March 2, 2021

With temperatures in the 50s, the early opening B&G Milkyways should be off to a great start this week selling ice cream.

On Wednesday, franchise owners are opening the locations at 69th and Louise, Sycamore Avenue south of 10th Street, and on East 41st Street at the entrance to Harmodon Park. Other locations will open in the coming weeks, with the new ice cream shop in Harrisburg expected to open in mid-May.

Here’s the opening date or time frame for each location:

• 69th Street: Wednesday
• Sycamore Avenue: Wednesday
• Harmodon Park: Wednesday
• Tea: March 9
• Brandon: March 17
• West 41st Street: By March 10
• West 12th Street: By April 1
• Harrisburg: Mid-May

Because of the pandemic, customers will have to spend another season using only the drive-thru, said Bruce Bettmeng, who owns the overall franchise with his wife, Pam. They own the shops on 12th Street and West 41st and sold the first franchise in 2001.

“We’re going to keep them closed again,” he said of the lobbies. “They’re just too confined to open them up. People are still not comfortable standing next to someone in a confined space.”

With several national chains still keeping their lobbies and dining rooms closed, customers are “resigned to the fact they’re going to have to wait in line,” he said.

Everyone has their B&G favorites, whether it’s a turtle sundae, a strawberry and vanilla twist soft-serve cone or a footlong chili dog. And while that’s what keeps customers coming back year after year, B&G always offers something new.

This year, fans of the Monster Cookie Avalanche, one of the limited-time offerings last season, will be happy to learn it has found a permanent spot on the menu.

“That caught us completely off-guard how popular that was,” Bettmeng said. “But Bing is still the king.”

This is the fifth season for the Avalanches made with pieces of Twin Bing candy bars, but they’ll continue to be limited run-only.

Floats will come in a large size this year in addition to small and medium, and a prime rib sandwich will be featured later in the season.

The Harrisburg location will be the first franchise to open in the area since 2019. No other new shops are in the pipeline, Bettmeng said. And that’s not even COVID-19 related.

“With the current economic climate, there’s a lot up in the air with a $15 minimum wage,” he said of Democrats’ efforts to raise the federal standard. “There was talk of another one, but we turned them down. You won’t make a living starting a business and playing $15 an hour. It’s not worth starting a business.”

The ice cream shops “were able to maintain last year,” Bettmeng said of operating in the pandemic. “We took a dip when it hit and then bounced back. We had a good spring weatherwise, and the fall season was extended a little bit, which really saved us.”