This Arizona Drive-In Made 266 Different Varieties of Milkshakes to Break the World Record

Many food-related world records are impressive, but not necessarily practical. A seven-inch strawberry? Cool, but I'm pretty sure it still just tastes like a strawberry. Even with the world's largest Negroni, it's a fun idea, but you can only taste it once. But the Guinness World Record for the most varieties of milkshakes? Now that sounds like something worth making a detour for.

This past Saturday, September 10, Delgadillo's Snow Cap — a famed drive-in located along historic Route 66 in Seligman, Arizona, since 1953 — officially set the Guinness World Record for "Largest Display of Milkshakes Varieties" by whipping up 266 different milkshake flavors over the course of about 75 minutes.

According to Mike Marcotte, the Guinness World Records adjudicator for the event, it took about 20 or 30 employees working together to make it happen. Additionally, a chef was on site to assure that all 266 shakes were "of milkshake consistency and that all the ingredients that were submitted to us at Guinness World Records were actually in the milkshake," according to Marcotte.

Interestingly, Marcotte also explained that Snow Cap's record bested the previous record of 207 milkshakes set in 2019 by Gibson's Gourmet Burgers and Ribs in Cape Town, South Africa. However, Gibson's still has a record of its own — "Most Varieties of Milkshakes Commercially Available" — because all 207 of their milkshakes are actually on the menu at once and available for purchase.

As for Delgadillo's Snow Cap, their usual menu allows customers to choose a mix of 13 different flavors for their shakes. But to get to 266 different varieties, the drive-in had to start thinking outside of the box and take some risks. The result was a slew of nontraditional flavors including peanut butter and onion ring; coffee and mustard; coffee, salsa, banana, and chili; and Oreo, rice, orange, and fish burger. The shakes were then handed out for free to locals and tourists visiting historic Route 66 — which makes sense since I can't imagine anyone paying for an Oreo and fish burger milkshake.

The event was presented by Mobil 1 as part of their "Keep Route 66 Kickin" campaign. "To me, [the record is] not just about the Snow Cap," said Cecilia Alvarado, a member of the Delgadillo family. "It's about Seligman. It's about Route 66. It's about the people."