Newport Creamery
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The Newport Creamery has a rich history. The company's roots date back to 1928 when Samuel Rector, who was already in the milk business, took over a dairy on Van Zandt Avenue in Newport, Rhode Island and became a wholesale milk distributor. Four years later, in 1932, Mason Rector (Samuel's son) joined the business. In this year, the Company also entered the retail business when it began to deliver milk house-to-house on Acquidneck Island. The business grew and prospered as the Company focused on providing quality service to its customers.
In 1940, the Rectors opened what was described as a "Milk Bar", serving ice cream. The location of this "Milk Bar" is the exact location of the Company's flagship restaurant and plant - 208 West Main Road in Middletown, Rhode Island. With the opening of this first store, the Newport Creamery's ice cream business was now beginning.
Due to the war years and rationing, the Rectors were not in a position to grow the business until the late 1940s. In 1948, the Company opened its second restaurant in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. The Company's third restaurant, which featured, for the first time, a broader menu offering food, was opened in 1953 in Providence.
Under the leadership of Mason Rector and his son Peter Rector, the Company expanded to 33 restaurants throughout Rhode Island and surrounding areas including parts of Massachusetts and Connecticut.
Eventually, the Rectors sold the Newport Creamery's restaurant and operations. After a few tough years for the Company, the entire company was sold at auction after the previous owners filed bankruptcy.
The Jan Companies purchased the Company in December 2001, and have owned and operated it since. There are currently 12 locations (10 in Rhode Island and 2 in Massachusetts).
Throughout 80 years, Newport Creamery has been a part of the Southern New England landscape, continually focusing its attention towards providing quality food and service at a reasonable price.
While best known for their ice cream, Newport Creamery restaurants offer a variety of lunch and dinner items, such as burgers, sandwiches, seafood, and ice cream-based beverages, including the infamous "Awful Awful."("Awful Big, Awful Good")[1].
