Abbott's Frozen Custard in Lexington Has Officially Closed

Last summer, it was reported that the future of a location of a small chain of frozen custard shops whose roots are in upstate New York was in question, and now we have learned that it has indeed closed for good.

According to an article from the Lexington Observer, Abbott's Frozen Custard in Lexington Center has permanently shut down after being locked up and dark (but fully set up inside) for the past few months. In June of 2025, the Arlington Heights location of Abbott's closed down and at the time, it appeared that locations in Lexington Center and Arlington Center may have shuttered as well, with the Arlington Center outlet subsequently closing permanently while the future of the Lexington Center shop remained unknown. (The only location currently remaining in operation in the Greater Boston area is in Needham.)

Abbott's dates back to 1902 when founder Arthur Abbott started selling frozen custard at carnivals along the Eastern Seaboard, with the shop opening in Rochester in 1926.

The address for the now-closed Abbott's Frozen Custard in Lexington Center was 1853 Massachusetts Avenue, Lexington, MA, 02420. The website for the chain is at http://www.abbottscustard.com/

(Follow Marc on Bluesky at @marchurboston.bsky.social)

---

[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]

---

Please help keep Boston Restaurant Talk and Boston's Hidden Restaurants going by making a one-time contribution or via a monthly subscription. Thanks! (Donations are non-deductible.)

Abbott's Frozen Custard in Arlington Heights Has Closed

A Boston-area location of a small chain of frozen custard shops whose roots are in upstate New York has shut down.

According to a poster within The Arlington List Facebook group page, Abbott's Frozen Custard in Arlington Heights is no longer in business, mentioning that movers were taking freezers out of the Park Avenue shop (and a picture shows the moving van out front). A check on the website for the chain seems to confirm this, as the location has been removed from the site, and while locations in Arlington Center and Lexington remain on the site, posters say that the future of those shops appear to be in question as well. (The Needham location of Abbott's remains in operation.)

Abbott's dates back to 1902 when founder Arthur Abbott started selling frozen custard at carnivals along the Eastern Seaboard, with the shop opening in Rochester in 1926. 

The address for the now-closed Abbott's Frozen Custard in Arlington Heights was 71 Park Avenue, Arlington, MA, 02476. The website for the chain can be found at: http://www.abbottscustard.com/

(Follow Marc on Bluesky at @marchurboston.bsky.social)

---

[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]

---

Please help keep Boston Restaurant Talk and Boston's Hidden Restaurants going by making a one-time contribution or via a monthly subscription. Thanks! (Donations are non-deductible.)

Abbott's Frozen Custard Is Opening in Arlington Heights

A small chain of frozen custard shops that recently closed one of its Boston-area locations will be opening a new shop in the northwest suburbs--and it will be located about midway between two of its other three stores in the region.

A post within The Arlington List Facebook group page mentions (via a post from the chain) that Abbott's Frozen Custard is planning to open in Arlington Heights, with the post from the business saying "Hey there Arlington Heights...we are coming to you with our 2nd Arlington location! Stay tuned right here for all of the opening details." Once it opens, the new shop will join its other Arlington outlet (which is in Arlington Center) along with a store a few miles up the road in Lexington Center, and another in Needham.

A Brighton outlet of Abbott's--which is based in Rochester, NY--shut down last month.

The website for Abbott's Frozen Custard can be found at https://www.abbottscustard.com/

[September 28 update: A Facebook post from the place mentions that the Arlington Heights location of Abbot's is now open at 71 Park Avenue.]

by Marc Hurwitz (Also follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston)

---

[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]

---

Please help keep Boston Restaurant Talk and Boston's Hidden Restaurants going by making a one-time contribution or via a monthly subscription. Thanks! (Donations are non-deductible.)

Abbott's Frozen Custard in Brighton Is Closing for Good

A small chain of frozen custard shops whose roots are in upstate New York will be closing down one of their Boston-area locations.

According to a source (Victoria Kichuk), Abbott's Frozen Custard in Brighton Center is shutting its doors, with an Instagram post mentioning that "We will miss the Allston Brighton community, all of our amazing staff, our loyal customers, and all the children we have watched grow up over the years." The shop will remain open through Sunday, June 14, and it appears that other locations in the region--in Arlington, Lexington, and Needham--will remain in operation.

Abbott's dates back to 1902 when founder Arthur Abbott started to sell frozen custard at carnivals on the Eastern Seaboard, with the first Abbot's shop debuting in Rochester in 1926. (The Brighton location opened in 2011.)

The address for Abbott's Frozen Custard in Brighton Center is 360 Washington Street, Brighton, MA, 02135. The website for the chain is at https://www.abbottscustard.com/

by Marc Hurwitz (Also follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston)

---

[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]

---

Abbott's Frozen Custard Is Opening in Arlington Center

by Marc Hurwitz

A small chain of frozen custard shops whose roots are in upstate New York will be opening its fourth Boston-area location--and its second in the northwest suburbs.

According to a poster within the Support Arlington Center Facebook group page, Abbott's Frozen Custard is opening in Arlington Center, with the address indicating that it will move into the space in Broadway Plaza where the Artful Heart had been until moving around the corner to Medford Street a couple of years ago. (The locations page for the chain confirms this as well.) Once it opens, the new shop will join a nearby outlet in Lexington along with two others in Brighton and Needham.

Abbott's dates back to 1902 when founder Arthur Abbott started selling frozen custard at carnivals along the Eastern Seaboard, with the first Abbot's shop opening in Rochester in 1926. Approximately 40 locations can now be found in the eastern part of the country, with about half being located in the Rochester area.

The address for this new frozen custard shop in Arlington Center is: Abbott's, 311 Broadway, Arlington, MA, 02474. The website for the chain can be found at: http://www.abbottscustard.com/

[June 3 update: The Facebook page for the place indicates that Abbott's Frozen Custard is now open--and it actually opened its doors toward the end of April.]

Follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston

---

[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]

---

Abbott's Frozen Custard Is Opening in Lexington

by Marc Hurwitz

A small chain of frozen custard shops whose roots are in Upstate New York is opening its third Boston-area location

Eater Boston is reporting (via the Democrat & Chronicle) that Abbott's Frozen Custard is looking to open in Lexington, joining two other shops in Needham and Brighton. No address has been given as of yet, nor it is known when the store might open, so keep checking back for updates.

Abbott's dates all the way back to 1902 when founder Arthur Abbott started selling frozen custard at carnivals along the Eastern Seaboard, with the first Abbot's shop opening in Rochester in 1926. Approximately 40 locations of the chain can now be found along the East Coast, with about half being located in the Rochester area.

Another Rochester-based chain has recently expanded into the Boston area as well, with Wegmans now having several grocery stores in the region including in Burlington, Chestnut Hill, Medford, and Westwood.

The website for Abbott's Frozen Custard can be found at: http://www.abbottscustard.com/

[April 18 update: Eater Boston states that Abbott's Frozen Custard is now open in Lexington, with the address being 1853 Mass Ave. (the former Candy Castle space in the center of town).]

Follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston

---

[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]

---

Tweet

Abbott's Frozen Custard Opens in Brighton

A small chain of frozen custard shops with one location in the Boston area has just opened a second one, with this shop being in one of the city's neighborhoods.

A video posted on Facebook by The Phantom Gourmet indicates that Abbott's Frozen Custard is now open at the corner of Washington Street and Market Street in Brighton Center. The new shop joins another Boston-area location that is on Great Plain Avenue in Needham, as well as more than 40 other locations in New York (where it started out), Florida, and Colorado.

Abbott's Frozen Custard features cups and cones of their custard as well as cakes, pies, "novelties," banana splits, smoothies, milkshakes, sodas, and floats. The chain also gives customers the opportunity to build their own sundaes, choosing from custard flavors, toppings, and treats.

The address for this new frozen custard spot in Brighton is: Abbott's Frozen Custard, 360 Washington Street, Brighton, MA, 02135. The phone number is (617) 562-8600. And the website for the chain can be found at: http://www.abbottscustard.com/

Tweet This!