Founder Bruce Reed (born 1955) got his start with the ice cream business in the 1960s, when, as a child, he helped out his parents at their diner, Jerry's Curb Service, in Bridgewater, Pennsylvania, a small town located 27 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.

[citation needed] In July 1989,[4] Reed opened an ice-cream shop right next door to Jerry's, which was originally operated under a franchise from Handel's Homemade Ice Cream & Yogurt.

[5] Bruster's also began franchising and has outlets in Alabama, Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Guyana, and recently in South Korea as well.

[citation needed] Bruster's also makes handmade ice cream cakes, homemade waffle cones, milkshakes, sundaes, and banana splits.

Bruster's has recently introduced a limited range of non-dairy ice cream flavors made with oat milk.