Friendly's plans ice-cream freebie for tomorrow

Friendly's Restaurants, which has evolved into a local ice cream tradition since its start in 1934, said it will mark the coming of summer by offering customers a free ice cream cone or an ice cream dish between noon and 5 p.m. tomorrow.

Customers at all of its roughly 505 restaurants can request any flavor of ice cream, said Friendly's, which is debuting two new ones - Reese's Peanut Butter Cup and Mud Pie Crush. No purchase is necessary, a Friendly's spokeswoman added.

With gas prices soaring, Friendly's felt that locals needed some bucking up, and it thinks that handing out free ice cream just might do the trick, Friendly's suggested in a press release.

Friendly's, a chain of family restaurants known for sandwiches, ice cream, and its kids' menu, is operated by Friendly Ice Cream Corp. of Wilbraham.

Last year, the company agreed to be sold for $337.2 million to a division of Sun Capital Partners Inc., a Florida private equity firm with a history of investing in restaurant and food companies.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)