These six ice cream shops in Plano include homegrown favorites, national chains and an international gelato brand, with options for different tastes and dietary preferences.
Picking an ice cream stop depends on what your crew is craving. Sometimes you don’t know what you’re hungry for, but you know it when you see it. Each of these shops in Plano brings something different to the table, whether that’s an offbeat treat, a vegan or dairy-free option, or a classic flavor you’ll always come back to.
Plano Ice Cream Spots to Know
What stands out: Inventive flavors with personality
Photo courtesy Henry’s Homemade Ice Cream
Owner Henry Gentry is a familiar face at this Plano staple, where since 1992 he’s been serving up premium scoops stacked high, as well as classics like hot fudge sundaes and banana splits, ice cream cakes (ready to go and custom-made).
I credit Henry’s for my discovery of the Italian dessert “spumoni” (think Neapolitan but instead it’s cherry, pistachio and chocolate, plus nuts), and I blame him for my near addiction to Girl Scout cookie ice cream. Call ahead and they’ll have your pints or quarts ready for pick-up, but of course it’s more fun to stop inside and experiment with the different flavors. Known for his highly unusual flavors, probably the wildest is his Hog Wild Bacon Ice Cream with real bits of savory bacon. Want something more savory? He’s got hot dogs on the menu too.
Keep your eyes peeled on their Facebook for their annual Pajama Party in the fall, when everyone who dresses up (or rather, dresses down) all to benefit the American Cancer Society.
3100 Independence Pkwy., Plano, Texas
972/943-3639
henryshomemadeicecream.com
What stands out: Ice cream bars, donut sandwiches and black ice cream
Photo courtesy Visit Plano
Three words: ice cream donut. I’ll say more. Milky Treats is the only place this donut devotee has ever found serving up a scoop between two halves of a donut as the bun. And it’s rolled into in cereal fixins’ like Fruity Pebbles? Chef’s kiss. (Or if you really want that cookie to complement your ice cream, head inside Crumbl Cookies right next door.)
But the ice cream itself here is made to wow—with bright mixes the kids will go for like the pink and purple Unicorn Brownie, the Cookie Monster to turn their tongue blue or for the slightly sweeter and also blue Cake by the Ocean. They’ve got flavors to match their moody interior, Black Velvet made with activated coconut charcoal but tastes a bit like chocolate. To bring you into the new season, there’s pumpkin spice latte, and for Valentine’s, we’re pinning their ice cream heart-shaped ice cream box.
7000 Independence Pkwy., Suite 104D, Plano, Texas
214/718-6652
milkytreats.com
What stands out: Soft serve “snow floats” and cotton candy over snow cones
Photo courtesy Visit Plano
Among the many food stalls lined inside Legacy Hall, where you can often catch live music from the interior courtyard, Cotton & Snow specializes in Hawaiian shaved ice—the smoothest of smooth, no crunching needed—with ice cream mixed in. These can be topped with any number of freshly spun cotton candy (your choice of 50 flavors), or cotton candy crumbles, or for more of a Hawaiian flair, toasted coconut shreds.
The “snow floats” combine root beer, cola and other flavored sodas with ice cream and shaved ice. When you’re out on date night and feeling thirsty, try one of their boozy shaved ices, or look at the next stall over for even more boozy shake options from Bourbon Vanilla Ice Cream Co.
7800 Windrose Avenue, Plano, Texas
972/846-4255
legacyfoodhall.com
What stands out: A meal, dessert and grocery run all in one stop
Braum’s started from humble beginnings in the 1930s Depression, and today you’ll find more than 300 stores across Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas and Arkansas (all within driving distance of its dairy processing plant near Oklahoma City). And There’s a reason why these are everywhere. Braum’s isn’t only an ice cream shop but a full-service restaurant open seriously all day long—from 6am to 10:45pm—serving breakfast (until 10:30am), lunch and dinner.
But back to the good stuff—ice cream sundaes, banana splits, old-fashioned cones, milkshakes all made from their A2 milk—are available in-store after a meal or through the drive-thru. I prefer to get a hand-packed pint of sherbet, no matter the flavor, to take home, but the frozen yogurt and no added sugar ice cream are so helpful in giving everyone in the family a treat that needs their nutritional needs.
And, in addition to all that, every location has a grocery store-style market too, with fresh fruit, veggies and more staples all within reach to take home.
Dozens of locations around DFW including:
2005 W. Parker Road, Plano, Texas
972/596-3358
1428 Independence, Plano, Texas
972/596-1404
braums.com
What stands out: Oreo ice cream sandwiches and four-scoop sampler
If your kids’ eyes are indeed as big as their stomach, go for the chocolate-covered ice cream treats on a stick, banana splits or the “Hurricanes.” Think Dairy Queen’s Blizzard but instead of soft serve, it’s their richer ice cream, and topped with the usual chocolate candies and cookie pieces or even their “Fish Bait.” (Think “dirt cake” with gummy worms.)
We love that they’ve got an almond milk alternative, dairy-free flavors like Blue Moon Italian ice, and a few sherbet and vegan sorbets flavors too. The flavors change all the time, and each store sticks with nearly 50 for the whole month. Can’t decide what you all want? Make it family-style and share a sample bowl with four different flavors and four spoons.
About a dozen locations around DFW including:
4200 Legacy Drive, Plano, Texas
972/208-4051
handelsicecream.com
What stands out: Gelato flowers, macarons and vegan sorbets
As a lover of flowers, I was hooked from the get-go by the style of Amorino’s gelato cones. Instead of scoops, it’s rose petals delicately placed one-by-one atop a slender cone with a flat spatula. The presentation is thrilling, but of course it’s the taste we’re after. Treat the kids to their choice of a gelato with a macaron on top. Or to go all in, get the macaron made with gelato filling instead of ganache. Can you tell I’m drooling?
Kids with a dairy sensitivity or allergy can partake too. Their vegan sorbets include chocolate and several fruit flavors including the surprisingly light lime basil. For more of a dessert meal, split a waffle heaped with gelato scoops.
When you’re visiting in the afternoon and need a pick-me-up, you have your pick of their Italian coffee menu. Their affogato or hot chocolate hits the spots during the winter months. Another thing we’re pinning for the holidays, their gelato cakes: like the pistachio-flavored Incanto (the slices look like Christmas trees), or for an amazing edible gift, their chocolate Gioco, Italian for “game,” made to resemble a chess board with gelato cubes as the game pieces.
7700 Windrose Ave., G157, Plano, Texas
214/430-2351
And two more locations in Dallas and Fort Worth
amorino.com
Heading into Dallas? Find more ice cream shops with classic scoops and over-the-top treats.