Business Spotlight: Liber-Tee Mini-Golf

Watching little Anson Wright play miniature golf and then enjoy an ice cream sandwich makes managing Liber-Tee Mini-Golf worthwhile to George Dimitriadis.

Wright, barely taller than his golf club, was close to finishing at par 40 on the 18-hole course with his dad on the property of the Holiday Inn Conference Center in Breinigsville.

“I’ve played here 25 times,’’ Wright said. “When I play on a real golf course, I’m faster than the golf carts. My favorite part of miniature golf is that you get ice cream. It’s time for me to wash my hands.’’

None of this would be available to young Anson if not for the Dimitriadis family.

John Dimitriadis, George’s dad, worked out a deal eight years ago to put a miniature golf course and a Leiby’s Ice Cream stand near the parking lot of the Holiday Inn.

The family, which owns George’s Furs in Whitehall, alternates working the ice cream stand and golf center during the summer. There are no employees, but they pay rent to the hotel.

“We have other local businesses in the area, including George’s Furs,” said George, who now resides in Salisbury Township. The company is named after his late grandfather.

“My dad thought we needed a miniature golf course here with all the hotels and local houses being built. We thought this would be a good spot to build a miniature golf course eight years ago.”

George knew well, because he was working at the Holiday Inn at the time, having graduated from Parkland High and Seton Hall University in New Jersey with a degree in accounting.

“People come from the hotels and even from out of town to play golf  here,’’ he said. “It’s great  for the people at the hotels because the parents can enjoy the bar at the hotel or something else and the kids come here. It‘s a nice outlet for the kids.”

The name Liber-Tee Golf stems from the Holiday Inn’s local there of  “Celebrating America.“

Summer hours are 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday; 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday; noon to 10 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday.

The golf rates are $7 for adults and $6 for seniors and children.

Party specials range begin at $7 per child, which includes  a “Happy Birthday“ sign;  one round of golf;  ice cream and one free pass.

For $12, customers get a sign themed to a child’s favorite cartoon; one round of golf; one can of soda, one slice of pizza, one kiddie sundae and a free pass for every gift bag.

Perhaps the best deal is a round of golf and a regular sundae for $8.50 per person.

George is proud to say that all ice cream is Leiby’s, the Tamaqua area ice cream company that closed its restaurant several years ago but continues to make ice cream at a nearby factory.

The family also had a fur business in Hazleton years ago, and when they passed through the Tamaqua area, they stopped at Leiby’s.

“We’d always stop at Leiby‘s, it‘s the best ice cream there is,” he said. “People don’t know it’s still open, but the creamery is still open, about two or three miles away from the old restaurant.  It‘s 14 percent butter top cream.“

The most popular ice cream at the golf site is vanilla, while the most creative is cashew and raspberry frozen yogurt,.

One of George’s favorites is Nittany (Penn State) Paws which is vanilla ice cream with a fudge swirl and little Peanut Butter Cups.

George said there are many unique experiences at Liber-Tee.

“It’s run so everybody can have fun,” he said. “It’s more family oriented, not a teen-age hangout. It’s as fun for little kids as is for grownups and teenagers.

“We have an eight-foot high Statue of Liberty and three running ponds with pumps that flow the water through. We have 20-foot-high mountain and a waterfall.

“The 11th is the most difficult hole. The uphill is tough, there’s a rock there. If you hit it too hard you’re going to go out of bounds. If you hit it too soft, it’s coming back down the hill.

“The 14th is easiest, because it’s all down hill.’’

There is no free game for a hole-in-one on the 18th hole, as is customary in many courses.

“Instead, any group of four gets a free game for the best score,” he said.

He said Liber-Tee is popular because, unlike the New Jersey shore, there aren’t miniature golf courses at almost every corner in the Lehigh Valley.

“Other golf courses aren’t within 10-15 miles of us,“ he said. “There’s Putt U in Coopersburg and Sittler in Kutztown.  For dates, we compete against the movie theaters. There, you  don’t talk.  You’re in the dark.’’

George said he probably will return to the family’s fur business full-time in the next few years.

“Ten years from now, I will have been scooping ice cream for 17 years,“ he laughed. “I don’t think my arm would be working any more.’’