8 Ice Cream Parlor Chains That Were Once Everywhere
There was a time when a trip to the ice cream parlor was the highlight of the week. Families piled into the car after Sunday dinner, teenagers met there on dates and kids celebrated birthdays with giant sundaes and singing waiters. Every town seemed to have one, and many of them belonged to chains that were household names.
Most of those chains have shrunk dramatically or disappeared altogether. Changing tastes, competition from fast food and grocery store pints, and rising costs all took a toll. But for many people, the memories of those parlors are as sweet as the ice cream itself. Here are eight ice cream parlor chains that were once everywhere, and what happened to them.
1. Howard Johnson’s
Howard Johnson’s was famous for its bright orange roofs, its restaurants along highways and its 28 flavors of ice cream. At its peak in the 1960s and 1970s, it was one of the largest restaurant chains in the country, with hundreds of locations. Families on road trips stopped there for fried clams, hot dogs and ice cream cones.
As fast-food chains spread and highways changed, Howard Johnson’s restaurants began to close. The last remaining restaurant, in Lake George, New York, closed in 2022. The Howard Johnson’s name lives on as a hotel brand, but the restaurants are gone.
2. Friendly’s
Friendly’s started in Massachusetts in 1935 and grew into a beloved chain of family restaurants known for ice cream sundaes, including the Fribble milkshake and the Wattamelon Roll. Kids’ sundaes came with a cone on top to look like a clown.
At one time, Friendly’s had hundreds of restaurants, mostly in the Northeast. After years of financial trouble and bankruptcy, the chain shrank dramatically. Some locations are still open, and Friendly’s ice cream is still sold in grocery stores, but the chain is a shadow of what it once was.
3. Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlour
Farrell’s was famous for its old-fashioned decor, waiters in straw hats and vests, and noisy birthday celebrations. When someone ordered a giant sundae called the Zoo, staff members carried it around the restaurant on a stretcher, sirens wailing.
Farrell’s spread across the country in the 1970s, but many locations closed in the 1980s. The chain has been revived a few times in California, but most of its original parlors are long gone. For kids of the 1970s, a Farrell’s birthday was unforgettable.
4. Swensen’s
Swensen’s started as a single ice cream shop in San Francisco in 1948 and grew into a chain known for rich ice cream and old-fashioned parlors. Its sundaes, like the Earthquake, were famously huge.
The chain expanded in the 1970s and 1980s but later shrank in the U.S. Today, Swensen’s is more popular overseas, especially in Southeast Asia, than in America. Many Americans who grew up with it have no idea it’s still around abroad.
5. Bresler’s
Bresler’s was a Chicago-based ice cream chain that started in the 1930s and grew to hundreds of stores, many in shopping malls. It was known for its 33 flavors and its friendly, small-town feel.
The chain changed hands and eventually disappeared as a separate brand. Many people who grew up in the Midwest remember stopping at Bresler’s after a day of shopping at the mall.
6. Brigham’s
Brigham’s was a Boston institution, serving ice cream and sandwiches since 1914. Its parlors were a gathering spot for families, students and shoppers, and its ice cream was a local favorite.
Brigham’s restaurants closed one by one, with the last ones shutting down around 2008. Brigham’s ice cream is still sold in grocery stores in New England, but the parlors are a memory for many longtime Bostonians.
7. Thrifty Drug Stores
Thrifty was a drugstore chain in California and the West, but it was best known for its ice cream counter. Thrifty used a distinctive cylinder-shaped scoop, and cones were famously cheap, often costing just a few cents.
Thrifty was bought by Rite Aid in the 1990s. Rite Aid kept selling Thrifty ice cream in many of its stores, but the old drugstore counters, where kids stopped after school for a cheap cone, are mostly gone.
8. Schrafft’s
Schrafft’s was a chain of restaurants and candy shops, mostly in New York and the Northeast, known for ice cream sodas, sundaes and lunches popular with women shoppers and office workers. It was a favorite spot for a respectable lunch in the city.
The chain faded in the 1970s and 1980s as tastes and city life changed. Schrafft’s is remembered as a symbol of a more genteel era of dining, when ladies in hats and gloves stopped in for a hot fudge sundae.
Why Ice Cream Parlors Faded
The rise of fast food changed how Americans ate. Chains like McDonald’s and Dairy Queen offered quick, cheap desserts, and supermarkets stocked more ice cream than ever. People had less time to sit down at a parlor, and costs for rent and labor rose.
Shopping malls, which once housed many ice cream shops, also declined. Today, many people buy ice cream by the pint or get frozen treats from chains that focus on speed.
What Made Ice Cream Parlors Special
For many families, the ice cream parlor was more than a place to buy dessert. It was where kids celebrated a good report card, where teenagers went on first dates and where families gathered after a Little League game. The marble counters, swivel stools and soda jerks in paper hats made the experience feel like an event.
Many parlors also served sandwiches and simple meals, making them a gathering place throughout the day. The staff often knew regular customers by name. That personal touch is part of what people miss most when they remember the chains that have disappeared.
Where to Find That Old Feeling
Many independent ice cream parlors still keep the tradition alive, with marble counters, soda fountains and giant sundaes. Some towns have restored old-fashioned shops, and they’ve become popular destinations for families and tourists.
If you want to relive the experience, look for a local parlor or soda fountain in your area. Many classic diners still serve old-fashioned sundaes and milkshakes too. Which ice cream parlor did your family visit, and what did you always order?
