A North Carolina Farm Serving Fall Ice Cream Has More Than 20 Friendly Animals Waiting Outside

Animals, in my opinion, are the ornament of this planet. Spend just an hour with them each day, and life somehow feels beautiful again.

This North Carolina farm brings that exact feeling to life every fall season. More than a handful of animals roam the property, greeting visitors before they even reach the ice cream counter.

Regulars order the same flavor every visit, trusting the recipe to taste exactly like it did the last time. Nothing about the process has changed since the farm first started making it.

Portions stay generous, never treated as an afterthought next to the setting itself. Kids often spend more time with the animals than actually eating their ice cream.

This farm proved that sometimes the best fall outing comes with more than just dessert.

A Century-Old Farm With A Second Act

Back in 1878, William D. Buffaloe put down roots on this land in Garner. Six generations later, his family is still here.

What changed came in 2020, when Dustin and Burton Buffaloe looked at the property and imagined something bigger than crops and quiet fields. They rebuilt it into a place the public could actually walk through and enjoy.

The name isn’t random either. Holl and Stone come from their children, Holland and Stone, which explains why the whole property carries a family-album kind of warmth.

Centennial farms are rare in North Carolina, and rarer still are the ones that reinvent themselves without erasing what came before. Old fence lines and open pasture sit alongside newer structures built for visitors.

Fall is when the reinvention really shows off. Cooler air, warmer light, and a landscape that finally looks the way people picture a Southern farm in October.

Nothing here feels like a theme park version of country life. The animals are real residents, the plants are actually grown on site, and the family running things is usually somewhere nearby.

Weekend hours run Friday through Sunday, which keeps the pace manageable and the place feeling personal. Plan around that schedule and the visit goes smoothly.

Find it all at 920 Buffalo Rd, Garner, NC 27529.

New Zealand Style Soft Serve That Sounds Weird

Blueberry and basil in the same cone. Sounds like a mistake, tastes like a small revelation.

The method behind it is called New Zealand-style soft serve, and it works differently than the usual machine pour. Vanilla ice cream gets blended with frozen real fruit right when the order comes in, so every serving is made fresh instead of scooped from a tub.

Herbs grown on the farm sometimes join the mix. Mint and basil show up depending on what the garden is producing, which means the flavor list shifts as the seasons turn.

Rotating options have included pineapple, strawberry mint, mint chocolate chip, classic Oreo, plain strawberry, and straight blueberry. Fall visits often bring cozier combinations to the board.

There are also alpaca-shaped pops, which are exactly as charming as they sound and disappear fast into small hands.

Popularity has consequences. Weekend afternoons draw a crowd, and the fruit soft serve can sell out late in the day.

Arriving earlier in the opening window is the smart play if a specific flavor is the goal. Hand-scooped choices help fill the gap when the soft serve runs dry.

Eating it while surrounded by goats and open pasture is a slightly surreal upgrade over any parking lot ice cream stand.

One Very Confident Llama

More than twenty animals live on this property, and none of them are shy about it.

Alpacas make up a big part of the crew, joined by a llama with a personality that tends to steal the show. Goats patrol their fence line like tiny inspectors, and chickens roam with a rooster who has clearly never questioned his own importance.

Hay bins sit around the animal areas so guests can feed the alpacas and goats without buying anything. The animals figure out fast who’s holding a handful.

Feeding time is where kids usually lose their minds a little. An alpaca leaning in for hay is soft, funny, and slightly ridiculous all at once.

Access happens during regular business hours, no reservation required and no separate ticket for the animal areas.

Dogs on leashes are welcome around the Farm Market, though they can’t go near the alpacas and llamas. That rule keeps everyone calm and the visit drama-free.

Fall weather makes the animals noticeably more active, since summer heat tends to slow the whole herd down. Cooler mornings bring out their curious side.

Handlers care for the animals well, and it shows in how relaxed they are around strangers. Nobody here seems tired of company.

A Market Full Of Things Nobody Planned To Buy

Walking out empty-handed is technically possible. Statistically unlikely.

The on-site market stocks hand-picked garden items, fresh produce, and hydroponic greens grown year-round on the property. Bibb lettuce, tatsoi, arugula, and radish come out of vertical systems that keep producing regardless of the season outside.

Shelves also hold home goods, artisanal pottery, unique jewelry, and gifts that don’t turn up in chain stores. Products made from alpaca fiber are a standout, and yes, they’re absurdly soft.

Buying an alpaca wool keychain right after feeding the alpaca responsible for it is a strange kind of full-circle moment.

A separate plant nursery focuses on perennials, native North Carolina plants, and aromatic herbs. Gardeners tend to linger there far longer than they intended.

Native plants are a smart pick for anyone building a yard that can handle Carolina summers without constant babysitting. Local growers know what actually survives here.

Herbs from the nursery connect back to the ice cream too, since the same kinds of plants flavor the soft serve.

Maker’s markets pop up throughout the year, bringing local artisans and rotating crafts to the property. Those weekends make repeat visits feel different each time.

Browsing works well as a break between animal visits and ice cream rounds.

Fire Pits And S’mores When The Air Turns Crisp

Fall on a farm without a fire would be a wasted opportunity, and this place clearly agrees.

Fire pits are set up around the property for guests to gather around, and s’mores kits are available in the market. Marshmallow, chocolate, graham cracker, done.

Something about roasting a marshmallow outdoors makes conversation slow down. Groups end up staying way longer than planned.

Cooler months are when the fire pit areas really earn their keep. Summer visitors sometimes skip them entirely because standing near flames in August is a questionable life choice.

Concessions and snacks are available on-site, so nobody has to leave for food between rounds of exploring.

Seating around the property has expanded over time, with picnic tables, umbrellas, and tented areas added for comfort. An upper mezzanine offers couches and larger tables with views toward Lake Benson and the park.

Evening light over the pasture is the unofficial reward for staying late. The sky turns orange, fire crackles, animals settle in.

Bringing a light jacket is worth remembering, since open farmland cools down quickly once the sun drops.

Friends catching up, families winding down, couples on a low-key date – the fire pit areas handle all of it without much effort.

Room To Roam Between Two Parks

Location did this farm a serious favor. It sits between White Deer Park and Lake Benson Park, with a short drive separating it from Raleigh.

Meaning a farm visit can easily turn into a full day out. Trails, a lake, and a veterans memorial are all within reach across the way.

A playground sits roughly an eight-to-ten-minute walk from the property, which is useful information for anyone traveling with kids who have unlimited energy.

The farm itself is built as an experiential space rather than a quick stop. Several hours pass easily between animals, market browsing, ice cream, and sitting around doing nothing in particular.

Fruits, vegetables, ornamental plants, and flowers grow around the grounds, giving the walk actual scenery instead of just open lawn.

Parking gets tight on busy weekends, so arriving early or visiting on a Friday tends to make life easier. Weekdays feel noticeably calmer.

Shade has improved with added tents and umbrellas, though fall weather makes that less of a concern anyway.

Combining the farm with a lakeside walk afterward is a solid plan. Ice cream first, trail second, in that order for obvious reasons.

Rural life is surprisingly close to the city here, which is part of the appeal.

Tradition Meeting Hydroponics And Heirloom Figs

Vertical hydroponic towers and heirloom fig orchards sharing one property is not a combination most people expect.

Dustin Smith and Burton Buffaloe run this sixth-generation farm with a clear goal of preserving North Carolina agricultural heritage while keeping the operation viable today. Old methods and new technology sit side by side.

Hydroponic systems let leafy greens grow year-round, independent of weather. Fig trees, meanwhile, take their sweet time the way fig trees always have.

Part of the mission involves helping families understand where food actually comes from. Seeing lettuce growing in towers makes that lesson stick better than any diagram.

Their approach leans toward building memories instead of processing transactions, which shows up in small choices around the property. No admission fee is one of them.

Farming families across the state have faced enormous pressure over the decades, and plenty of century-old land has been sold off. Keeping this one running took real reinvention.

Heirloom varieties matter because they preserve genetics and flavors that industrial agriculture often leaves behind. Figs are a good example of that.

Kids who feed a goat and then spot greens growing nearby start connecting dots on their own.

Practical farming and public welcome rarely coexist this comfortably.

Weekends Worth Repeating

Some places are worth one visit. Others quietly become a weekend habit.

Events run throughout the year here, from makers’ markets to seasonal gatherings, which keep the property feeling different each time. Food trucks show up on Saturdays and Sundays.

General visits during open hours require no entry fee and no reservation, so a spontaneous trip is completely realistic. Show up, wander, leave whenever.

The farm also hosts private events including weddings and showers, with the team handling setup and details personally. Llamas occasionally make appearances at those, which is a detail few venues can offer.

Fall is arguably the best season to go. Cooler temperatures, fire pits going, seasonal flavors, and animals that aren’t hiding from the heat.

Bringing a hat still helps on sunny days, and comfortable shoes make the walking easier across gravel and grass.

What keeps people coming back is less about any single attraction and more about the mix. Animals, ice cream, plants, fire, and space to breathe.

A working family farm that opened its gates to the community turned out to be exactly what this corner of North Carolina wanted.