The Grand Opening of the Massapequa Dairy Queen drew a blizzard of customers.
A line snaked through the brand new restaurant and out the door, while cars circled the building to get through the drive-thru window when the ice cream chain opened for business at 10 a.m. Monday morning.
For some customers, it's been a long wait for their favorite frozen treats.
"I don't have to wait until I go on vacation," said Christine Gillen, of West Babylon, who was enjoying her banana cream pie blizzard in the store's dining area, that comes complete with and HDTV and artificial fireplace.
The opening was frantic and "a lot of fun," according to franchisee Laura Maier, who saw her dream of bringing a Dairy Queen to Long Island come to fruition. "We took a former Burger King and completely renovated it."
Maier said the renovation took a few months, but the process of bringing the chain to the area took about two years.
But it was a labor of love, she said.
"I grew up in New Jersey and I've always loved Dairy Queen," Maier said. "And I moved out here a number of years ago and I wondered why we didn't have any."
Maier said that Long Island used to have Dairy Queens many years ago, but they were essentially ice cream stands that sold a few other items.
"We have so many more options," she said of the store located at 5366 Sunrise Highway. "We have salads, we have the Orange Julius, we're also bringing that back, because that was here a long time ago."
Customers packed to store on the first day. "We have an amazing crew and we have corporate helping out," Maier said. "I couldn't be more happy."
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