Peabody Friendly's Unveils its New Look, Menu Monday

Friendly's unveils its new look and menu in Peabody on Monday with Mayor Ted Bettencourt and company CEO John Maguire dishing up the first ice cream scoop of the day.

Maguire is leading Friendly's through a company-wide makeover that began this past spring that aims to revive the Friendly's brand by returning to both the look and menu selection during its prime.

Renovations and menu changes were slated first for locations in the 78-year-old company's hub in the Springfield area, but have quickly moved to the North Shore to include the Peabody location as well.

The restaurant at 250 Andover St. originally opened its doors in 1979 and is now one of the first locations to be part of the new initiative to "reposition the brand and bring it back to its roots by recreating the iconic Friendly’s dining and ice cream experience," according to a press release.

Friendly's patrons will now see new dishes on the menu, such as the Slinky Dog - a nine-inch all beef hotdog -- and some reinvigorated old classics, such as the Fishamajig, which is now made with haddock instead of pollock. A number of other changes were made to improve the quality of the food as well.

The celebration on Monday begins at 9:30 a.m. with free sundae cups to customers until 10:30 a.m. when the dignitaries are scheduled to arrive. Kids can get a free creation from a balloon artist or face-painter from 9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Friendly’s is also continuing its charitable efforts by donating $1 from every ice cream dessert sold through Aug. 18 to the Peabody chapter of the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Salem. Joanne Scott, the club's executive director, will be there for there for Monday's event.

And that's not all -- Happy Ending sundaes will be available for $1 through Aug. 25.