Ice Cream News

Flashy ice cream spot adds chill to ultra-hot Union Dallas building

Opening day is April 27.

Courtesy photo

The Union Dallas building has another thing to eat. Creamistry, the California-based chain specializing in liquid nitrogen ice cream made to order, will open its first location in Dallas proper in this ultra-buzzy building at 2301 N. Akard St.

This is the fifth location, owned and operated by Aamir and Aazim Rajani, and Zeshan and Farhan Somani, and will open on Saturday, April 27.

It joins the team's other Dallas-area locations in Addison, Lower Greenville, Las Colinas, and Southlake.

Aamir Rajani says that the Dallas location represents a huge milestone. "The product and experience is what it really comes down to when we think about why we have been able to grow so quickly," he says.

Aamir and Aazim moved from Los Angeles to Dallas to join family members Zeshan and Farhan in launching Creamistry in Dallas. The first location opened in Addison in December 2017.

Customers choose a portion size, then an ice cream base (premium, organic, vegan coconut, vegan cashew, or non-dairy sorbet), a flavor, and toppings from a list of 30-plus options that include candy, cookies and cereal, fruits, and sauces.

The ice cream is made via a flash-freezing process using liquid nitrogen. When it hits the base, it freezes so fast that ice crystals don't have a chance to develop, resulting in a decadently rich and luxuriously creamy ice cream with virtually no overrun.

"It does not get any fresher," Yim says.

Other innovative touches include flat-screens adorning the walls, chemical flasks, and liquid nitrogen tanks in-store.

Creamistry is enjoying a growth spurt. Today, there are about 60 locations open and operating in six states, with more than 200 additional locations in various stages of development worldwide.

The Union is already home to The Christopher luxury apartments; a Tom Thumb with an in-house bar; and a collection of restaurants that include The Henry, Taco Lingo, and North Italia, with more on the way.

desserts ice-cream

Dumpling News

Asian soup dumpling chain Ugly Dumpling to open location in Allen

Ugly Dumpling

Colorful dumplings from Ugly Dumpling

A new dumpling concept is coming to Dallas-Fort Worth: Called Ugly Dumpling, it's a chain specializing in Chinese soup dumplings, and it's opening its first DFW location in Allen, at 213 N. Central Expy., near the intersection of McDermott Road, where it will debut in early fall.

Ugly Dumpling is from Vertex Hospitality Group, a national restaurant franchise organization whose portfolio includes two other Asian chains, KPOT Hot Pot & Korean BBQ (which has a location in Arlington and another coming to Fort Worth), and Kinya Ramen.

Buoyed by the success of those two brands, Vertex launched Ugly Dumpling in 2023, opening the first location in Edison, New Jersey. They now list 26 locations on their website, in Virginia, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and Texas, although 14 are "coming soon," including one in Austin that's been in the works since 2024.

Soup dumplings — official name, xiao long bao — are a dish of Shanghai origin that are popular due to their unique combination of a delicate dough wrapper enclosing a tender filling and savory broth, which releases when you take a bite — making for an indelible comfort food experience.

Ugly Dumpling's menu includes six varieties of dumplings, accompanied by a savory soup broth, as follows:

chicken
pork
pork & crab
pork & truffle
pork, shrimp, & spinach
Szechuan pork

Porky! They can be ordered in a dumpling sampler, one of each variety, for about $14. No vegetarian options, although they do have a couple of vegan dishes such as vegan wonton soup.

There are also Chinese classics like spring rolls, cream cheese wontons, hot & sour soup, salt & pepper popcorn chicken, garlic green beans, orange chicken, beef & broccoli, Mongolian beef, Kung pao chicken, and fried rice; plus tempting Asian favorites like edamame and bao buns, and even chicken wings.

They also serve boba tea and other beverages.

Bringing the concept to DFW is Grace Zhao, who previously owned Zhao Star Chinese Bistro in Frisco, which she sold. She's all in on Ugly Dumpling — "we're hoping to open more than one location, but Allen comes first," she says.

A statement from marketing head Margaret Farrell says that "when we created Ugly Dumpling, we wanted to tap into the historical Shanghai street food movement but do so in a way that caters to the modern palette. [Surely she means 'palate'?] Our menu respects Shanghai's centuries-old cooking techniques while cultivating an exciting experience for today's restaurant goer."

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