BY LAURYN BECKER
An online post by Dallas Haselhorst earlier this month announced that Downtown Hays would be getting an exciting addition in August: a Cold Stone Creamery.
Cold Stone Creamery, an ice cream parlor formed in 1988, is widely known for its unique ice cream and sweet treats formed on a granite stone. With locations in Wichita, Dodge City, Topeka and several others in Eastern Kansas, it only seemed right for Haselhorst to bring the franchise to Hays.
“Cold Stone is a franchise, so technically, we chose them – although they still had to approve the site as well as us as owners. We purchased the building in downtown Hays in August 2021,” Haselhorst said. “Cold Stone was a concept my wife and I immediately thought of beyond the two businesses we originally purchased the building for – TreeTop Security and STEM Harvest.”
The founder of both STEM Harvest and Treetop Security, Haselhorst is the owner of the Hays Coldstone location. He said he and his wife enjoy Cold Stone so much, and it was time to add the famous ice cream parlor to the Hays area. He said there are plenty of sweet treats from Cold Stone that they and the community will love.
“I’m a fan of the Coffee Lovers Only while my wife loves the Birthday Cake Remix. We’ve both tried a lot of things and while they are all great, those remain our favorites,” he said.
A Facebook post by Haselhorst announcing the store’s arrival accumulated over 300 likes, almost 150 comments, and over 500 shares. One could say that the announcement has the Hays and surrounding areas ecstatic for opening day.
Haselhorst stated in the post that Cold Stone will be opening on the Bricks in late summer, and when asked about the opening date, he said they are aiming for the middle of August.
“We don’t have an exact opening date due to potential construction and equipment delays,” Haselhorst stated. “However, we are estimating the third week of August.”
For ice cream lovers everywhere who may not have ever tasted Cold Stone before, Haselhorst said customers can expect “the best ice cream of your life.”
“Seriously though, our family loves ice cream and Cold Stone remains our favorite,” Haselhorst said.
Haselhorst said a great way for customers to get access to the menu, order ahead, and even earn rewards is through the Cold Stone app, and encouraged future Hays customers to download the app.
“I would highly recommend customers get the app if they plan on ordering in advance or they don’t want to wait,” he said. “We have a walk-up order and pick-up window almost exclusively for this reason. That said, you can most certainly still order inside and enjoy your treat there or have a seat at some of our yet-to-be-installed outdoor seating.”
More information on Cold Stone and updates on the opening day can be found at https://www.coldstonecreamery.com/stores/24036.