About Dari-Licious ®
In 1942, a young lad only 17 years old answered the call and joined the army. While serving his country, he often dreamed of someday having a family and opening a little place where he could serve ice cream and sandwiches.
After returning to the United States, he married his childhood sweetheart and their
"life journey" began. Almost 20 years, 5 children, and a well-established and successful construction business later, Bill and Bobbie Rusk purchased a tiny plot of ground at
1114 East Main Street in Crawfordsville, Indiana and built the Dari-Licious. The Dari-Licious was the first establishment in Montgomery County to offer drive-thru service.
After the Rusks retired in 1983, Frank and DeeDee (Rusk) Rose became the owners/operators. During the fall of 1984, a new and larger building replaced the original dwelling. Frank – also a successful entrepreneur, had a vision of not just having a corner lot, but an entire block with a park where families could laugh and play together. In 1988, the Rose's purchased all 5 houses to the west of the Dari-Licious building. With the help of a small crew of able-bodied men, he destructed the entire block leaving only a few small trees for shade. After adding playground equipment, adult swings and picnic tables, the Rose's decided they would name the new area "Turtle Park", the "Place for Family Fun".
As fate would have it, a young man attending college with his own dream of owning a restaurant someday fell in love with and married the Rose's daughter in 2006. Andy and Joani Stetler joined the family business in 2007, and their faces are the ones most often seen by current customers. Since then, Andy has added several menu items including his own creative recipe in 2008 which he named the "Tropical Fruit Freeze", a favorite menu item especially during the hot summer months.
The fourth generation of the Dari-Licious family is also represented as Austin Frederick is now actively employed in the family business. Even though his plans are to go into the ministry in the future, he has embraced the work ethic passed down through the ages.
What began during WWII as a dream has now become Montgomery County's most favorite and most nostalgic restaurant which is open 7 days a week from early February until the Sunday before Thanksgiving – closing only on Easter Sunday in honor of
Jesus, our Lord and Savior.