Remember how I was really looking forward to Coolhaus Ice Cream Truck coming to Dallas? Well, I trekked all the way to the Valley View Center in Plano Dallas on Saturday to check out the TX Food Truck Fest, because I knew Coolhaus – with its glorious selection of cookies and ice cream – would be parked right there.
Surprisingly, there was a terribly good showing despite the crummy weather. A few Austin food trucks (Yumé Burger, Coreano’s, The Belgium Waffle Company, Chi’lantro BBQ) and one loner San Antonio truck (Sabor Columbiano) traveled across miles and miles of Texas terrain to be at the Food Fest, and all that driving must’ve paid off. There were old people, young people, families with toddlers, and the largest gathering of Asians I have seen at a food truck rally. Maybe food truck organizers should hold rallies in Plano more often. Hundreds of people waited patiently in long lines that stretched out across the parking lot, and most people went straight for the famous Austin trucks. The line leading up to Coolhaus was short, so I was able to order a carrot cake cookie with sea-salt caramel ice cream from people wearing Nammi t-shirts (since Coolhaus is partnered with the banh mi truck) in a jiffy.
[Ed. Note: We apologize to the people of Plano for inferring that Valley View Center is located in your city. What is left of Valley View Center is currently in North Dallas which we hope at some future time morph into Midtown Dallas.]
Henry Gentry of Henry’s Homemade Ice Cream insists ice cream will “make you pretty.” After 26 years of making ice cream at the “micro-creamery” in Plano, Henry’s business is looking pretty good. I’ve noticed his name on some fancy menus alongside the likes of Paula, Tom, and Jimmy’s.
Henry “speaks in ALL CAPS.” He sends word: “HENRY’S placed in every category this year at the NATIONAL ICE CREAM Awards in Jacksonville, FL. A total of 30 entries were submitted by Ice Cream companies from all over the nation. The competition was tough, but HENRY’S licked them!!!”
1st Place in BEST NEW FLAVOR for Butterscotch Blast
2nd Place in Homemade Vanilla
2nd Place in Strawberry
5th Place for Best Southern Flavor for M. L. Dubay Toffee
In the press release, Henry thanked his employees (a nice touch) and Mrs. M.L. Dubay for surviving cancer and opening her Toffee Treats business. Ice cream must make you nice too.
Nestled in the shadows of the towering stadium of the Mesquite High School fightin’ Skeeters, sits a humble family-owned pie shop with owners every bit as sweet as their glorious cherry pie. Dallas needs more pie shops like Scrumbscious. Sure, plenty of places offer a handful of pie flavors, many of which are honorable in their own right, but when an establishment is willing to dedicate their lives to the creation of an American icon, you can rest assured they are going to do things right.
Choosing your slice of pie can be a daunting task indeed for the indecisive and scatterbrained among us, but luckily you are safe enough just throwing a dart at the menu board and ordering whatever it lands on (Note: do not throw darts in the store, they do not appreciate this). I could ramble on about my favorites, the silky smooth coconut cream, the rich, aromatic fresh pecan pie, but really, just go with your gut on this one.
Oh, how I love anything made with pumpkin. Yesterday, I bought a dozen pumpkin bagels at Einstein’s. Starting today, I’m searching for anything made with pumpkin–desserts, soup, pancakes, bread, pasta—anything. If you see it or make it, let us know below.