Growing Up DQ®

Posted by Lisa Y under A Smile and a Story®,Blizzard,Dairy Queen,Eats & Treats,In the Community on

What is it about growing up with the DQ® system that was a direct correlation with the size of the products my parents would allow me to order? My first memory is of a push-up style soft-serve treat I could get myself out of the self-serve freezer at my local DQ store. While I would have preferred to get the same Peanut Buster® Parfait my Dad would order, he would always talk me into something smaller because he knew my eyes were bigger than stomach.

As I grew older and started grade school, I moved through ordering the other novelties, including the DQ Sandwich, Dilly® Bars of various flavors and the Buster Bar®. Then I can remember going through a Strawberry Sundae phase in about 6th grade. I would occasionally switch up the flavors—sometimes hot fudge, sometimes caramel.

When I got my first driver’s license, my favorite product was a Crunch Cone because it was easy to handle in the car. Then, by the time I was graduating high school, the Blizzard® Flavor Treat was rolled out, introducing me to a whole new delicious treat platform.

However, with the recent introduction of the Mini Blizzard size, the pattern has shifted. Now I’m able to still get all the same great taste of a Blizzard Treat, but as a smaller indulgence with little guilt.

My past memories of the DQ system just show how this brand has something for everyone. Do you remember how your DQ purchases have changed over the years?

Comments

Living in So. Calif. we did not have DQ’s around when I was growing up. My first experience was in So. Dakota on a road trip when I was in my twenties. I remember having a Hot fudge sundae in one hand and a chocolate malt in the other. (weight was not an issue) From then on all the road trips were not complete without DQ. I am now a grandma and the same rules apply NO road trip is complete without DQ’s. Peanut buster parfaits were a fave for a long time, but have many now. I only do one DQ treat at a time these days but they are worth every bite. Thanks DQ for all the delicious memories over the years.

My very 1st and BEST job was at Dairy Queen…. Favorite item is peanut buster parfait & my special cone, a lol bit of marshmallow in the cone, vanilla DQ, dip it in crunch cone….. Mmmmmm…… DQ was a big part in my life & instilled good work ethics in me

Boy do I remember the great Dilly Bars, Having every imaginable baseball hat. And going to the extreme of putting my favorite players names on the hats. Getting any flavor I wanted and even using the hats on my little dog BABY(he was a PEKE) He suffered through it because he always got his treat first by licking the hats out.Thanks for the memories.

I remember, after a ponytail softball game, being treated to a 10 cent cone, (win or lose). I was 9 at the time, 42 yrs. ago! As a kid we always had Dilly Bars in the freezer, the bakers dozen assorted flavors. I ate the curl on the front off first. Ice cream on a hot summer day was always a must in Arizona!! Nowadays having diabetes has hindered my joy of DQ, but I still “cheat” quite frequently. Everything is sooo goood!!!

Although I have gradually enjoyed the multitude of tasty ice cream treats that sprinkle the DQ menu and tease my many taste buds, the first Dairy Queen treat that I can remember enjoying is the vanilla cone dipped in chocolate coating. Over the decades I have always come back to this simple pleasure.

On the other hand, if you were to ask me my most nostalgic moment at DQ, without a doubt it would be the smell of an old DQ walk up store. Dairy Queen, as is the case with many businesses, has broaden into a variety of locations serving everything from cones and hot dogs to burgers and blizzards of every flavor and size. However, nothing reminds me of my favorite childhood memories as the smell that would blast my face when the friendly soda jerk would open the little sliding window at the local Dairy Queen. As an incentive to pass our swim lessons each summer, mom would promise me and my 5 siblings a treat at any restaurant of our choice. Though they varied in their decisions, I never strayed from my old friend, Dairy Queen. In fact, I grew quite cantankerous with my brothers and sisters when they passed and didn’t choose DQ. Ice cream at any other location just wasn’t the same.

It has been a very long time since I have been to an old walk up store, but every now and then, when I least expect it, I’ll catch a whiff of my favorite smell as I walk through the door of my hometown Dairy Queen. That moment of nostalgia never fails to make me smile. :)

I worked at DQ for over 8 years. I remember portion sizes changing the most. When I started, a small was 12 ounces and a large was 16. When I quit, a large was 32 ounces!

I grew up with the Blueberry Blizzard. Now I find that it is no long available… Please bring it back.

I remember those days. And I too graduated to the Blizzard stage. My own version of the Hawaiian Blizzard with Pecans in it. Love the new mini size. great taste, less guilt and cool summer ahead. LOL.

Thank you for sharing your story with us, Angela! You’re a wonderful writer and your entry was a pleasure to read. I wish you many more happy DQ memories!
Sincerely,
Angela

have loved DQ since I was a little kid and now I’m 61 yrs old and love even more. But I have to tell you I won’t be coming back again. You see I have a policy that when people use OMG or say the words it is using the name of my Father in Heaven in vain. You may say but this is the in thing or we are really saying oh my gosh. but the initials say it loud and clear. I doubt anybody who uses this even realizes how hurtful this is to him but even more who are they going to pray to or when they are scared or need extra help how can they ask him for it. He will think they are using his name in vain or cursing him and so he won’t respond. Yes he is real, not just a spirit but a body he does lead us and he is there to help us. Please don’t ruin this fantastic family restaurant by using using his sacred name in vain. I sure hope I can come back I’ll miss it

I remember my cousin coming up on sale trips and we always went to DQ when he came and got Chocolate rocks. They are sooooooo yummy!!!! I really hope and wish that you could bring them back.

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