Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth with Dallas' Top Candy Shops

Who ever knew Dallas was a city of candy? While this dessert hotspot is known for indulgent treats like Black Tap’s over-the-top milkshakes, Tongue in Cheek’s topping-packed ice creams and Better Than Sex’s provocatively themed indulgences, candy shops have taken a back seat.

Our curiosity recently got the best of us, though, leading us through highways, freeways and Dallas traffic in search of some outstanding sugary treasures. Naturally, our research culminates in a list of the top places to satiate your adult-sized cravings for a child-like treat. Enjoy with caution.

Sugar Factory

1900 Cedar Springs Road

One of Dallas’s best-known celebration destinations, Sugar Factory is objectively one of the best (and only) places to share a colossal, chocolate-drenched, cream-topped, three-scooped ice cream sundae. But what most don’t know is that beyond the gigantic sundaes, ice cream sandwiches and sugar-packed drinks the dessert shop hides a retail candy store. Behind a colorful candy heart wall lies an immersive retail store with over 50 different types of sweet candy. Just come with a hefty budget to spend on a floor-to-ceiling wall of sugary treats.

Kokopelli Sweets

1718 N. Market St.

Kokopelli, in the West End, is what we like to call an all-inclusive, one-stop shop for sugar. Buckets full of colorful gelato tempt from inside the display case with flavors like a Texas Two-Step and confetti-studded birthday cake, alongside slices of homemade cheesecake, creative brownies and cream pies. Grab a helping of cake or a slice of pie before exploring the stocked bins in the back. Homemade truffles, taffy and other bulk candy make this a classic candy store at heart; just add a few bonus points for the baked and frozen sweets.

Sweet Tooth Hotel

1511 Elm St. No. 100

A unique interactive art installation, the Sweet Tooth Hotel is just as much an immersive experience as it is a candy shop. Walk through exhibitions of glitter, lights and sweets before ending up in the cornerstone Calirosa Cocktail Lounge, an adult-catered bar that combines the need for release through booze with innocent-looking, candy-themed decorations. Sip on an Orange creamsicle daiquiri or cotton-candy-topped cocktail before moving into the classic gummy-bear drink, a combo of gummy-bear drink mix and tequila, poured into a giant, bear-shaped cocktail jar.

Candy Barrel

140 E. Exchange Ave.,  No. B201, Fort Worth

Fort Worth’s locally owned Candy Barrel lives up to every expectation that its name sets for it. The unassuming storefront is what one might call the quintessential bulk store for candy, with giant barrels stocked with candy to greet you by the door. Load up on nostalgic taffies, chocolates and hard candy to indulge in at home or perhaps, if temptation wins over self-control, right outside the store. A prime location and eye-catching taffy flavors like key lime, apple pie and chicken and waffles (yes, this exists) make this a worthwhile stop on your next trip to the Stockyards.

Candy Land

13350 Dallas Parkway

Formerly known as Candy World, the Galleria Mall’s iconic candy store is a foolproof way to quench that mid-shopping thirst with a sugary treat, or maybe a whole bag of them. Named after the nostalgic board game, Candy Land is a small but almost magical storefront, overwhelming visitors with bright lights and colorful sweets. Stock up on endlessly different types of M&Ms, chocolate-covered nuts or even Japanese imported candy and snacks. The best part is that you can stop by between shopping splurges and try something different every time. It’s on the second floor of the mall, right next to the T-Mobile store.

Dulceria Ary

3811 S. Cooper St., No. 2059, Arlington

It’s almost a crime to build a list of top candy shops without including at least one authentic Mexican dulceria. Stocked with different Mexican candies, chips and other snacks, Dulceria Ary, in Arlington’s The Parks Mall, is a haven of sorts for all things sweet, spicy and uniquely Mexican. Take home a pack of sour Mexican gummies, available by the dozens in different exotic fruit flavors like guabana and mango-chamoy. Dulce de leche toffees, tamarind-scented hard candy and tequila-filled chocolate are other uniquely Mexican delicacies that call from the shelves. Maybe take home a piñata, too. They’re only $30.

Blooms Candy and Soda Pop Shop

1106 W. Main St., Carrollton

Hidden in Historic Downtown Carrollton, Blooms Candy and Soda Pop Shop opened as an uncomplicated flower shop. But an impromptu decision by owners John, Nicole and Sid to stock some candy on the store’s empty shelves has transformed the boutique storefront into what’s now a one-stop shop for 800 types of candy, 50 variations of root beer and 400 different retro sodas. Pick up a box of hot dog-flavored candy canes, barbecue sauce root beer or Harry Potter-themed soda while you’re here. You won’t find flowers anymore, but the imported scorpion lollipops (yes, made of real scorpion) have become a well-kept Carrollton secret.

Hey Sugar Candy Store

409 W. Eighth St.

Multiple Texas branches of this candy shop mean that the one in Bishop Arts — although unoriginal — might warrant a spot on your cross-city candy scavenger hunt. Exotic chocolates and candy are both available for purchase, with options ranging from an undemanding dark chocolate bark to the outlandish ant-flavored candy that sits on the front shelf. Grab a cold scoop of fireball-flavored ice cream or a refrigerated bottle of one of Hey Sugar's vintage sodas to beat the Texas heat. Both come in odd, but fun flavors. Bacon-flavored soda, anyone?

Rocket Fizz Soda Pop & Candy Shop

2701 Main St.

Rocket Fizz, in Deep Ellum, is a national chain that might ring more of a Spencer's than a true candy store, but sugar is sugar. Here you can find a lot of vintage sweets that your nana let you snag out of her handbag back in the day. There is also a bevy of vintage and very odd flavors of soda.