HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — A stop at Frostop Drive-In in Cabell County for a cold root beer made on site has been a tradition for many people in Huntington for decades.
“We make it every day in our building,” said Marilyn McGinnis Murdock, Frostop co-owner, of the signature item on the menu at her family’s restaurant with the recognizable spinning root beer mug on its roof located along busy Hal Greer Boulevard.
An extra large batch of root beer was being prepared for Monday’s celebration day at Frostop marking the restaurant’s 60th anniversary.
Special events and giveaways were planned from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
“We’ve kept that tradition going,” said McGinnis Murdock of the milestone.
Murdock’s father, Rupert McGinnis, first opened Frostop Drive-In with her uncle, Bill Warnock, in 1959.
When Rupert McGinnis died in 1980, his widow, Marion McGinnis, bought out Warnock’s half of the business and began running Frostop herself.
After Marion McGinnis’ death in 1996, Marilyn McGinnis Murdock and her sister, Bing McGinnis Murphy, then took over the business.
“I was an educator. I taught school for over 20 years and my sister’s a nurse,” said McGinnis Murdock.
“As much as we did at the Drive-In when we were growing up was wash mugs and wipe off tables. We didn’t actually work hands on, but we were there a lot.”
Because of that, she said they’ve relied on Larry Turner, the manager at Frostop for nearly 35 years, and Ernie Smith, assistant manager, along with other family members and longtime employees who, in some cases, have been on the payroll for upwards of a decade.
“Our curb girls have been there for so long, when the car pulls in, they know what to put on the order pad because they’re regulars,” McGinnis Murdock said.
Along with the root beer, many of the other menu items at Frostop are made each day on the property.
“It would be easier (to buy such products), but would it be as good? Probably not,” McGinnis Murdock said.
Frostop started as a national chain that has since dissolved leaving a dozen or more distinct locations.
In Huntington, McGinnis Murdock told MetroNews the plan was to stay in operation far beyond 60 years.
“Hopefully, we’ll be able to keep it going, our children will be able to keep it going — one way or another — after we have decided we can’t do this any longer but, for now, we’re in good shape,” she said.
“We hope that Frostop will always be there.”