A COOL CELEBRATION FOR NATIONAL ICE CREAM MONTH

LIC’S DELI & ICE CREAM

In addition to celebrating America’s Independence, the month of July is also National Ice Cream month! What better way to cool off from the heat of Summer than ice cream? One locally owned spot has been serving up delicious treats for 75 years - Lic’s Deli and Ice Cream.

Lic’s is an acronym for the original name of the business - Lloyd’s Ice Cream Shoppe. It was established by Lloyd Immel in 1950 as a single location where the ice cream was produced in the back room. The original business was at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and North Fares, but was later torn down for the construction of Highway 41. Today if you are sitting in the south bound turn lane at that intersection you would be at what used to be their drive-thru window.

Immel enjoyed enough success in the venture that he would close the business to spend winters in Mexico. In 1963, he was making a deposit at People’s Bank and mentioned to teller Don Smith that he was considering closing the business and moving south permanently. Smith had a passion for making homemade ice cream and purchased what we know today as Lic’s in a spur-of-themoment decision. He is shown in the original here in a photo from 1964. Smith came in early to make the ice cream each morning then worked in the business all day. Lloyd’s had walk-up window service as well as a then-revolutionary telephone-operated drive-thru in 1950

– a full 25 years before McDonalds! They opened their first drive-thru in Sierra Vista, Arizona on January 24, 1975.

A second Lloyd’s location opened on Diamond Ave. in 1967, and a third soon after on Lincoln Ave. The ice cream was delivered between stores in a small insulated trailer. Today, Lic’s ice cream is transported in a large refrigerated truck to their 7 local stores. Lloyd’s Ice Cream registered the name ‘Lic’s’ in 1979 for the two shops, and moved ice cream production to a larger plant in downtown Evansville. This new facility could churn out 2,000 gallons of deLic’s-ious ice cream every day.

Although Lic’s is well known for their homemade ice cream, they have offered a full menu of delicious soups, salads and sandwiches since 1986. They also expanded their plant to allow them to bake their own breads, buns, cakes and cookies, as well as producing their soups, dressings, horseradish and other condiments in-house. All of these are delivered fresh to each of their locations daily.

Their steakburgers are made with real Angus beef, and I believe are one of the best burgers in the city. They also have subs made with a variety of proteins and breads, including franchette, multi-grain, pumpernickel, grilled honey or even a croissant. The menu also includes quesadillas, a club sandwich, a BLT, a Cuban or Reuben and even chicken salad. Soups and sides include chili or the soup-of-the-day, a fruit cup, chips, a side salad, and more.

Signature ice cream-based items include thick milkshakes, malts, sundaes, banana splits, ice cream sodas, ice cream cakes, turtle pies, ChocoCremes (bite sized, hand dipped, ice cream balls) and party-sized desserts. But besides their ice-cream, another signature item is the house salad dressing, which is a recipe of Smiths' mother, who lived in St. Louis most of her life. It is very similar to the sweet Italian vinaigrettes popularized by famous St. Louis pizza shops such as Faraci’s, Pino’s and Charlie Gitto’s. It is made with oil, vinegar, sugar and other ‘family secret’ seasonings that make it unique to our area – pro tip: order it drizzled on a sub!

During our visit we sampled a gourmet sub, a spicy chicken ranch quesadilla, a grilled cheese with spicy chili, a hand dipped milkshake, vanilla chococremes, and an ice cream sundae. In honor of their 75th anniversary they are currently offering a SundayMonday-Sundae deal, which gives you 1 regular sundae for .75¢ cents when you order a sundae at regular price.

All locations have varying hours. Most (except downtown) are open Mon-Sat: 10:30am-10:00pm, closing Fri & Sat. at 10:30pm & Sun: 11:00am-10:00pm. The downtown location closes earlier and is closed Sundays. See their website for specific hours of each location. Their lobbies also close 1 hour early, so please use the drive-thru’s during their final hour of business. All locations have their own parking lots and all are handicapped accessible. You can find Lic’s on Facebook @licsdeliandicecream