Your guide to B&G this year: Opening dates, bigger Avalanche, new store ahead
March 4, 2020
Opening on the first Wednesday in March seems like a smart idea this year for B&G Milkyway.
The owner of the franchise at 69th and Louise opens that day no matter what the weather is like. Last year, there was no sign of spring. But now, with temperatures expected in the mid-50s today and a warm weekend ahead, customers likely will be ready for their first soft-serve ice cream cones of the season.
The B&Gs on East 41st Street and on Sycamore Avenue south of 10th Street also are open, serving up popular Avalanches, footlong chili dogs and more. Other locations in Sioux Falls, Tea and Brandon will be ready later this month.
Franchise owners hoped to open a new B&G in Harrisburg early this summer, but they’ve run into delays.
“We really wanted to open by June 1, but we’re having trouble getting numbers back from contractors,” co-owner Kasey Iverson said. “We’re still planning on opening at some point, but it’s looking like the later part of summer.”
Iverson and his brother, Travis, also own the shops on Sycamore and in Brandon. The Harrisburg B&G will be on the west side of Cliff Avenue, not far from where Sanford Health and Lewis Drug will be located.
“I’m excited to get moving (on construction),” Iverson said. “Myself, I live in Harrisburg, and that’s not too far from my house, and it will be easy to stop in.”
The B&G in Brandon will open in a week or two, Iverson said. “We get focused on one, get it up and running, and then jump over to the other one.”
Here are the opening dates for the other locations.
- West 41st Street: Week of March 9.
- Tea: March 11.
- West 12th Street: First week of April.
The only menu addition this year is a bigger Avalanche. A 32-ounce large will join the 12-ounce and 20-ounce options, said Bruce Bettmeng, who owns the ice cream franchise with his wife, Pam. They own the shops on 12th Street and West 41st and sold the first franchise in 2001.
“We thought we had enough people asking for it,” Bettmeng said. “It’s something you can’t get anywhere else, something that big.”
