Missing the UConn Dairy Bar? Here’s the scoop: You’ll soon be able to start buying your favorite ice cream again, albeit under new conditions to reflect pandemic-related health and safety considerations.
The Dairy Bar, located at 17 Manter Road at UConn Storrs, will be serving up ice cream again starting Wednesday, June 24 in a process through which customers will place orders online in advance through the website, then go to the Dairy Bar and have the items delivered to their vehicles in the parking lot.
The building will not be open to the public, nor will there be outdoor seating provided in the area nearby for patrons. The ice cream will be provided pre-packaged in containers for customers to take elsewhere, just like with online grocery or takeout food orders.
Like other University services and facilities, the Dairy Bar closed in March in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. UConn Dining Services Executive Director C. Dennis Pierce says they have received many inquiries from people about when the Dairy Bar might reopen, and that providing the pickup service is an attempt to balance those requests with the need to ensure proper health and safety measures.
The curbside pickup service will be available Wednesday through Sunday, with the Dairy Bar closed Monday and Tuesday. Orders cannot be placed on site at the Dairy Bar, and must be made in advance through the website.
Ice cream will be available to order as a one-scoop or two-scoop serving in a cup, or by the pint and half gallon. Toppings will not be available, so sundaes and related items will not be offered.
All of the Dairy Bar’s usual ice cream flavors are expected to be available, although cheese and other products that otherwise could be purchased at the Dairy Bar will not be offered.
The process is expected to work like this:
– People will place their orders online and pay online using their credit or debit cards. This should be done at least two hours in advance of the anticipated pickup time to give Dairy Bar employees enough time to plan for the flow of orders.
– Online orders can be placed between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday for same-day pickup. Payment must be made at the time of the order, not upon pickup. Orders placed after 4:30 p.m. will not be prepared that day.
– Once the order is ready, the customer will receive a call from Dairy Bar staff (860 area code) letting them know it is ready. Customers are asked to wait for that phone call or voicemail before coming to the Dairy Bar.
– Curbside pickup will be available from noon to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. However, the Dairy Bar will be closed July 3 to 7, and on Mondays and Tuesdays.
– Customers are welcome to place an order on a particular day for pickup on a different day, as long as that pickup day is during the Wednesday through Sunday timeframe in which the Dairy Bar is open.
– When patrons arrive to pick up their items, they will park in any of the numbered spaces outside of the Dairy Bar. Then, they will call the phone number they were provided during the order (860-486-1021) to inform the employees of their space number and vehicle description.
– An employee will then deliver the order to the driver’s side of the vehicle, where the driver must be wearing a mask. People will be directed not to leave their vehicles, and to depart once they have their order so others can park and pick up theirs as well.
– People who have issues or questions during the ordering process can email the staff at dairybar@uconn.edu, which will be monitored during the Dairy Bar’s hours of operation. However, orders cannot be placed that way, nor will payment be accepted by email.
