Decades-old car hop changes hands

You are currently viewing Decades-old car hop changes hands

By Krystle S. Morey

 

Betty Scarlotta sat on a barstool at Scarlotta’s Car Hop Monday afternoon, sipping from the striped straw that protruded out of a printed paper cup.

“I am glad it’s going to stay,” Scarlotta, 84, said with a smile.

Scarlotta’s in 1980

Scarlotta recently learned that the business she and her family operated for decades was being sold to another local family who was going to preserve its history and legacy as a car hop.

Dan and Amy Nelson sold the car hop to Andy and Suzanne McEachron last Friday, July 20.

The Nelsons wanted to sell the place to free up their summers for traveling. In recent months, they considered selling the business to a larger company.

“We talked to Cumberland Farms, Stewart’s and O’Reilley’s… but it’s one of those things where I think it’s much nicer for the community to have it stay the same type of establishment,” Amy Nelson said.

“It’s like somebody adopting your child … you’re wondering, ‘is it going to be okay,’” she said, noting she’ll miss making ice cream cones.

Scarlotta echoed: “I wouldn’t like it and I don’t think the town would like it.”

“There aren’t too many car hops around anymore, you know,” Scarlotta said.

Scarlotta said she remembers the school kids would come over during lunch.

“I don’t know how many grinders he sold, but it was a lot,” Scarlotta said.

Loyal customers from New York, Vermont and beyond have kept the car hop running, Scarlotta said.

“We have a lot of good customers. There are some who have been coming here for years,” she said, noting her favorite part of the business was meeting and talking to people.

The Nelsons agreed.

 

This is only a preview of the story published in the Whitehall Times. To read the full story, pick up a print copy of this week’s paper at the newsstand or read it online here.

 

This is only a preview of the story published in the Granville Sentinel. To read the full story, pick up a print copy of this week’s paper at the newsstand or read it online here.