Betty’s Old Fashion:
A community staple remains standing for now
“TO STAY IN BUSINESS AS LONG AS I HAVE, YOU’VE GOT TO LOVE YOUR CUSTOMERS AND THEY’VE GOT TO LOVE ME.”
Awarm breeze flowed through the back door of Betty’s Old Fashion, trailing a Union County Live reporter who had arrived for an interview with owner/proprietor Betty Schaub.
Schaub and her niece, Susan Blanchard, greeted the reporter with an apology.
It was just past the lunch rush but the day had taken a “wild, crazy” turn, Blanchard explained.
“I tried to call you but you had already left. Things have been crazy around here today and I wanted to see if we could possibly schedule this for another time?” Blanchard asked breathlessly.
Schaub, 79, made similar statements but quickly changed her mind.
“Let’s go ahead and do it now,” she said firmly.
She then began leading the UCL reporter to a cluttered office/storage space in back of the dairy bar/hamburger stand at 1334 E. Hillsboro.
Taking her aunt’s cue, Blanchard rushed ahead to clear boxes of supplies from two office chairs and a desk, making room for the sit-down.
Schaub maneuvered her way through a maze of restaurant equipment, including freezers, sinks and countertops, some of which were adorned with freshly baked cakes and pies.
She walked with a steadiness and self-assuredness that she has used to operate for nearly seven decades.
It is a confidence upon which she has also relied in the face of an uncertain future for Betty’s Old Fashion.
Arkansas’s oldest dairy bar and an El Dorado institution will soon have to relocate or close permanently due to an upcoming project to improve and expand Hillsboro/U.S. 82-B.
Hillsboro Gateway plan
Plans for the Hillsboro/U.S. 82-B gateway improvement project have been in the works for more than 15 years and now, the Arkansas Department of Transportation is advancing toward the construction phase.
ARDoT and the city of El Dorado have been hammering out the details and costs of the project, which will cover Hillsboro all the way through El Dorado.
The master plan includes lane widening, two roundabouts — one at College Avenue and the other at West Avenue — and a new viaduct and Rock Island railroad bridge.
The project will affect multiple businesses
along the route. Some will either have to be set farther back from the street and others will have to relocate or close permanently.
Land acquisition is underway by a third-party contractor that was hired by the state.
Old Fashion will have to move from the location the dairy has held down since opening in the mid-1930s and Schaub is still in negotiations with the state to sell the property.
“We haven’t signed anything yet,” Schaub emphasized, explaining that a 90-day notice to vacate the premises may be issued once the paperwork is signed.
Last December, Schaub and Blanchard attended an informational meeting with community leaders, city and Union County officials and representatives from ARDoT and its land acquisition firm.
Some of the information that was shared was unclear and conflicting and many attendees have said they walked away not knowing much more about the highway project and its timeline than they did before they walked into the meeting.
Schaub said she is one those attendees.
In the months leading up to the meeting and in the months since, El Dorado City Council Member Willie McGhee has been leading the charge to ensure that Hillsboro property and business owners are duly informed about the project, understand the terms they are being asked to sign and receive adequate compensation and assistance to relocate.
Information about the project is becoming clearer.
For instance, Robert Edmonds, director of public works, said he is now working closely with an ARDoT contact to stay abreast of developments and the highway department recently agreed to cover the astronomical costs of relocating utilities along the route.
The city had been expected to pay for all or a large percentage of the costs.
Schaub thanked McGhee, state Rep. Matthew Shepherd (R-El Dorado) and the community for their support and assistance.
The anticipated construction date of the project has changed several times over the years. As of now, construction is expected to begin in the spring or summer of 2023.
‘They’ve been good to me’
Old Fashion opened in 1936 when Hillsboro was still a dirt road, Schaub said.
Schaub began working at Old Fashion in 1957. She was 19 then and she bought the business 10 years later.
Over the years, patrons have flocked to the corner business for
“WHENEVER PEOPLE WHO HAVE MOVED AWAY COME HOME, OR IF IT’S SOMEONE WHO HAS NEVER BEEN TO EL DORADO BEFORE, THEY SAY THEY HAVE TO STOP AT THREE PLACES: CHICK-A-DILLY, THE SPUDNUT SHOP AND ME.”
Betty Schaub
hamburgers, chili cheese dogs and fries, onion rings, chocolate-dipped cones, milkshakes, frosty Cokes (or Coke “frosties”, whichever you prefer), breakfast specials, cakes, pies and a host of other delectable treats.
Schaub has endeared herself and her business to the community, making Betty’s Old Fashion a destination for those near and far.
“Whenever people who have moved away come home, or if it’s someone who has never been to El Dorado before, they say they have to stop at three places: Chick-A-Dilly, the Spudnut Shop and me,” Schaub said with a laugh.
Betty’s is featured in Arkansas author and food historian Kat Robinson’s book “Arkansas Dairy Bars: Neat Eats and Cool Treats.”
In April, Betty’s gained nationwide recognition in a Good Morning America segment, “Rise and Shine: Exploring Arkansas” with GMA correspondent and anchor T.J. Holmes.
Holmes is a West Memphis native and graduate of the University of Arkansas flagship campus in Fayetteville.
Familiarity, a classic snack-bar taste and reasonable prices make up a small fraction of the appeal of Betty’s.
A small hamburger/cheeseburger is $3.35 and a large is $4.50.
“I make a good living and I’m not going to charge $8 for a hamburger. We sell a lot of slices of cake and we sell them for $2. We have a really good breakfast plate for $7,” Schaub.
Even though she has been chided by some for keeping prices low, Schaub said she has reasons for doing so and they are simple.
“I was brought up poor and I try to give back to my customers. They’ve been good to me,” she said.
Schaub is also known for giving out free food to customers, particularly children, who may not be able to pay at the moment.
She considers her customers as family and can greet many by name and with intimate details of their lives.
Schaub has also baked goods and brought flowers and other gifts to commemorate occasions, whether celebratory or somber, for customers.
She recalled a little girl who lived in the surrounding neighborhood and would often come to Betty’s Old Fashion to find respite from a rough home life with alcoholic parents.
“She recently graduated from college and not too long ago, she stopped by here and thanked me for helping her,” Schaub said. “Those are the things I will miss the most.”
Future
Schaub and Blanchard are in discussions about Blanchard taking over the business.
Blanchard, a 1987 El Dorado High School graduate, considers Schaub a second mother and has grown up working at Old Fashion.
She now manages many of the business’s affairs and is scouting out other locations.
If Old Fashion re-opens elsewhere in town under Blanchard’s ownership, Schaub said she will continue to help out, although she will be hanging up the 18-hour workdays she has maintained for decades, and taking time enjoy some of the spoils of semi-retirement with husband Durward, better known as “Buddy.”
Schaub recently agreed to cut the seven-daysa-week schedule to six days for Old Fashion. The restaurant is closed on Monday.
“We leave the house to come here at 3:30 in the morning and I work until 9 (p.m.),” Schaub said,
She and Buddy married the same year Schaub began working at Old Fashion. Buddy has been retired from Lion Oil (now Delek) for many years.
“My husband has been wanting me to quit for a long time. He fishes a lot, so I said I’d go fishing and sit in my chair and watch TV,” Schaub said with a laugh.
She is keeping her fingers crossed that Blanchard will be able to find a suitable location to keep Betty’s Old Fashion running for generations to come.
“To stay in business as long as I have, you’ve got to love your customers and they’ve got to love me,” Schaub said.
“There’s a lot of people who are upset that I have to move. I am too,” she continued. “That’s the bad thing about going out of business. My customers are like family. I’ve been blessed and want to give back to the community.”