A Community Staple, Al's Dairy Freeze

When a customer walks through the doors of Al’s Tastee Freeze, their nose is filled with the smell of food wafting from the kitchen. Warmth and laughter brings them comfort on the cold winter nights.

Al’s has been owned and operated by Alan Bouchard for the last 33 years. Bouchard did not open the store himself, he took it over, and in those 33 years, Bouchard has grown as a business man and took every mistake as a chance to grow.

The store is open year round, meaning customers can enjoy pizza and ice cream along with all the other amazing items his large variety menu has to offer. There is something for everyone: from a family sharing stories over a pizza, to the kids argue over who gets the rest of the poutine, to the man who just got done work who comes to pick up his philly grinder. Bouchard says his favourite thing on the menu is pizza, but is that his worker’s favourite thing to make? Leah Soucy, an employee at Al’s for four years now, says, “My favourite thing to make on our menu is by far stir fry and salads.” 

When asked what he has done to stay successful over the years, Bouchard shares that a big part of his success is his appeal to customers. There's nothing he would do differently. “Can’t do more than what I do now,” Bouchard says with a smile. Al’s has amazing customer service. They tend to the customer’s needs and fix any mistakes with efficiency and honesty. Bouchard teaches all his employees how to handle each customer as an individual person.

Abby Jayme, has been an employee at Al’s for two years. She explains, “Al has spent a lot of time teaching and learning new things and gives all of us advice and life lessons that we will never forget.”  Coworker Sawyer Daigle says, “Staying calm and trusting yourself under pressure is something that helps me in the kitchen when we are overwhelmed with the amount of orders we have to put out.” Along with all the lessons and skills the workers learn from Bouchard, there are also other factors that make working at Al’s even better; Jayme shares that one of those is friendship. “Most of us girls are around the same age, and we have made friendships that will last forever.” 

In the summertime, customers will find the ice cream part of the store, often referred to as “The Porch,” is always full. Hot summer nights in mid-July always seem to bring a crowd running to Al’s for the large variety of ice cream.  Whether it's little kids with their cotton candy ice cream, or older couples enjoying a butterscotch sundae together, the customers always bring a smile to the workers’ faces. 

In the winter, customers will notice the ice cream side of the store (although it is open) may not be as busy, but people still enjoy going to eat at Al’s all year long. During the winter hours, they even have hot soup to offer customers every week, varying in flavor. From tomato rice, to broccoli cheddar, to introducing chicken noodle, there is a soup for everyone! It sure makes customers feel warm on a cold winter day. 

Be sure to come check out Al’s at 16 Hall St, Fort Kent, Maine 04743, for an amazing experience.