Salt & Straw Ice Cream To Debut First Texas Scoop Shops in Dallas and Fort Worth This Spring
The Cult-Favorite Brand Brings Unique Flavors, The Tacolate, and Stellar Hospitality to the Lone Star State
BY Megan Ziots //
Salt & Straw opens its first Texas locations in Dallas and Fort Worth this spring. (Courtesy)
After dreaming of opening an ice cream shop for 15 years, Kim Malek made her dream a reality with Salt & Straw — a Portland-based brand she founded with her cousin, Tyler Malek, in 2011. Now, after expanding across the country to cities like New York, Los Angeles, Miami, and even the Downtown Disney District and Disney Springs, Salt & Straw is finally making its Texas debut with scoop shops in Dallas and Fort Worth this spring.
How Salt & Straw Got Started
“I wanted to create community gathering places,” Salt & Straw owner Kim Malek tells PaperCity. She tells us that she fell in love with third places — informal, public environments to gather with the community outside the home or work — after being one of the early employees of Starbucks. “When there were only 30 stores,” she says.
After telling her cousin about her ice cream dream, he was immediately on board. There was one issue. Neither had ever made ice cream before. “Tyler moved into my basement with an ice cream maker from Goodwill,” she laughs. To come up with the money to open the shop, Kim tells us that she cashed in her 401k and had a garage sale.
Obviously, the risk paid off as the ice cream shop brand now has 55 locations (not including the upcoming Texas shops). Tyler was also named in Forbes‘ “30 Under 30” list in the Food and Wine category in 2015. At the time, Salt & Straw only had three shops. “Tyler has created over 130 flavors of ice cream and has been instrumental in creating the farm-to-cone movement,” stated the publication.
A Unique Ice Cream Experience
Salt & Straw is known for its cult-favorite flavors. “We have the world’s best vanilla and gooey chocolate brownie,” says Kim.
Other best-sellers include:
The Allen
- Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbons made with Guatemalan fleur de sel
- Salted, Malted, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- Freckled Mint Chocolate Chip (with coconut and mint oil)
More “unusual” creations that are always on the menu include Arbequina Olive Oil, Pear and Blue Cheese, and Honey Lavender. Of course, I had to ask which one was Kim’s favorite: “Strawberry Honey Balsamic with Black Pepper.”
But those are nothing compared to some of the monthly flavor series they do based on the season or holiday. For example, this past November, Salt & Straw offered “five courses of a Thanksgiving feast.” These included innovative flavors like Turkey Stuffing and Cranberry Sauce, Parker House Rolls with Salted Buttercream, and Maple Koginut Squash with Pomegranate.
“For Halloween, we do one with seven different kinds of homemade candy bars,” she says. “It’s a labor of love that goes into making these unheard of flavors.”
What’s even cooler is that Salt & Straw collaborates with local makers and chefs to come up with more regional creations. Kim hasn’t nailed down which Dallasites she’ll be reaching out to yet, but thinking about the possibilities is exciting.
“We’re looking for local collaborations and flavor ideas, if people have any!” Kim says. Get brainstorming, North Texans!
The Tacolate
This past October, Salt & Straw and Taco Bell teamed up to launch a reimagined version of the classic Choco Taco. “The new CEO of Taco Bell came from Portland,” says Kim. “They heard we had been working on [a version]. We searched the world for equipment that could manufacture it. A guy in Poland ended up doing it for us.”
“It’s a real sensory experience,” Kim says of their creation. The Salt & Straw Tacolate features a crispy waffle shell filled with cinnamon-ancho chili ice cream, coated in dark chocolate, and topped with crunchy puffed quinoa. There are even sauce packets (mango jalapeño and wildberry cinnamon) that come with them to drizzle on top.
Salt & Straw’s Expansion Into Dallas and Fort Worth
“It was always a total dream to one day open in Texas,” Kim says. “We had been working on finding a location in Dallas since 2018.” Of course, COVID happened, and plans got delayed.
Salt & Straw Dallas will open at 2323 N. Henderson Avenue, Suite 107 — right next to beloved Dallas restaurant Gemma, which made its own renovations around the same time the building was purchased by New York-based Acadia Realty Trust.
“It’s an honor to be a part of the project,” Kim says, referring to the revamping of Henderson Avenue. In late 2024, a new mixed-use development from local firm Ignite-Rebees and Acadia broke ground, sparking a “renaissance” of the neighborhood. Soon, there will be even more new spots to stroll about.
Kim says that Henderson was the perfect community gathering place for a Salt & Straw with its walkability and assortment of retail and dining. A similar vibe presented itself at 1305 W. Magnolia Avenue in Fort Worth’s Near Southside.
“We hope to be here for generations to come,” Kim says. “My favorite thing about our shops is seeing a teenager with their parents,” she laughs, noting that it’s probably one of the only outings they take together. “We’re also having a wedding in a shop soon because the couple met here.”
It seems rare that you have a restaurant (or ice cream shop owner) who’s been in business for as long as Kim, who has grown that business SO much, but still sounds as excited as ever to be opening another store. As for the look of the shops, Kim says, “it’s transportive” with custom lighting fixtures and wall coverings that are like abstract ice cream cones and such.
Full disclosure: Ice cream is my favorite sweet treat. But talking with the Salt & Straw owner has me on the edge of my seat, waiting to see what magic happens at these stores in Dallas and Fort Worth. My first flavor choice — Coffee and Love Nuts.
