Goodnoe's Newtown, Pa. Closes This Weekend

After 50 years, the Goodnoe Family Restaurant in Newtown, Bucks County, Pa. closes for good on Monday, Labor Day. They announced the closing early this summer and have had a "last fling" all summer with a 'retro' menu (unfortunately with inflated prices from their last menu) but it's hard to resist a last chance to dine there and stock up on their homemade ice cream. The clerk in the take-out shop said they have been running out of certain flavors; not sure what's left for the final weekend. Goodnoe's has been the gathering place in Newtown for years, but was having trouble competing with the franchise restaurants and growing suburban sprawl.

Goodnoe's reminds me a little of another Roadfood landmark, Cole Farms in Gray, Maine (except no American Chop Suey on the menu!).

The Goodnoe family will keep the name and ice cream recipes should someone in the family in the future want to use it - right now, no one in the family was interested in keeping it going, and the current owner "Skip" Goodnoe has decided to retire.

So long, Goodnoe's - the people of suburban Philadelphia will miss their ice cream!

I've enjoyed Goodnoe's ice cream and am saddened by their closing. It's another testament to the power of chains.

I'm very sad Goodnoe's is closing, too! A couple of weeks ago, Mr.D-L and I went there for lunch, our final meal, and were pretty shocked at the high prices. We were sorry to see the pie case gone where they had lemon meringue pies with meringue a foot tall, it seemed! Service was kind of slow but we overheard waitresses saying they had been working double shifts since many workers had already left, and they kept running out of things-- even Ranch dressing! For dessert, I got a Turtle Sundae from take-out and ate it out on a curb under the shade of a tree (hot buttercotch and hot fudge toppings over butter crunch ice cream, topped with lots of salted cashews-- I had them hold the whipped cream and am glad I did. I felt slightly ill after that indulgence and didn't eat again until the next day...). I bought myself a refrigerator magnet to remember them by and looked around well to etch the memories of Goodnoe's on my mind since I think I read it will be torn down to make way for more retail shops.

I can still remember going there one Saturday night probably at least 40 years ago. My Aunt and Uncle brought me to Goodnoe's for the first time and I had a butter crunch ice cream cone with a scoop of ice cream bigger than I'd ever been served-- it was soooooo good (and the reason I ordered that flavor ice cream with my Turtle Sundae). I also remember sitting outside Goodnoe's with Mr.D-L years ago and licking my ice cream cone while watching a hot air balloon land in the cornfield across from the building as the sun was beginning to set. The cornfield has long been gone, replaced by many retail stores and businesses.

My favorite memory though is of meeting my fellow nursing school friend there after we'd completed a semester at different schools back in the early '90's. We wouldn't talk during the semesters since we were so busy, so Goodnoe's is where we'd meet and talk-- a LOT. One time, we went for breakfast, stayed for lunch, and then spent another hour chatting in their lobby on their wooden benches. This wonderful friend died of ovarian cancer in '94 (she'd have been a fantastic nurse) and that memory of our loooooooong Goodnoe's meal always makes me smile.