Photography by Jessica Turner.
Warm weather is back with a vengeance, and if you don’t want to be the only one melting, look for a place with air conditioning and a treat. Here are six snacks to sweeten long afternoons in Lake Highlands.
Crumbl Cookies
6186 Retail Road
Crumbl Cookies brings its take on frozen treats to Lake Highlands, with its menu of four specialty cookie flavors in addition to milk-chocolate and sugar cookies. Where’s the frozen part? All mixed up in the cup. Pair cookies with ice cream flavors, which come in half-pint containers, for combinations like brownie fudge, cookie-dough crunch, peanut-butter brittle, raspberry cheesecake, snickerdoodle and vanilla bean.
Royal I.T. Cafe
9100 N. Central Expressway
Royal I.T. Cafe is known for boba and milk tea, The menu is full of frozen treats. Ten flavors of smoothies range from coffee to red bean. And they also have rolled ice cream. Called shaved snow ice, it comes in five flavors with fresh fruit and two toppings.
Andy’s Frozen Custard
9655 Audelia Road
Andy’s Frozen Custard started in Missouri, but it’s a neighborhood favorite here. The Lake Highlands location has donated a percentage of its sales to Lake Highlands High School’s mock trial team and Lake Highlands Elementary in the past, and it continues to support children’s education. It gives an all-American 1950s vibe, with a menu boasting concretes and jackhammers, Andy’s take on blended frozen custard with a variety of toppings. A favorite is the jitterbug concrete, vanilla or chocolate frozen custard blended with espresso, Heath bar and almonds. The treat shop also features sundaes, splits, malts, shakes, old-fashioned freezes and sodas, floats and Italian ice.
Maria’s Ice Cream and Fruteria
6870 Shady Brook Lane
Shop local at Maria’s Ice Cream and Fruteria, which offers a broad range of frozen desserts and treats. Their menu includes bionico de frutas, a treat with cubed fruit drenched in cream and topped with granola, coconut, raisins or other toppings. Fresas con crema (strawberries with cream) and banana splits are available, along with shakes, ice cream cones, fruit platters and rusas, specialty drinks made with fruit and chamoy.
Pop Factory
8061 Walnut Hill Lane
Pop Factory, a local chain with three locations in the Dallas area, brings paleta carts to another level with all-natural pops. Pop Factory boasts treats packed with vitamins and fiber, with no artificial flavors, colors or sweeteners. There are 26 flavors that cover the full spectrum of popsicles: fruit, milk, stuffed, boozy and seasonal pops. They can also be coated in chocolate, vanilla or caramel and topped with sprinkles, nuts or crushed cookies.
