Hot days! Come cool off with a treat,” reads the sign outside Karin’s Kustard and Hamburgers, and anything to help beat the heat is hard to pass up during these scorching summer days.

Karin Poling, owner of this quaint roadside restaurant that will be 3 years old Aug. 19, says that summer is her busiest time of year, but a lot of people don’t like to sit outside at the picnic tables when it’s so hot out. “Right now nighttime’s been when my picnic tables are jam-packed [with customers],” she says.

Karin’s offers up ice cream and other chilly snacks in the name of summer, though, no matter what time of year it is, the ice cream is the backbone of this business. And it isn’t just ordinary ice cream that’s served up at Karin’s, but Kustard, with a “K”. So the name, Karin’s Kustard, isn’t just a play on words.

“Real custard?with a c?is boiled and cooked with eggs,” says Poling. “The k kustard, like ours, is made with buttermilk, so it’s less on fat and calories.”

The restaurant has six flavors total of the kustard, four being chocolate, strawberry, vanilla and lemon?the other two flavors are combinations of the four, what Karin’s calls “twisted,” with chocolate-vanilla and strawberry-lemon. The twisted chocolate-vanilla, with its rich, creamy goodness, definitely doesn’t taste like it’s lighter in fat and calories.

Any of these flavors of ice cream can also be dipped in chocolate, butterscotch or cherry coating for an extra sweet treat, or instead you can add oodles of toppings to make a sundae. Karin’s also has traditional choices like strawberry shortcake or banana splits, but the restaurant has other unique desserts. One, called the Brownie Treat, has ice cream piled with three brownies and topped with hot fudge and whipped cream. Another, called a Drumstick in a Bowl, has ice cream with your choice of chocolate, cherry or butterscotch dip, with nuts and whipped cream added atop.

However, ice cream isn’t the only item the restaurant is known for; it has a wide range of sandwiches and sides to choose from, from a regular hamburger to a triple cheeseburger or a whopping Intimidator that is a humongous five-patty burger. I opted for the somewhat lighter, double cheeseburger that Karin’s husband, Brad, recommended. Having grown up on them, he knew he wanted them on the restaurant’s menu, and I’m glad I listened because my double cheeseburger with all the fixins was the best burger I’ve had in a while, and I’m a picky burger eater. But this one is so fresh and juicy that, despite its size, I almost ate the whole thing. In addition to burgers, you have your choice of pork tenderloin, chicken, fish, BLT or grilled cheese sandwiches among many other meals. All this goes perfectly with their sides of french fries, mushrooms, cheese fries and tater tots?and the onion rings are some of the tastiest around with thick onions covered by a thick, fried breading. Though there are many hamburger and ice cream joints around, Karin’s Kustard is a place with an interesting history. Poling once worked at a restaurant much like this one in Illinois, but came down to Tennessee to open Karin’s Kustard in 2004.

“In Illinois, there’s six of these [restaurants] and they’re called Krekel’s Kustard,” she said. “I worked for that gentleman [Bill Krekel] for 22 years. I worked from 15 years old and it was the first job I had ever known; I learned everything there.” So when Krekel died and his family started arguing over business issues, despite the many doubtful fellow employees, Poling decided to move away and start her own restaurant.

“Something just clicked and I put everything I had up for sale and charged up every charge card I had and came down here,” Poling explained. “Three years later, [the restaurant’s] almost paid for; so, so far so good.”

She literally left Illinois to come to Tennessee 10 days before the store opened by packing up everything, along with her daughter, in a U-Haul. Some of Karin’s inspiration comes from the fact that her former boss, who started out at Steak ’n Shake with an eight-grade education, stood behind the grill with his spatula until he passed at age 94. So now, with her husband’s family living in LaVergne and her business doing well, she’s happy she made the move.

Karin’s Kustard has more than fresh food made to order, the service is also unbeatable and it keeps people coming back. “We have a lot of repeat customers that when they pull up in the drive through, we’re like, ?OK that one gets a pineapple shake’ or ?they get two frozen cokes,’” Poling said. “I get to know my customers and my [employees] do to.”

So take a drive out to Smyrna before summer is over for some kustard and if the food doesn’t bring you back the good company will.

THE DISH

Summer hours: Mon. – Sat., 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sun. from 12 – 8:30 p.m. (Summer hours end Oct. 31)