The History of Friendly’s

In 1935, brothers Prestley and Curtis Blake opened an ice cream shop in Springfield, Massachusetts where they began selling double-dip cones for 5 cents each. They named the business “Friendly” to create a welcoming neighborhood atmosphere. In 1940, they opened a second location in West Springfield. Around the same time, they began serving food at their locations at the request of a customer. (The first food item they added to the menu was a hamburger.) In 1950, Friendly’s became the first restaurant in New England to introduce half-gallons of ice cream that customers could take home with them. The chain grew rapidly in the second half of the 20th century — by 1951, there were 10 locations across Western Massachusetts and Connecticut, and by 1974, the chain had expanded to include over 500 locations across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions. In 1979, the brothers sold the company to the Hershey Foods Corporation. The move made popular sundae toppings like Reese's Pieces, Oreo, and Health Bar Crunch widely available at Friendly’s locations. Packages of Friendly’s ice cream hit supermarket shelves for the first time in 1987 and have since become a mainstay. In 1989, the name of the restaurant and corresponding ice cream brand was formally changed from “Friendly” to “Friendly’s.” Sundae cups were introduced in 1995, and a brand-new food and dessert menu debuted in 2000. Friendly’s then won an award for their kid’s menu in 2007, cementing the chain’s status as a family-friendly restaurant. Friendly's celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2010 and restaurant redesigns were unveiled in 2013. Today, Friendly’s remains a popular gathering place with locations all across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, as well as a popular ice cream brand that is available in grocery stores all across the country.