By Joey McWilliams
DURANT – If you’ve been to Dairy Queen in Durant in recent months, then you’ve seen some changes. And if you haven’t, well, you need to stop by!
Business presented by KTC.
A new ownership group took over on Feb. 1 with goals and dreams about updating a business that has been a part of life in Durant for decades. Aaron Franklin, who along with James Box and Sami Jo Black, spoke about some of the vision that has already become a reality.
“Our major goal was to reorganize the kitchen and get the proper equipment in there,” Franklin said. “We were able to expedite orders in a more normal fashion.
“You know, our slogan at Dairy Queen is “We’re fan food, not fast food.” But it was getting to the point that it was a little slow. So we just wanted for people to come in and enjoy without committing an hour’s time to eating here.”
Located at 501 N. First Ave., right across the street from Green Spray, the local franchise now has an updated feel in many aspects.
“We started planning and dreaming right off the bat, and then it just a matter of ‘How can we execute effectively without as much down time as possible?’,” Franklin said.
Upgrades throughout at the Durant Dairy Queen. Staff photo.
“We’ve upgraded all the kitchen equipment: new fryers, new freezing units, new ice cream machine – which should make the ice cream taste better than it’s tasted in 20 years. And then of course the new register system, so everything is much easier with much less errors. Very soon, we will activate the mobile ordering system, so you won’t have to call in all the time to place an order. No more hand-written tickets.
And Franklin said it shouldn’t take away from the personal touch.
“We’ve still tried to maintain the old ‘homey, community feel’ that we’ve always had. And that was the real reason for buying the place to begin with. It had fallen on hard times and it was very close to closing and we just couldn’t let that happen.
“I have been eating here for 30-something years and James has been eating here for 30-something years and we just couldn’t bear to see that happen.”
The group has local ties, as Franklin went to Durant schools from third until eighth grade and attended Southeastern, and Black is a former player and long-time assistant coach for the SE women’s basketball team.
Franklin encouraged Bryan County residents to stop back by.
“I’d love everybody to be able to come back and revisit the restaurant. Maybe people who haven’t visited in the past five or 10 years and to see that things are changing for the better.
“We don’t want it to go anywhere.”