Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour

Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour and Restaurant
Private by Parlour Enterprises in the U.S.
Industry Restaurants
Founded Portland, Oregon, U.S. (1963 (1963))
Founder Bob Farrell and Ken McCarthy
Headquarters California
Number of locations
 4 (CA)
Key people
 Paul Kramer, Mike Fleming
Website FarrellsUSA.com FarrellsHawaii.com

Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour is an American ice cream parlor chain founded in Portland, Oregon, in 1963.

History

Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour was started at NW 21st Avenue[1][2] in Portland, Oregon,[3] by Bob Farrell and Ken McCarthy in 1963.[4] Farrell's became known for their offer of a free ice cream sundae to children on their birthday. The parlors have an early 1900s theme, with employees wearing period dress and straw boater hats, and each location features a player piano.

In 1972, the Farrell's chain was purchased by the Marriott Corporation.[5] By 1975, there were 120 Farrell's nationwide.

Thereafter, sales dropped and most of the parlors were sold off in the 1980s. In 1982, Marriott sold the chain to a group of private investors.[5] By 1990 almost all Farrell's locations had closed.[6][7]

One of the last original Farrell's locations in Portland, located near the Lloyd Center mall, closed in 2001. At the time of its closing, it was privately owned and known as The Original Portland Ice Cream Parlor.[5] The final original location closed in 2006 in Eugene, Oregon. At the time, it was operating under the name of Pearl Street Ice Cream Parlour.

In 2008, after a years-long legal battle over rights to the brand, Parlour Enterprises of Lake Forest, California, was confirmed as the owner and operator of Farrell's properties on the U.S. mainland.[6] The company established a franchise model with original founder Bob Farrell as an advisor.[8] They promptly opened seven Farrell's locations in California, including the Mountasia Family Fun Center in Santa Clarita; Rancho Cucamonga (defunct); downtown Brea; Riverside (opened January 2013); Sacramento (opened August 2013, defunct 3 years later); and Buena Park (opened February 2014). A Mission Viejo location went out of business in January 2016. There has also been discussion of an eventual return to Portland, Oregon.[9]

At one time, there were eight Farrell's locations in Hawaii. Since October 2016, and 10 years in service the last Farrell's in the state, at Pearlridge shopping center in Aiea, Hawaii, operated by E Noa Corporation, had gone out of business.[10]

As of April 2016, the Farrell's inside Mountasia Family Fun Center has been re-branded and named Lickity Split by Farrell's, featuring over the counter dining and a streamlined menu.

In early August 2016, the Sacramento and Rancho Cucamonga locations ended up out of business. No word when those will return.

Menu

The menu is printed as a tabloid-style newspaper. It features appetizers, sandwiches, burgers, and dozens of different sundaes, as well as malts, shakes, sodas, and floats. Unusual offerings include a glass of soda water for 2 cents, and the traditional free sundae for customers celebrating a birthday.[11] Some of the sundaes are huge and intended for a group to share. The largest, the "Zoo" sundae, is delivered with great fanfare by multiple employees carrying it wildly around the restaurant on a stretcher accompanied by the sound of ambulance sirens.[12]

One of the more amusing highlights of their original menu was a "Low-Calorie Diet" recipe sheet you could theoretically "adopt" to if you ate too much ice cream. A bowl of "Bees Knees and Mosquito Knuckles" were among the Impossible-to-eat dishes that were featured in the joke-menu.

Sacramento location tragedy

On September 24, 1972, a privately owned Canadair Sabre jet (a variant of the F-86 Sabre) piloted by Richard Bingham failed to take off while leaving the Golden West Sport Aviation Air Show at Sacramento, California's Executive Airport. It went off the end of the runway and crashed into the ice cream parlour; 22 people were killed and 28 injured.[13]

In the news

On April 9, 1982, a small private plane crashed into the road and burst into flames in front of the Farrell's location in Torrance, California. The pilot and his two passengers were killed but no one on the ground was harmed.[14]

In 1983, the Selective Service purchased Farrell's "Birthday Club" data and mailed warnings to young men telling them to register for the draft before their 18th birthday. Farrell's blamed the situation on an unauthorized sale by a list broker, and the government announced they would stop using the list.[15]

In April 2014, an out-of-control automobile ran into a line of patrons waiting outside the Buena Park, California, location of Farrell's. One person was killed and six others were injured.[16]

On August 23, 2016, the television show "The Profit" featured Farrell's Ice Cream Parlours, and frankly discussed the financial health of the company and their locations, as part of a reality television show. An investment was proposed as part of a turn-around for the company.

References

  1. ↑ https://farrellsusa.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/unspecified-5-1.jpeg
  2. ↑ Pioneer Salt, Giant Pancakes, and Sexy Salads: How Portland Conquered the Food World - Portland Monthly
  3. ↑ Parkrose High School - Equus Ferox Yearbook (Portland, OR), Class of 1966, Page 290
  4. ↑ Giegerich, Andy (December 17, 2004). "Portland's dollar drain". Portland Business Journal. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
  5. 1 2 3 Goldfield, Robert (November 21, 2001). "Original Farrell's ice cream parlor gives way to condo project". The Portland Business Journal. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
  6. 1 2 "Farrell's looks to restart growth Owner outlines expansion plans for iconic ice cream chain". Nation's Restaurant News. August 31, 2010. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  7. ↑ http://farrellsusa.com/history/
  8. ↑ "Franchise information". FarrellsUSA.com. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  9. ↑ "Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour Returning To Portland". KPTV Fox News 12. 19 November 2009. Retrieved 26 December 2010.
  10. ↑ "About". Farrell's Hawaii. Retrieved 2016-09-28.
  11. ↑ "Menu" (PDF). Farrell's USA. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  12. ↑ "Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour, the Zoo Returns". Orange County (California) Register, November 3, 2009.
  13. ↑ "The Crash at Farrell's Ice Cream Parlor in Sacramento, CA - September 24, 1972". Check Six. 2002. Retrieved June 25, 2008.
  14. ↑ "The Age of Aries In Torrance, California April 9, 1982". Check-Six. 2002. Retrieved 26 December 2010.
  15. ↑ "Selective Service to Stop Use of Birthday List". The New York Times. 4 August 1984. Retrieved 26 December 2010.
  16. ↑ Zarembo, Alan (April 26, 2014). "1 dead, 6 hurt when SUV crashes into Buena Park ice cream parlor line". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 5 June 2014.

External links

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