The Treat (Closed)
Shippensburg, PA Photo courtesy Moon Mullins OX-76
A roadside treasure in Pennsylvania is The Treat Drive-In Eatery.
Tremendous googie marquee in front, complete with red spiked orb on top
of sign. Googie arrow adorns the post right below main sign. And check
out the boomerang lettering! Wow.
The place opened along Route 11 in June 1952 as the Tropical Treat, reportedly Shippensburg's first fast-food drive-in. The tropical name wasn't referring to palm trees or some exotic theme. It actually came from the Tropical Treat machine used to turn out frozen custard at the little roadside stand.
Back then the menu was pretty simple. Burgers, soft drinks and frozen custard brought the cars in, and the place originally closed during the colder winter months. As business grew through the 1950s and '60s, so did the building and menu. Eventually “Tropical” disappeared from the name and everybody just called it The Treat.
The Treat (Closed)
Shippensburg, PA Photo courtesy Moon Mullins OX-76
This was a real drive-in too, with customers pulling into the parking spaces and carhops bringing the food out. But even if you weren't hungry, that wild sign was reason enough to slow down. The boomerang shape, arrow, neon and Sputnik topper looked like something dreamed up when everyone figured we'd be driving flying cars by the year 2000.
The Treat eventually expanded for year-round dining, but amazingly, portions of the original 1952 stand remained buried within the larger building.
UPDATE: The Treat closed in August 2014, ending more than 60 years of drive-in history at the site. The property was converted into the Greyhound Family Restaurant, and the old roadside sign was substantially altered, losing its arrow appearance and distinctive Sputnik topper. 08-26
Circus Drive-in (Gone)
Wall, NJ Photo courtesy Bob Jagendorf
You didn't have to look very hard to find the circus along Route 35. Just watch for the giant smiling clown pointing the way to The Circus Drive-in, one of those great roadside places where the sign and building were every bit as much fun as the food.
The Circus opened on May 1, 1954, started by Richard and Barbara Friedel, and the building really did look like a miniature big top. Its round shape and red-and-white striped roof made the whole place look as if a circus tent had landed beside the highway. Then there was that terrific neon marquee out front, complete with a smiling clown face designed by Barbara herself.
This was a real drive-in too. Pull into a space, place your order through the intercom and wait for a carhop to bring dinner right to the automobile. Long before drive-thru windows became the usual routine, eating in the parking lot was part of the attraction here.
Even the menu joined the circus. You could order things with names like the Lion Tamer, Bareback Betsy, Wild Animal Special and Daredevil. Being this close to the Jersey Shore also meant more than burgers and fries. The place became especially well known for its soft-shell crab sandwiches and lobster rolls during the busy summer season.
Circus Drive-in building
Wall, NJ Photo courtesy Bill Jackson
For decades, the Circus was one of those Route 35 landmarks that told you exactly where you were. The big top, the carhops and that glowing clown welcomed generations of beach traffic rolling along the Jersey Shore. About the only thing missing was an elephant in the parking lot.
There was even one last unusual twist when the property went up for sale. PETA reportedly made an offer in 2017 with plans to turn the old circus-themed drive-in into a vegan restaurant and museum. That didn't happen, and the property was eventually sold for redevelopment.
UPDATE: The Circus Drive-In closed in 2017, and the distinctive big-top building was demolished in May 2018. The familiar clown sign remained beside Route 35 for a few more years before being removed in 2021. 08-26
L-Kens Drive-in (Gone)
Colonie, NY Photo courtesy Dirk Burhans
Now here's a roadside chef who knows how to advertise the menu. The great old sign outside L-Ken's Drive-In in Colonie featured a smiling chef holding up a giant rotating weenie for everyone traveling along Central Avenue to see.
L-Ken's opened in the 1960s and was a classic walk-up kind of place. Pull into the lot, head for the ordering window and choose from burgers, steak sandwiches, fish fry, clam rolls and plenty of soft-serve ice cream. Nothing fancy, just the sort of roadside stop that could easily turn into dinner followed by dessert.
Of course, the chef was the real star from the highway. In the 1980s, locals even noticed that the smiling fellow on the sign bore a suspicious resemblance to New York Governor Mario Cuomo. Whether the governor ever appreciated having a neon look-alike waving a giant hot dog around Colonie is another question.
Just down Central Avenue was Kurver Kreme, giving the neighborhood another longtime stop for ice cream. Between the two, this stretch of road certainly wasn't lacking in places to ruin your dinner with dessert.
UPDATE: Sad to say that the L-Kens closed down in late 2007. Business was bad and a developer has bought the lot and is tearing down the building for another chain type restaurant. Many thanks to Doug Mastin for info. 07-08
UPDATE: L-Ken's closed and sat vacant for several years before the old drive-in was demolished in late 2016. The familiar chef and hot dog sign was removed before demolition. 08-26
The Treat (Closed)
The Treat (Closed)
L-Kens Drive-in (Gone)
