Ice Cream News

Days are now numbered for Dallas custard shop Wild About Harry's

Only a few days left to get your custard fix.

Wild About Harry's

A beloved Dallas custard shop is shutting down: Wild About Harry's, which has been a staple of Knox Street staple for 25 years, will close for business, with its final day on July 4.

The shop has been at its current address at 4527 Travis St. since 2018, when it moved in a high-profile relocation prompted by ongoing new developments and construction.

Now their current location is on land that will become another multi-story development, according to spokesman Brad Belletto.

"Where Harry's is now will eventually be a multi-story building," Belletto says. "They're going to start the demolition pretty soon. We'd like to find another location in the neighborhood but I think it's probably more than we can afford."

Harry Coley first opened Wild About Harry's on Knox Street in 1996, selling frozen custard and Chicago-style hot dogs, when the street was still a funky bohemian area with independent shops. But the area has undergone a massive upheaval, with new businesses and higher rents to match.

Coley died in 2014 following a bout with cancer, and the store was taken over by his daughter Sydney Coley-Berglund. Belletto, who has extensive restaurant experience, has lent a hand in helping keep things afloat, including introducing new food items such as hamburgers and Italian beef sandwiches.

The landlords provided them with a temporary space on Travis Street back in 2018.

"They were nice enough to give us a good deal so we were able to survive, and they've offered to let us open temporarily in other vacant spots on the street," Belletto says. "But when you add in what it costs to move, it just doesn't make sense."

They'll still be making their custard, currently sold at Great American Hero on Lemmon Avenue, and at Hello Dumpling in East Dallas, while they look for another location.

"We're grateful to have had our home in the Knox/Travis neighborhood for 25 years, and we will continue to look for a new home," he says.

Meanwhile, you've got just a few days to get your custard: They'll be open until 10 pm on Sunday, July 4th.

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Global tastes

New food truck in Carrollton puts a Venezuelan spin on empanadas

The central Venezuelan variation of empanadas is fried whole before being sliced open to hold additional fillings and toppings.

Photo courtesy of Empanada Factory.

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A unique new food truck serving authentic Venezuelan empanadas has parked in Carrollton. Called Empanada Factory, the trailer joins a pod of quick-service food trucks at 3490 Rosemeade Pkwy., at Marsh Ln.

The new initiative comes from Gloria Romero and her husband, Samuel Gómez. Originally from central Venezuela, the couple brings a regional variation to the local food scene known as empanadas operadas ("operated empanadas"). Unlike traditional empanadas, these are fried whole first and then sliced open to add additional fillings and toppings — the "surgery" that gives the dish its name.

Made with cornmeal dough rather than wheat flour, they are significantly larger than standard empanadas, holding up to 4 ounces of filling compared to the typical 1.5 ounces in traditional empanadas.

At Empanada Factory, customers can choose from six fillings: queso blanco, jamonada (cooked ham in cubes), chicken, shredded beef, cazón (dogfish), or a seafood mix. Base empanadas range from $4 to $6, with $1 add-on toppings including black beans, cheese, plantains, chorizo, sausage, melted Gouda, and avocado.

Beyond empanadas, the menu features $12 arepa bowls — crafted from arepa dough and served with a choice of one protein and three toppings — as well as quesillo venezolano ($4), a traditional Venezuelan dessert similar to flan but with a firmer texture.

The Arepa Bowl, featuring a crispy arepa dough base filled with shredded beef, black beans, avocado, and house sauces.Photo courtesy of Empanada Factory

Drink options include lattes, drip coffee, Venezuelan sodas, and fresh fruit shakes (served frappé or on the rocks) in flavors like mango, passion fruit, blackberry, and Caribbean native fruit guanábana (soursop).

After selling out during their first two weeks, Romero and Gómez feel confident in their new home.

“Carrollton is very established in Latin culture, and the location is accessible to everybody,” Romero says. “People know the area, so they know where to find us.”

Romero and Gómez describe themselves as "eternal entrepreneurs" who have owned several businesses, including Redy POS — an all-in-one ordering platform designed for food trucks and quick-service restaurants. In addition to sharing their cultural heritage, Empanada Factory serves as a real-world test kitchen and showcase for their software, which streamlines ordering and fulfillment to keep wait times minimal. Several neighboring food trucks in the area are already Redy POS clients, they say.

Alongside a streamlined ordering system, the owners emphasize that product quality remains their primary focus.

"What you see on social media is what you actually get; we focus heavily on maintaining the quality of our food, making sure it looks and tastes just as it is displayed in our photos," Romero says.

To deliver on that standard while maintaining fast service, the couple chose to start small with a food truck model and limited weekend-only hours (8 am-2 pm). Pre-ordering is available via their website, and they offer direct, home delivery within a 10-mile radius with no third-party app markup.

carrollton food truck