By Jaci Schneider, Staff Writer

Cajun Cones: for some people the mere mention of the treat brings to mind warm, sunny days and the impending summer break. Every spring, at the end of March or beginning of April, Cajun Cones comes back to Abilene, and this year is no exception.

Cajun Cones was started in 1988 by associate professor of exercise science Dr. Lynn Luttrell and his father. Lutrell said he remembers eating snow cones with his dad when he was a kid in south Louisiana.

“I’ve enjoyed them all my life,” he said.

Luttrell brought Cajun Cones to Abilene after he attended graduate school in Oregon in the mid 1980s, a time when Tropical Snow shaved ice was the craze. When he came back to Abilene, he decided to go into business with his father, he said. They opened their first Cajun Cones stand on Judge Ely Boulevard, where it still serves snow cones for six months every year.

The Judge Ely stand gets most of its business from college students, said Jonathan Jergens, a senior at Abilene High School and Cajun Cones employee. He said in the summer after the college students are gone, buses of up to 50 campers from ACU summer camps come buy Cajun Cones.

Two other Cajun Cones stands operate in Abilene: one on Mockingbird Lane and one on the corner of South 14th Street and Sayles Boulevard. Both stands get most of their business from neighborhood families, Luttrell said.

Cajun Cones makes all its own flavors with extracts from the New Orleans area. He said the product is good tasting with good quality.

“We try to err on the side of more,” he said. “Bigger cones and more syrup.”

Their more-is-better principle seems to be working; students almost always have to wait in line before buying a Cajun Cone.

Luttrell said much of Cajun Cones’ success is due to the stand only being open for six months. He said customers anticipate the stand’s opening with excitement; it’s like having a grand opening every year.