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The Dairy Godmother, New Owner Russell Gravat on Mount Vernon Avenue in Del Ray - Authentic Milwaukee-Style Frozen Custard


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27 minutes ago, ktmoomau said:

Sad news: 

Yeah, I've been sitting on this one for a couple of years. Liz and I have talked, and although I don't want to reveal the content of our conversations, the weariness in her writing was palpable. She's just, plain tired. 

There are a lot of people out there like Liz - look at Julien Shapiro, Edan Macquaid, *me* ... they want to work hard and put out a good product, and the last thing in the world they care about is "being a marketer" with all the sleazy, self-promotion that comes with it. Unfortunately, unless you either do that, or pay someone to do it (and, what do you pay them with?) you're stuck with a "well-respected, but little-known" entity that people mistakenly assume is paying all your bills and bringing in all sorts of notoriety and riches - until one day, when the person responsible for that entity just doesn't want to do it anymore, and then everyone realizes what they've lost.

Liz Davis is a Del Ray treasure, and The Dairy Godmother is an artisan icon. Twenty years from now, they'll be all but forgotten except by a select few, and I'll be one of those select few who always holds her in the highest esteem.

Although I haven't talked with Liz about this in probably over a year, it isn't hard for me to read between the lines in her letter. She's somewhere on vacation, and finally said "fuck it," and I don't blame her one bit - she has one life to live, and I hope she enjoys it to the max. It would not surprise me one bit if she didn't make the final decision until she was actually out of the country, enjoying herself, and seeing what she could be doing instead of working fourteen-hour days running a custard shop.

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heard about it not too long ago from a colleague and said to myself "why wouldn't she get out?' Of course there are lines out the door at certain times of the day of the week, but its not like you are selling $20 cups of custard but custard at a low price to attract people of all sizes. this place will be missed dearly. One of my favorite pictures with my youngest is sitting on the red picnic benches next to stomping grounds in the dead of August eating custard.

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She had quietly stopped selling gift certificates a while ago, which makes me think this was in the works (or in her thoughts) for a while. Good for her. Banana Pudding and Salted Caramel were my favorites. Still got a half gallon of Candy Cane in my freezer. Maybe it's now a collectors item? 

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Let's remember that Liz's shop, plus her spirit and hard work was the definitive "third" place. That was Liz's stated goal from the beginning.  Third places are important to community building, "places where people spend time between home (‘first’ place) and work (‘second’ place). They are locations where we exchange ideas, have a good time, and build relationships." (Brookings Institution)

From 2005: "A Rich Concoction of Midwestern Tastes and Values" by Mary Claire Kendall on alextimes.com

What an amazing Liz, then, now and always. 

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SO sad. My husband and I had a long-standing tradition of hopping in our little vintage convertible in the heat of summer and driving all the way from Chevy Chase MD to the Dreamery/DG (especially on Mozambique day) and then stopping at Gravelly Point on the way home to watch planes land. Those will forever be happy memories. 

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2 hours ago, abigail99 said:

SO sad. My husband and I had a long-standing tradition of hopping in our little vintage convertible in the heat of summer and driving all the way from Chevy Chase MD to the Dreamery/DG (especially on Mozambique day) and then stopping at Gravelly Point on the way home to watch planes land. Those will forever be happy memories. 

What a lovely memory, "abigal99".  For many years my husband and I would be led on summer evenings by our sweet black and white mixed breed dog to the Dreamery/DG door. When I say led, I mean as if she was the lead dog pulling a sled.  She was obsessed with Liz's special Squirrel treats.  An essential ingredient was discarded beer hops.  In the early days, Liz would often take time to come out front to visit with our leader, us too.  As you say, forever happy memories.

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15 hours ago, danlow said:

When I say led, I mean as if she was the lead dog pulling a sled.  She was obsessed with Liz's special Squirrel treats.  An essential ingredient was discarded beer hops.  In the early days, Liz would often take time to come out front to visit with our leader, us too.  As you say, forever happy memories.

Not to be a Debbie downer but ... I hope you meant spent grain.  Hops either fresh or spent can be poisonous for dogs.

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I'll say this now, although even Liz herself may not remember it.

Does anyone remember when The Dairy Godmother was "The Del Ray Dreamery," but that name was trademarked, so Liz had a contest to change it?

And she initially decided on "That Custard Place in Del Ray?"

This is the part Liz may or may not remember: I thought that was an awful name, and I wrote Liz an impassioned letter not to do it, basically saying "It's not to late to back out - please don't call it 'That Custard Place in Del Ray.'" She wrote me back and thanked me for my thoughts, and said she now had a lot to think about - a short while later, she came up with "The Dairy Godmother," which I think is a brilliant name. I have no idea whether I was singularly responsible for the change, partially responsible for the change, or not at all responsible for the change, but that's what happened, and I remember writing her back and telling her how much I loved "The Dairy Godmother."

(Hence)

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22 minutes ago, Josh Radigan said:

The Pop-up was packed as of 9:00am this morning. If you swing by and see a big, goofy guy in glasses working the No1 Pickle station give him a hearty shout out "Hey Chef Will Ham! Josh says get back to work."

Josh, what is "the pop-up?"

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45 minutes ago, Cook&Bottlewasher said:

Oh,Godchildren! Don't worry! There are people who are interested in buying and, while there may be change, The DG will live on.

I had a GREAT time.It was my savior in many ways but I have much to do that I wasn't able to squeeze in while I was working so many hours.I will have another,smaller business of some kind....or a few businesses. I have ideas, just not enough time.

Thanks for you support and kind words.

Liz

I think as long as we know you're happy, Liz, we'll be happy.

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First time on Sunday for an afternoon treat. The weather was nice but still didn't expect the line wrapping to the back. Good news was it moved fast. Me and the kids each got custard which was good and rich similar to Kohr Bros but a little richer and less sweet (I think slightly better). Portions were small but that was ok since it is rich. Chocolate and vanilla were both good. I also got the passion mango sorbet which was very nice and paired well with the chocolate. I like how you get multiple flavors even in a small. The only downside was the m&m topping (only topping any of us had) which were advertised as m&ms but were either stale or carob coated candies or something else. Did not taste right and were thrown away. So stick to the ice cream. 

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8 hours ago, KeithA said:

The only downside was the m&m topping (only topping any of us had) which were advertised as m&ms but were either stale or carob coated candies or something else. Did not taste right and were thrown away. So stick to the ice cream. 

Yeah, this is actually a small upside to the fro-yo places where you can "dial your own" M&Ms, carob chips, sprinkles, etc. Really small.

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