The storefront of the 1950’s-style ice cream and candy store at 1170 Broadway in Burlingame.
The Burlingame ice cream parlor Preston’s, located in the Broadway business district, is fundraising to turn its iconic neon sign back on.
The business has been situated on Broadway for 80 years and become a local institution, owner Javier Santiago, who took over the operation three years ago, said. But the neon signs overhanging the business and hawking ice cream and candies have been turned off for nearly 14 years.
Turning those lights back on has been a hope of Santiago’s since he took ownership of Preston’s. Via GoFundMe, he’s now raised over $1,000 of his $15,000 goal.
“It’s mostly for the community. When you get off of the freeway, you can see the big sign only in the day. In the dark, you can’t see anything,” he said. “When people get out back home in this area, they can see the sign — we’re back home.”
Santiago was prepared to fund the sign restoration himself this year, but leaking gasoline at an adjacent gas station forced power outages along Broadway in January. The subsequent road closures and lack of power caused Preston’s to lose product and customers, and money he was planning to spend on the sign went to paying the bills instead.
Now, he’s turning to the community for help. Though he hasn’t reached his goal yet, he’s hopeful more patrons will participate in the campaign.
“We are still very behind, but I think we will get it,” Santiago said.
Preston’s is well-known for its wide array of ice cream and sweets, including chocolates. Santiago himself was in the chocolate business for 25 years before he started at Preston’s, and now produces chocolate wholesale on site.
Some customers have been coming to the ice cream parlor for 75 or 80 years, Santiago said, and he respected that tradition by not changing much about the business.
“I know a lot of people love Preston’s, that’s why it’s hard to change. I respect the community in this area,” he said. “I don’t want to take over something that has an attachment to these people.”
For some customers, Preston’s was their first ever ice cream. Now, they bring children and grandchildren in for a taste of nostalgia.
“For the past three years, I see customers, they have been coming in for the same flavor, same time, they sit in the same chair,” Santiago said. “It’s like routine.”
Having the neon lights once again glow at night will honor the history of the business and remind locals just where they’re coming home to, he said.
“This place feels like home,” Santiago said. “This is something that has been an attachment for people through different generations.”
The link to the GoFundMe can be found here: gofundme.com/f/light-up-broadway-restore-prestons-sign.
(650) 344-5200 ext. 105
Daily Journal staff
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Thanks for this great column which gives me, and I hope others, some inspiration to think about how we spend our most precious gift, time!
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