Daiquiri News

Daiquiris at new Alky Therapy shop in Dallas' Knox District go way over the top

Their daiquiris come topped with gummies, cupcakes, fresh fruit.

UPDATE 8-30-2021: Alky Therapy Daiquiris & Desserts has opened.

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One concept whose fortunes have risen in the wake of the coronavirus has been the idea of alcohol to go — and that sets the stage for the whimsically named Alky Therapy Daiquiris & Desserts, a new establishment opening at 3001 Knox St. that'll serve exactly what the name promises: daiquiris and desserts.

Daiquiris to go have always had a kind of low-rent vibe but COVID-19 has turned things upside down, and alcohol-to-go is now an emergent trend.

In addition, Alky Therapy approaches the category with more care and detail than the typical daiquiri drive-thru swill.

The original is in Shreveport, where it's a highly rated drive-thru serving daiquiris that are a cut above. The frozen drink mixes have intense fruit flavors like watermelon, mango, strawberry, and sour green apple, and come adorned with edible treats like mini-cupcakes, gummy bears, and fresh fruit.

Bestsellers include the Marley, with Hurricane (Vodka/Rum), Mango Daiquiri (Rum), and Margarita (Tequila, Triple Sec), poured into the jar container in layers so that it resembles the trademark colors of Jamaica; and the Candy Crush Watermelon, which combines Blue Raspberry, Hurricane, Green Apple, Peach, Lemonade, and 190-proof Vodka, adorned with an entire candy counter's worth of sour gummy candies. Drinks are 18 ounces, and average about $10. Many can be ordered without alcohol.

Owner Katina Gosey, who lives in Shreveport, founded the original in 2014. While not herself a big drinker, she has an eye for things that work.

"I went to a festival in Shreveport to help my sister, who has an ice cream truck," Gosey says. "People were waiting for over an hour in these long lines for a stand that was selling daiquiris. And the daiquiris weren't even that great. I thought, if I were to open a stand and make them better quality, it might do well."

As for Dallas, that happened because Gosey is already here once a month.

"I'm in the Army Reserve, and I'm in Dallas every month for my training, so it made sense," she says. "I wanted to expand to Texas and I think Dallas is the ideal place."

The Dallas location is going into a small storefront next door to Fadi's Mediterranean Grill, right off the frontage road of US-75 at the northwest corner of Knox. For Gosey, it represents the next step of her original concept.

"Rather than a drive-through place, this is more of a drink and dessert stop, featuring desserts with alcohol and drinks, both with alcohol and non-alcoholic, too," she says. "We'll have cookies and cupcakes and drunken cakes. Sweets have always been a component of what we do, but this will formalize it. And it's also a better fit for the location."

COVID-19 slowed down the opening, but she's hoping to be open by the end of December or early January.

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Market News

Small specialty grocer in Celina is a go-to for imported foods

Di Mantzios Greek & Italian Gourmet Market

There's a gourmet shop in downtown Celina offering imported European foods: Called Di Mantzio’s Greek and Italian Gourmet Market, it's a small grocery and cafe at 204 E. Pecan St., Ste. C, where it's bringing in goods you might not find elsewhere in town.

Owner Vasilios Mantzios is a native of Greece and former NATO military serviceman who moved to the U.S. in 2008. Missing the foods he'd enjoyed in Greece and Italy, he started a booth at the Frisco Fresh Market in 2015 selling olive oils, Balsamic dressing, olives, and Mediterranean salt. In late 2024, he made the move to open the storefront in Celina (coincidentally down Pecan Street from Mangiamo Italian Market & Deli, another highly personal deli and market, making pecan Street a fun destination for a foodie field trip).

Di Mantzio's carries olive oils, pizza, cheese, charcuterie boards, flour, refrigerated meals, and meatballs with a Greek red sauce, made from a family recipe from Mantzios' aunts and their grandmothers. He also imports marinated lamb and beef meatballs from Greece.

"I only have things that I would put on my table to personally eat — I pick out my items by the quality because I don't want people to have issues with the food," Mantzios says. "I have my mother test everything, so if you pass her, you're in the store."

While he does offer Greek foods such as a recent special with beef kebabs and pita bread, there's a big demand for Italian items. He has a big selection of cheese: parmigiano reggiano, feta, mozzarella, and cheese from Il Forteto. Dry goods include Molino Paolo Mariani Manitaly flour, Caputo gluten-free flour, and Hellenic Farms and Lia extra virgin olive oil.

Mantzios prioritizes small, family-owned businesses because they enjoy what they're providing to customers and value quality.

Di Mantzios Greek & Italian Gourmet MarketDi Mantzios

On the prepared food front, he does pizza using a wood-fired crust imported from Pizza Food Love in Italy, delivered to the shop every three weeks. The base can be topped with ingredients from Tuscany, Italy for a truly authentic experience. More prepared foods are one of the biggest requests he gets from customers, and it's a category he's continuing to expand, as well as adding wine and beer.

They also have cakes and desserts such as cannoli, baklava, Greek rice pudding, French macarons, and gelato from Gelatys.

The interior is neatly organized, with refrigerated foods as well as Greek and European decor such as pestle and mortar, a gladiator helmet, and Greek and Italian flags pinned to the walls.

Mantzios thrives from the personal contact he gets with customers, and they find him equally charming as well.

"The bulk of my customers come from Prosper and Celina, and Celina is the number one growing city with people coming from all around who can appreciate what we are doing," Mantzios says.

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