Similarly up in the air are the exact

details of how Eddie’s plans to cele-

brate their 75th anniversary. While the
weekend is set, Christy said it’s largely
“still in the works.” Some ideas include
having a band, doing an appreciation
for past employees and vendors, and
some giveaways.
In the meanwhile, Tim and Christy
are happy to continue running Eddie’s.
Growing up, Tim has fond memories of
his parents at the stand, and it always
amazed him to see how big of a deal
visiting Eddie’s was for some people.
“Pretty much that was all I knew
growing up was hanging out here,” he
said.
For someone who has been involved
in hotdogs for most of his life, one
might expect Tim to have a hard time
picking a favorite. To the contrary, Tim
was quick to give his opinion when
asked.
“Sauce and kraut,” he said.

HANK’S FROZEN
CUSTARD: 70 years
The secret that separates Hank’s
Frozen Custard from other ice cream
stands is 70 years old.
It’s the four original Electro Freeze
machines bought in 1952 and still are SHANNON ROAE/MEADVILLE TRIBUNE
used to make the frozen custard.
The machines were purchased in
1952 by Ernie Hild and have been in Ryan Hild shows one of the Electro Freeze machines at Hank’s Frozen Custard.
service since the stand opened June 4, The machines were bought in 1952 and still are used to make the frozen custard.
1952. The Hild family believes the ma-
chines were built sometime between
1947 to 1950.
The combination of quality ingre-
dients and an old-fashioned machine
results in each one producing a thick
and smooth tube of sweet, creamy
frozen custard.
The steel cylinders cool and spin mix
with three metal blades inside each
machine scraping away the custard as it
freezes. The frozen custard comes out

together
in a long, creamy tube before sliding
down a stainless steel ramp chute and
into a stainless steel bucket — and
ready for scooping.
“It takes some effort to keep the ma-
chines running,” said Ryan Hild, Ernie’s
grandson and now Hank’s third-gener-
ation owner.
The machines are gravity fed, so
there’s no air pressure, which is what
makes it so creamy, according to Hild.
“The actual mechanical aspect of
how it’s made is what makes it unique,”
he said. “It has not changed.”
There’s always someone watching
the machines to make sure they’re Accounting | Assurance | Tax | Valuation
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Each machine has three internal
blades, which pull custard off the inside
of the frozen barrel. Blades have to be
checked to make sure they’re scraping
the wall properly — too much blade
and the machine may lock up while too
little blade means nothing is scraped
15942 CONNEAUT LAKE ROAD | MEADVILLE, PA 16335 | (814) 336-1512
off.
hbkcpa.com

2022 Foundations 56 pages.indd 21 6/9/22 4:31 PM