To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Blizzard, Dairy Queen will introduce four new flavors between now and July. First up in April is the Ooey Gooey Caramel Brownie Blizzard, with chunks of chewy brownie, chocolate drops and creamy caramel.

LAHAINA — The year was 1985. The Brothers Cazimero’s “Island in Your Eyes” won the Na Hoku Hanohano Award for best album, “Magnum PI” was one of the nation’s top-rated television shows, and the Blizzard frozen treat made its debut.

Blizzards quickly became the number one seller at Dairy Queen, outpacing sundaes, Dilly Bars, banana splits and those memorable soft serve cones covered in a chocolate shell.

This month marks the 25th birthday of the Blizzard and the 70th anniversary of the Dairy Queen brand. From April 19-25, all Dairy Queen/Orange Julius locations in

Hawaii will celebrate Customer Appreciation Week, when fans can buy one Blizzard and get a second for 25 cents.

Dairy Queen has long been a part of growing up on Maui. Many fond memories of growing up in Lahaina include hot summer afternoons spent at the local Dairy Queen after a day at the beach.

Hawaii’s first location opened in 1949 on Li‘iha Street on Oahu, owned and operated by Sunny Thom and his family.

The tradition of local family ownership carries on today with Patrick Mehring and family, owners of the Orange Julius/Dairy Queen location at Lahaina Cannery Mall.

“We look forward to seeing our loyal customers and meeting new ones during Customer Appreciation Week,” said Mehring.

“This is our most popular promotion of the year because everyone just loves Blizzards. With a second Blizzard for just 25 cents, this is one luxury everyone can afford.”

Blizzards combine blended soft serve, cookies, candy, fruit or other ingredients to create a frozen dessert in a category all its own. 

The soft serve used by Dairy Queens in Hawaii is supplied by Meadow Gold Dairies. It is technically not ice cream, which typically has 10 percent or more butterfat. DQ soft serve is low-fat ice cream with about 5 percent butterfat.

West Maui’s Dairy Queen/Orange Julius in Lahaina Cannery Mall is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. For information, call 662-0645.