Dairy Twin, a landmark Burleson burger drive-in for 58 years, will be closing its doors July 2, but its owner, former football coach Ronnie Johnson, said he's scouting new locations for a possible reopening.
"Well, the building was sold. I always leased," said Johnson, 65, Dairy Twin's fourth owner since its founding by Chuck Eaves. "We had actually planned on leaving in June. The building is old, so is the equipment, and we need a fresh start."The burgers and shakes are still profitable but less so than during the years when revenues hit half a million dollars annually, he said. And there's no doubt he and his family will give it another try."We are going to be in the restaurant business -- just not sure when," Johnson said.The drive-in, at 217 SW Wilshire Blvd. (Texas 174), is known for its bacon burgers, Coke-flavored shaved ice and somewhat sweeter-than-usual fountain drinks.Since 1985, it has been operated by Johnson, who now works with one of his two daughters, Angela Kaker, and the husband of the other, Steven Janusch. Janusch's wife, Rhonda, is a Mesquite coach-teacher but pitches in during vacations like her sister's husband, Tommy, and her mother, Peggy.When the Dairy Twin opened during the Eisenhower administration, it charged 15 cents for a burger, 30 cents for a shake.Today, it's $2.30 for a burger and $2.79 for a shake, and it has a far broader menu than chain stores -- 130 items, including a fried burrito and a chicken-fried steak sandwich.Burleson native Barry Phillips, an Emmy-award winning art director and illustrator, said friends in Los Angeles insisted he bring them a load of Dairy Twin bacon burgers when he lived in Southern California and made trips home to Texas.On Thursday, he pronounced himself upset over the news of the drive-in's closing, however temporary. "I was shocked; just floored. It made me so sad."Phillips described Dairy Twin as a distinctively hometown holdout against encroaching corporate-chain sameness where customers are anonymous."At Dairy Twin, it's like, 'Ah, I'm safe here. I'm known. They all know my name.'"Then there are the ties to the past."I had my first date there in eighth grade," Phillips said. "I remember where I sat with Cathy Holloway and was scared to death. We had been to a sock hop and my mom sat out front in the car, writing letters, as we went in and had a Coke."He's not alone.Generations of Burleson residents have particular memories of times at the drive-in, which Johnson likened to a local version of Arnold's Drive-in, the '50's-era eatery in the TV series Happy Days. Some local high school alumni come back and throw reunions there, he said.He bought Dairy Twin from Fred Horany, a childhood friend from the West Texas town of Olney. Both were education majors at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, and each got their master's degrees at Tarleton State University in Stephenville.Johnson taught in Burleson for 15 years and during the 1970s coached football, basketball and golf. He was a school principal in Throckmorton when Horany asked him if he wanted to buy the Dairy Twin and move back to Burleson, where he served 20 years on the school board.Johnson and his family can now laugh at some of the less-happy memories.There was an incident with a woman decidedly unhappy with her ice cream."It was a Friday night and Angela, then 16, was working the drive-through. The lady ordered an ice cream cone. When she got it, she said, 'That's too soft,'"Angela told her, 'That's how it comes out of the machine.'"The lady leaned over and threw it at her right back through the window."It was our first year, and I said to myself, 'Oh my gosh, what have we gotten ourselves into?' Thank God that's the only time it happened." And the woman was wide of the mark, he recalled.After being interviewed, Phillips left a message to say that he had contacted his eighth-grade date -- now married to a friend -- and they agreed to re-enact that first date at Dairy Twin on its last day, July 2. Barry Shlachter, 817-390-7718Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
