Arizona Drive-in Breaks Record for ‘Largest Display of Milkshake Varieties’
And the shakes weren’t even the sweetest thing about it.
Naomi Rahim/Getty
The small town of Seligman, Arizona — though for a time overlooked after Interstate 40 opened a few miles south in 1978 and prompted traffic to bypass it — has long had an important claim to fame: The kitschy outpost, which sits between the cities of Flagstaff and Kingman, has been designated the “Birthplace of Historic Route 66,” thanks to its residents' efforts to preserve the historic two-lane highway along which it is located.
Now, the charmingly retro town has a big new claim to fame as well: It is home to the ice cream shop that just broke the Guinness World Record for the “largest display of milkshake varieties.”
Delgadillo’s Snow Cap Drive-In, a family-owned restaurant and roadside attraction that opened in 1953, captured the record in Seligman on September 10, 2022, when it prepared 266 different milkshake flavors in just one hour and 35 minutes.
Of course the shakes reached well beyond your basic chocolate, vanilla and strawberry. Flavors included creative head scratchers such as “Oreo, Rice, Banana, Hot Dog,” “Orange, Bacon, Root Beer, Sweet Potato Fry” and “Hot Fudge, Onion Ring, Pineapple, Cheese,” just to name three.
Think those sound awful? Some of those who tried them beg to differ.
“My hot fudge, Oreo, bacon, hotdog shake was great!” one person who was apparently on hand for the record told doubters on Facebook.
“My pineapple sweet potato shake was different,” another attendee diplomatically shared.
Of course, not everyone was impressed. “Enjoyed the event.. glad we went.. but I will never have ketchup or French fries in my milk shake again,” wrote another bold shake sampler.
The roadside stop officially took aim at the varied-dairy record — which it snapped with support from Keep Route 66 Kickin’ and Mobil 1 — in order to “celebrate Route 66 and help ensure that it’s around to bring joy to drivers for all the many road trips to come,” according to its Instagram page.
Cecilia Alvarado, who co-owns Delgadillo’s Snow Cap with her brother, John Michael Delgadillo, said her goal in breaking the record was personal.
“My father built the Snow Cap in 1953,” Alvarado tells Food Network. She added that her parents, Juan and Mary Delgadillo, ran the business for decades. Juan, who was known for his sly sense of humor, passed away in 2004, followed by Mary, as well as Cecilia’s eldest brother, Bob, in 2007. “My brother and I, along with other family members, are trying to keep my father’s dream and legend alive.”
If there were a record for sweetest tribute to a parent’s memory, Cecilia and John might have just nailed that one, too.
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