pizza restaurant at 706 S. Sandusky St. It quickly became apparent that continuing to run the site as VC Cameo was not a long-term solution, and that the location "had more to offer" the community. Since the Sweet Smitty's Willard location had been experiencing growth and popularity, the decision was made to pivot the business model of the Tiffin VC Cameo restaurant "to push the ice cream side," Ryman said. Essentially, the new Tiffin Sweet Smitty's will be a "sister company" to the Willard restaurant. "Tiffin is an awesome community," Ryman said, adding that the site offers a "unique location" to build upon the successful vision of the Willard Smitty's. Matthew Haubert, general manager, said offerings at Sweet Smitty's will include pizza, smash burgers, wings, and a wide assortment of ice cream treats. A Sweet Smitty's menu on the restaurant's Facebook page includes classic pizzas, gourmet pizzas, off-the-grill subs, smash burgers, wings and dips, fries, appetizers, salads, and a wide variety of soft- and hard-dip ice cream flavors, ice cream cakes, flurries, milkshakes, and ice cream sandwiches. Ryman said customers will find "cool, unique things" to try at Smitty's, with dine-in, carry-out and delivery options (for all menu items except ice cream) will be available. The pizzas will be made "using our own recipes," and a pizza-of-the-month will be offered to entice customers to continue experiencing the fantastic flavors at the restaurant. A soft opening with limited menu items for the Tiffin Sweet Smitty's will take place today, with a grand opening soon. Regular hours of operation will be 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week. Hiring has been taking place to ensure the location is prepared for opening day, Haubert said, and additional staff will be added as needed. If the Tiffin location performs like the Sweet Smitty's in Willard, he said, a staff of 20 could be in place within a year. VC Cameo was shut down in February 2025, and work began soon after to transform the location. According to Haubert, the project was a full renovation and rebranding.