No more fresh Dilly Bars

Noblesville’s original DQ dies for Unpleasant Street project

By STU CLAMPITT

news@readthereporter.com

Cathy Zeller has worked at Noblesville’s Dairy Queen, 798 S. 10^th St., since it was on a different corner of the same intersection. Today she will serve the last handmade Dilly Bars and Buster Bars in Hamilton County.

On Saturday she was working her 10^th straight 12-hour day, running the DQ with workers from Greenfield, Shelbyville and Tipton locations, just trying to keep up with the influx of customers who want one last taste before the store closes forever. This DQ will soon be torn down and paved over by the Reimagine Pleasant Street project, which many are calling the Unpleasant Street project.

During a rare lull in business on Saturday, Cathy Zeller spoke to the Reporter and posed for our camera. (Reporter photo by Stu Clampitt)

“I’m going to do my best to be open until at least one or two o’clock, but right now I’m running out of stuff rapidly,” Zeller told The Reporter. “We’ve already pumped 220 gallons of [ice cream] mix since Wednesday. I’m going to go to Elwood and see if I can get another 50 gallons from them. If I do that, I should be able to be open until two o’clock tomorrow. Isn’t that crazy?”

This influx of customers started as soon as El Camino closed on Tuesday, July 26.

“People knew it was in the cards at that point, without us saying a word,” Zeller said. “It got really crazy when somebody posted on social media that Wednesday [July 27] was our last day. I posted our closing date as this Sunday on that Wednesday afternoon. I wasn’t going to post it until Thursday morning because I knew what would happen. I had to go ahead and post because the town was going crazy that they had no notice. The craziness started Wednesday.”

Zeller has worked on the intersection of 10^th and Pleasant streets for 29 years. After the store closes, Zeller laughed and said she is taking a four-week vacation.

“I have worked 12-hour days since last Wednesday, so this is my 10th day and it’s not going to end until we get the store emptied out,” Zeller said. “So, I’m going to need those four weeks off. After that I’m not ready to quit working, but I’m ready to cut back. We are owned by J.D. Restaurants, the Reasner family. I will do something for them. They are a great family to work for. I have worked for them for 33 years. They will have a spot for me someplace. They also own the Greenfield, Elwood and Tipton Dairy Queens and anyone here who has transportation will have a job.”

Zeller said she and her crew only found out they would be closing this soon on Friday, July 22.

“Up until then, we thought we were going to be here until the end of September,” Zeller said. “El Camino had to be out by the 31st, but the city gave us two more weeks.”

While The Reporter was at DQ on Saturday, the parking lot was full, the drive-up line was backed up into the street, the building was packed, and many people were eating their last local ice cream treats in their vehicles.

“This is really hard,” Zeller said, her voice cracking a bit. “There has been a Dairy Queen on this intersection for 68 years. It’s just hard. The community – they’re coming in wiping tears. You’ve witnessed it. They’re angry. They’re not angry at us, thank goodness!”

The original DQ sat diagonally across the intersection. Zeller was working for DQ when it was owned by Harvey and Ruby Tunget and when it moved to its current location.

“We moved into this building in ’75,” Zeller said. “Harvey and I worked overnight the night after we closed over there and rolled the equipment across the street. That’s a true story!”

Zeller said this DQ is the last location in the county where Dilly Bars and Buster Bars are made fresh on-site. Recently, one local woman bought so many that Zeller’s crew had to help her carry two grocery sacks full out to her car.

Resources permitting, you can get your last taste of local, handmade frozen treats today.