I know a place where the onion rings are still dipped and breaded by hand daily. Where the pickles were always the best (trust me, I sampled plenty). And where, if you come in often enough, the people behind the counter start to feel like family. In my case, they actually are.
That place is Hickey’s Dairy Queen in Mineral Wells, Texas.
When I was growing up in Louisiana, visiting Mineral Wells meant one thing: going to “work” with my Aunt Carolyn and Uncle Charles Hickey at the DQ. I’m not sure how much real work I did. But I’ll never forget the day my aunt taught me how to make a cone with the curl on top. I thought I was all grown up.
This Dairy Queen has been in the Hickey family for five generations and is one of the oldest Dairy Queens in Texas. In January 2025, the family tore down the original tiny building and rebuilt from the ground up, so today it’s both the newest and one of the oldest Dairy Queens in town.
The building is fresh and pretty, but what matters didn’t change. Everything is still made to order, the Blizzard menu has more flavors than I’ve seen anywhere, and the onion rings still have a secret ingredient. Don’t ask, I’m not telling.
In August 2025, our family and this whole town lost my cousin Sam Hickey, who ran the DQ with his wife Shelly. Sam treated every customer like family and every kid who worked there like one of his own.
Shelly and their kids are carrying it on now, and Sam’s grandson has started working there too, making him the fifth generation behind the counter. Some days are harder than others, but every day they’re leaning on what Sam and the generations before him taught them. You can feel it the minute you walk in.
That’s what keeps people coming back. Yes, the rings are that good. But it’s the family atmosphere, the feeling of being known, that turns a quick stop into a tradition.
So next time you’re in Mineral Wells, stop by. Order the onion rings, pick up a Blizzard flavor you’ve never tried, and tell them Bridgett sent you.
I KNOW A PLACE
Hickey’s Dairy Queen
1001 North Oak Avenue
Mineral Wells, Texas 76067