Ball Brothers Drugstore

The throwback soda fountain in family-owned Ball Brothers Drugstore could double as Fonzie's hangout in the vintage "Happy Days" television series. For more than 50 years, customers seated on red leather stools have spooned into heaping chocolate sundaes and slurped thick chocolate milkshakes, $3. Seasoned waitresses wearing peppermint striped aprons serve thick-as-wet-cement ice cream drinks on whirring malt machines and fry up burgers, chicken strips and battered tenderloins ($3 for a hotdog and up to $8 for a full-plate meal). Locals love Ball Brothers Drugstore not just for its good food but also its gifts, garden decorations, small-home decor and housewares in the downstairs shop. Popular with betrothed Atchisonians for wedding gift registries, Ball Brothers is in the downtown outdoor mall shopping district.