In 1931, a man named Ted Drewes opened up a dessert shop here in St. Louis that doubled as a stand for selling Christmas trees. Nowadays, the tree selling has continued and the frozen custard that he sold has become an iconic part of St. Louis culture. Ted Drewes has many features which sets it apart from other custard shops in this city.
The first special attraction is the long lines. When driving down Chippewa Street, it’s almost impossible not to notice the horde of people around the custard shop, waiting to place their order for frozen custard.
“The crowds are a big part of what makes it a phenomenon,” manager Amy Foristel said. “You don’t see lines like this at other places.”
The custard is a huge draw to the shop. On the menu, one can find over 30 different flavors and toppings, like hot fudge, Oreo and cookie dough. There are also almost 20 other different specialties and sundaes, like Cardinal Sin, which is a concrete or sundae topped with hot fudge and cherries, or the Terramizzou, a concrete or sundae with a mixture of chocolate and pistachios.
“We make new sundaes by taste-testing and trying things out,” Foristel said. “Most of the flavors have been around, or Ted Drewes Jr. comes up with them.”
Ted Drewes is such an important part of the city, even engagements have happened there, along with people coming for an after-wedding treat.
“One time, we had someone pop the question on the board,” Foristel said. “We’ll even place bets on how many weddings we’ll get each day.”
The final, most iconic part of Ted Drewes is its hometown glory. Although they’ve had opportunities to turn Ted Drewes into a franchise, it’s always stuck in St. Louis. St. Louis is known for Ted Drewes, and the tradition of it will stay in the city as long as it can.
“Even though Ted Jr. himself doesn’t work here anymore, the culture is still left,” Foristel said. “The workers now carry on the culture, and it helps that a lot of family members still work here.”
Ted Drewes and St. Louis have a special and unique bond. At the heart of the custard shop is its history, and what is any place without its history.
“I’ve been going there since I was a baby,” sophomore Emily Henry said. “I will keep going there because it’s great.”
