Dairy Queen – My Dessert Alma Mater
Oh, Dairy Queen, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways…
My first job at the grand-old age of 14 was at the DQ down the street from me. Ah, the camaraderie and the 90s R&B music played all day long… ah, the numerous “mistakes†we were allowed to eat. Now, I realize that DQ is no Payard Patisserie. I get it. What DQ represents for me is summer, a simpler time of life, and smooth, creamy soft serve. Since there’s no DQ to be found in NYC (a Carvel conspiracy, perhaps?), I pounce on any DQ I find during a road trip or trip back home. My favorite treat is the Pecan Cluster Blizzard, a wondrous mix of vanilla soft serve, pecans, butterscotch syrup, and chocolate dip hardened and blended into chunks. The sweetness of the butterscotch, mixed with the texture and crunch of the nuts, finished with the chocolateyness of the dip are heaven itself for me. Also on offer are old-school soda fountain drinks like the Chocolate Malted (favored by my dad) and the Boston Cooler (a mixture of Vernor’s Ginger Ale & vanilla soft serve). When I moved to the East Coast, it took me a long time get used to the “pop = soda” thing because the word “soda†conjures for me visions of ice cream treats like a chocolate soda… mmmm…
I also must report a most interesting finding during a trip I took to Blairstown, NJ, recently. Per my usual, since I was out of NYC, I was therefore looking for a DQ. Well, I found something that turned out to be a former DQ converted into an establishment called the Blairstown Dairy. They kept as much of the DQ stuff as possible, without being in danger of getting sued. Since DQ has trademarked its signature swirl, all the signs had photoshopped the offending swirls out, and all the product names were slightly altered. I got a Butterfinger “Blenderz” (aka Blizzard), and, although the flavor of the off-brand soft serve was a bit tasteless (did they forget the artificial vanilla flavor #8?), the guy put in a crapload of Butterfinger chunks– maybe even a whole bar’s worth– so I was appeased. Let’s hear it for roadside mom and pop soft serve purveyors in small towns throughout our great land!
Lastly, as DQ’s greatest fan, I’d like you to steer clear of DQ’s cold and sterile corporate website with the completely horrific Oreo Cookie Jar Blizzard “Goodies” creatures currently featured on the home page. They mean you no harm… really. Just eat the frozen treats, shut up, and be happy.
Dairy Queen multiple locations (even China!), but not NYC <sniff>2 Comments to Dairy Queen – My Dessert Alma Mater
There used to be a DQ (maybe there still is) right across the GW bridge in NJ which made a nice goal for a long bike ride…
adminSeptember 16, 2009
Hmm, I just checked for it on Google, and it seems to be gone. The closest DQ to me is in Jersey City, which of course I’ve been to. But it’s not easy to get to from my roost in Brooklyn, as there are bodies of water to traverse.
September 15, 2009