Ted Drewes is a frozen custard

Frozen custard

Frozen custard is a cold dessert similar to ice cream, made with eggs in addition to cream and sugar.In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration requires products marketed as frozen custard to contain at least 10 percent milkfat and 1.4 percent egg yolk solids. If it has fewer egg yolk...

 shop in St. Louis

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

, Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

, USA. The original St. Louis shop on Natural Bridge Road operated from 1930 to 1958. The Chippewa Street (designated as a section of historic U.S. Route 66

U.S. Route 66

U.S. Route 66 was a highway within the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926 -- with road signs erected the following year...

) is open much of the year, the South Grand Boulevard

Grand Boulevard (St. Louis)

Grand Boulevard is a major, seven to five lane wide, north-south thoroughfare running through the center of St. Louis, Missouri. Grand runs north through Carondolet Park in the south of St. Louis to the Mississippi River north of McKinley Bridge, about midway between Forest Park and the Mississippi...

 location is open in summer. The Chippewa location is open until around midnight during the summer months. Both locations are extremely popular during the spring and summer months, and are a tradition for many after attending St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

 baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 games.

Ted Drewes frozen custard

Unlike some other frozen custard

Frozen custard

Frozen custard is a cold dessert similar to ice cream, made with eggs in addition to cream and sugar.In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration requires products marketed as frozen custard to contain at least 10 percent milkfat and 1.4 percent egg yolk solids. If it has fewer egg yolk...

s, Ted Drewes offers only one flavor, vanilla

Vanilla

Vanilla is a flavoring derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla, primarily from the Mexican species, Flat-leaved Vanilla . The word vanilla derives from the Spanish word "", little pod...

, and adds other flavorings and toppings as ordered. Their custard has a rich flavor due to being made with both the traditional eggs and also with honey

Honey

Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...

.

The shop may be best known for a specialty called a "concrete". A concrete is custard blended with any combination of dozens of ingredients, served in a large yellow cup with a spoon and straw. A concrete is blended so thick that the spoon does not fall out if the cup is turned upside down. Servers often demonstrate this before handing an order to the customer. Seasonal ingredients such as apple

Apple

The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...

 and pumpkin pie

Pumpkin pie

Pumpkin pie is a traditional sweet dessert, often eaten during the fall and early winter, especially for Thanksgiving and Christmas in the United States and Canada. The pumpkin is a symbol of harvest time and featured also at Halloween....

 appear for a short period every year.

History

Ted Drewes started making frozen custard while with a carnival

Carnival

Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February. Carnaval typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, mask and public street party...

. The first fixed location was near St. Petersburg, Florida

St. Petersburg, Florida

St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is known as a vacation destination for both American and foreign tourists. As of 2008, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 245,314, making St...

 in 1929. The first St. Louis shop began serving in 1930 on Natural Bridge Road near Goodfellow Blvd. Less than a year later, it was moved further west. A second location was opened at 4224 South Grand Blvd. in 1931. In 1941 a third location opened at 6726 Chippewa Street, on one of the alignments of U.S. Route 66

U.S. Route 66

U.S. Route 66 was a highway within the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926 -- with road signs erected the following year...

 through St. Louis. The Natural Bridge and Florida locations had closed by 1958.

For decades, the Grand Avenue location was the flagship store, serving what was then a densely populated urban area in the neighborhood of Dutchtown

Dutchtown, St. Louis

Dutchtown is a neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. It is called "Dutch" from Deutsch, i.e., "German", as it was the southern center of German-American settlement in St. Louis in the early 19th century...

 and adjacent to the neighborhoods of Tower Grove South

Tower Grove South, St. Louis

Tower Grove South is a neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. Formerly known as Oak Hill, Tower Grove South is bounded by Arsenal Street on the north, Chippewa Street on the south, Kingshighway Boulevard on the west, and Grand Boulevard on the east. The majority of the neighborhood was built...

, Gravois Park

Gravois Park, St. Louis

Gravois Park is a historic neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. Roughly bounded by Jefferson Avenue, Chippewa Street, Grand Boulevard and Cherokee Street, the Gravois Park neighborhood is a diverse mix of homeowners, renters and businesses. The area's architecture reflects its settlement at the...

, Bevo Mill

Bevo Mill, St. Louis

Bevo Mill is a neighborhood located in south St. Louis, Missouri.-Namesake and location:The neighborhood's name comes from the "Bevo Mill building", a local landmark that was designed in the style of Dutch and German windmills for grinding grain. The Mill building was built in 1916 to serve as a...

, Holly Hills

Holly Hills, St. Louis

Holly Hills is a neighborhood located in South St. Louis, Missouri, near the intersection of I-55 and Loughborough Avenue. The neighborhood is defined by Bates and Walsh on the Northeast, Holly Hills on the Southwest, Leona and the Missouri Pacific Railroad on the Northwest and Grand Boulevard on...

, and Carondelet

Carondelet, St. Louis

Carondelet is a neighborhood in the extreme southeastern portion of St. Louis, Missouri. It was incorporated as an independent city in 1851 and was annexed by the City of St. Louis in 1870. As of the 2000 Census, the neighborhood has a population of 9,960 people.Originally, the neighborhood was...

. Each year, it would open in April and close on October 31. The Chippewa location served as an outpost near the city limits for travelers heading to or returning from an Ozark

The Ozarks

The Ozarks are a physiographic and geologic highland region of the central United States. It covers much of the southern half of Missouri and an extensive portion of northwestern and north central Arkansas...

 weekend getaway. In those days it was open from Memorial Day

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...

 to Labor Day

Labor Day

Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...

.

With the some of the population shifting west in the city and to the suburbs, the Chippewa store became the flagship location. Its season extended to more of the year, while the shop on Grand shortened its seasonal operation. In the wake of the transition, the Chippewa Street store expanded its building and bought a neighboring property to accommodate parking. As dessert eating habits have continued to change, the Chippewa store has stayed open later in the year. It is now closed for the winter only during the month of January. The South Grand location now opens only for the summer months.

In the weeks leading up to Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

, Ted Drewes sells live Christmas tree

Christmas tree

The Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen coniferous tree, real or artificial, and a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century...

s from the Chippewa Street parking lot.

Availability

Ted Drewes, Jr., reports that he has fielded numerous requests to turn the small chain into a nationwide franchise

Franchising

Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....

, but has refused.
Ted Drewes frozen custard is also available in St. Louis area grocery stores. The grocery-sold custard is available in three flavors: vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.

In the press

In 2006, the Route 66 location was featured on the Food Network

Food Network

Food Network is a television specialty channel that airs both one-time and recurring programs about food and cooking. Scripps Networks Interactive owns 70 percent of the network, with Tribune Company controlling the remaining 30 percent....

 show Feasting on Asphalt

Feasting on Asphalt

Feasting on Asphalt is a television series starring Alton Brown of the Food Network programs Good Eats and Iron Chef America.Brown's third series, Feasting on Asphalt explores "road food" in the historical and present-day United States, with an emphasis on unique restaurants and regional cuisine...

, hosted by Alton Brown

Alton Brown

Alton Crawford Brown is an American television personality, author, actor, and cinematographer. He is the creator and host of the Food Network television show Good Eats and the mini-series Feasting on Asphalt and Feasting on Waves, and he is the host and main commentator on Iron Chef America...

In 2010, it was recommended by Bobby Flay

Bobby Flay

Robert William "Bobby" Flay is an American celebrity chef, restaurateur and reality television personality. He is the owner and executive chef of 12 restaurants: Mesa Grill in Las Vegas, New York City, and the Bahamas ; Bar Americain in New York City and Uncasville, Connecticut; Bobby Flay Steak...

 on the "Sweet Tooth" episode of The Best Thing I Ever Ate

The Best Thing I Ever Ate

The Best Thing I Ever Ate is a program on the Food Network which premiered on June 22, 2009 . The program originally aired as a one-time special in late 2008...

.