A Helena institution is celebrating its 100th birthday on Thursday in a very tasty fashion.
The Parrot Confectionery is located on the Walking Mall at 42 N. Last Chance Gulch.
The Parrot Confectionery is ringing in its first century with free handmade soda fountain drinks, kicking off a celebration that will run through the summer, its owner, Jonny Plichta, said.
Owner Jonny Plichta stands by the soda fountain at The Parrot Confectionery in Helena.
“We are turning 100. It says a lot for something to be around this long and make through the Depression and the economy’s ups and downs,” he said. “It shows people appreciate the business.”
The shop, known for its handmade chocolates, sodas and chili, is a staple along the Walking Mall at 42 N. Last Chance Gulch.
It opened as a candy store in downtown Helena in 1922. According to Helenahistory.org, the Parrot Confectionery began as the Helena Drug Co. Fountain and Confectionery Department in the early 1910s. The current location is the fourth address for the business, opening on Oct. 15, 1938. Plichta, who moved to Montana from Los Angeles, bought The Parrot in 2017. He is the fourth owner.
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The Parrot candy, which according to advertisements “Talks for itself,” is still crafted using the original methods, including hand-dipping the chocolate-covered pieces.
The Parrot boasts of a “worldwide reputation for quality hand-dipped chocolates made from fresh, natural ingredients and utilizing up to 10 tons of chocolate each year,” its website states. “The Parrot produces a selection of 130 types of candy, using recipes devised by its original owners.”
The Parrot ships candy and it can be purchased online at parrotchocolate.com.
The website states favorites include a turtle-like confection called “a parrot,” chocolate-covered caramels, almond butter toffee and other creams, nuts and chews.
The “original soda fountain still serves up cherry phosphates and caramel cashew sundaes prepared with handmade ice cream, sauces, toppings, and syrups. And loyal lunch customers line up regularly for a bowl of The Parrot’s secret recipe chili.”
Other options include Truzzolino chicken tamales, an assortment of original Campbell soups, and Sabrett hot dogs (New York’s No. 1 hot dog), served plain or topped with chili.
In a 2020 article for Lee Newspapers, Donnie Sexton wrote The Parrot, the chocolate-covered caramel with pecans, has consistently been the top-selling candy over the years. The Christmas season proves to be the busiest, with more than 2,000 boxes of chocolates mailed out.
Bill and Ianthe Post were the original owners and sold it to Arnold and Nancy Duensing in 1957.
New owner of The Parrot Jonny Plichta stands with previous owners, from left, Stan “Dusty” Duensing, Dusty’s wife, Pam, and Wendy Duensing, who worked at The Parrot with late husband David, who was Dusty’s brother.
The Duensing family purchased the Parrot when Dave Duensing was a toddler. Duensing and his brother, Stan, who is also known as “Dusty,” started working there in the early 1970s, before becoming co-owners.
The Parrot offers a large selection of candy.
Arnold Duensing had gotten sick and Bill Post came to the store and taught Dusty how to make all the candies, Pam Duensing said.
A customer places an order at The Parrot Confectionery in Helena on Monday.
Dusty Duensing said he was in the store from 1957-2010.
“I was basically raised here,” he said. “It’s one of the last really old-time retail stores in Helena. There’s not much older than this that I know of.”
David and Stan ran the business with their wives, Wendy and Pam. Dave Duensing died in 2010.
The Parrot offers a large selection chocolate.
Wendy, Dave’s wife, ran the front of the store.
“I think it’s a wonderful thing for them to be in business after all this (time),” she said Tuesday during a visit to the shop. “That’s not bad.”
Pam Duensing was happy about the store reaching its 100th year.
I think it’s great,” she said. “I think it’s amazing.”
Karlee Kleinschmidt, left, Alexis Judd and Jennifer Wilkinson are shown at The Parrot Confectionery in downtown Helena Monday.
“We’re happy the store is still there,” Pam said, noting many longtime businesses have closed. “It is really a labor of love.”
She said the Parrot was all about customer service.
“We had amazing support, good food, the chili was excellent and the chocolate was excellent,” Duensing said, adding there are not many soda fountains in Helena.
Dusty said he believes the walking mall destroyed businesses on this side of town. He said there was parking and traffic flow. He said there is little foot traffic now.
“People have to make your business today a destination,” he said.
Pam said she and her husband still stop by the shop.
“To me it is the best candy in the world, so I always have to go in and get a few pieces,” Pam Duensing said.
Her favorite? It’s the dark fudge dipped in chocolate.
Brian and Kelly Ackerman bought the Parrot from the Duensings in 2009. They sold it to Plichta in 2017.
Plichta said the Parrot continues to be a staple in Montana and he is glad to be a part of that.
“I’m happy to be turning 100,” he said. “It’s a huge day for us.”
For more on the Parrot, go to: https://www.parrotchocolate.com/
Assistant editor Phil Drake can be reached at 406-231-9021.