17 March 28 - april 3, 2024 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents etors who were friendly and fair to the Hispanic community, she says. And since the ‘70s, she remembers two cakes at all celebrations. “One usual super-sweet sheet cake cov- ered in frosting for the kids,” she says, “and Henk’s Swiss Madrisa fruit-covered cake for the grown-ups. I don’t remember when they showed up. They were just always there.” For decades, it wasn’t just at her house. Every family gathering or party had a Swiss Madrisa. Recently she went to another com- munity event, and there it was again. For her son’s birthday parties, she still orders Henk’s for the adults and a grocery store sheet cake for the kids. Recently a Reddit user posted a generic photo of a fruit-topped cake and asked where he could find one in North Austin. People responded with H-E-B and Whole Foods, but then someone suggested Henk’s. “Thanks for confirming my suspicions, I am 99.99% sure that was the bakery my fam- ily used to get birthday cakes from! Looking at pictures of the storefront is jogging up memories I had from years ago when I vis- ited as a kid; glad to see it’s still there.” It’s not just the cake either. It’s the friendly environment at Henk’s. The own- ers, in our experience, seem genuinely happy to be there, which sets the mood for employees. “They are just great people too,” Santos says. “More than once I’ve gone in a panic, having forgotten to order a cake, and they can have one ready for me right away, per- sonalized with ‘Happy Birthday’ or ‘Con- gratulations’ or whatever on its icing banner.” Even the pandemic couldn’t keep cus- tomers away. Hanneke remembers one day when social-distancing mandates were in place and a long line snaked out their door and through the parking lot on Mother’s Day weekend. “I remember watching this one guy who had a white shirt,” she says. “When he came in and paid, I was like, ‘So how long did you wait for this cake?’ He said, ‘An hour and a half.’ I looked at him and he goes, ‘It’s worth it.’” When asked about possibly expanding this cake empire, Hubertus says with a touch of humor they could probably be mil- lionaires if they could figure it out. But with family and dogs at home, and thousands of cakes a month already, it’s a lot of work. “My dad used to have this saying, ‘One business, one headache. Two businesses, two headaches,’” Hubertus says. Besides, there’s only one U.N. And one cake of Dallas. ▼ OPENINGS MINI-GOLF VENUE FROM TIGER WOODS TO OPEN IN THE COLONY THE RESTAURANT, BAR AND PUTTING GREEN IS OPENING AT GRANDSCAPE IN THE COLONY ON MARCH 28. BY CARLY MAY GRAVLEY P opStroke, the Florida-based, Tiger Woods-affiliated restaurant, bar and putting green, has announced an opening date for its first North Texas loca- tion. The “technology-infused golf enter- tainment concept” will be gracing Grandscape in The Colony beginning Thursday, March 28. This news comes almost a year since the expansion was announced, and the anticipa- tion among people who are into this sort of thing is palpable. The location in The Col- ony will include two 18-hole miniature courses designed by Woods, open-air din- ing, a play area for kids, an ice cream bar and separate areas for private parties. The prop- erty spans 13,000 square feet. In a statement to the press, PopStroke founder and CEO Greg Bartoli cites the Dal- las area as an ideal location for this facility because, apparently, we just love golf that much. “The rapid growth of the Dallas metro- politan area, coupled with its deep-rooted connection to golf, made The Colony a per- fect destination for our expansion into Texas,” said Bartoli. It’s always fun to learn more about how out-of-towners perceive us. They proba- bly heard about all the millionaires who live here and made the same assumptions we did. Between PopStroke (the second golf- related business in the complex), music venues like Lava Cantina, countless means of entertainment ranging from movie the- aters to immersive arcades and that giant Ferris wheel, Grandscape might be the closest thing North Texas has to Disney World. Sure, we already have Six Flags in Ar- lington and we’re getting a new Universal Studios in Frisco. But neither of those spots has a Nebraska Furniture Mart. The ball is in their respective courts to step it up. Speaking of balls, high-tech golf balls are one of many ways PopStroke aims to en- hance the putt-putt experience. The balls are designed to transmit the score directly to an app, taking the onus off customers to keep track of their score. Of course, this kills one of the most loved and honored traditions of putt-putt: lying. To be frank, the exclusion is border- line un-American. It will be an uphill bat- tle (uphill shot?) for PopStroke to find an equally fun replacement for arguing with friends and family over who’s winning and accusing each other of cheating. Drinking might just fit the bill and lead to as many if not more lively arguments. PopStroke will offer an expansive outdoor beer garden as well as lengthy menus for both craft cocktails and wines, if the menu for the Katy location is any indication. (The menu for the Grandscape location is not yet available.) As for the food, there’s something for ev- eryone, as you’d expect from a concept that centers on entertainment. The appetizer menu (again, in Katy) has all the usual sus- pects for those who come to these places looking to pig out on snacks. Wings, nachos, pretzels and mozzarella sticks are all in the lineup, as are more offbeat bites like tuna tartare. The entrees are equally crowd please-y. There are four different kinds of burgers, including veggie and turkey, as well as wraps, sandwiches, salads, tacos and flat- breads. The menu also lists 24 different flavors of milkshakes and a selection of fancier “signa- ture shakes.” The Peanut Butter Mudslide, their boozy milkshake option that blends peanut butter whiskey, vanilla ice cream and Kahlua, is at the top of our list of things to try if it’s carried over to the Grandscape PopStroke. PopStroke will hold a ribbon-cutting cer- emony on March 27 at 9 a.m. before opening to the public the following day. We already know what you’re wondering and the an- swer is no. Tiger Woods will not be in atten- dance. But he did design the courses, so we guess you could say he’ll be there in spirit, always. PopStroke, 5770 Grandscape Blvd., The Colony, opens on Thursday, March 28. Andrew Redington/Getty Images Tiger Woods designed the two 18-hole miniature courses at PopStroke's new location in The Colony. No, he will not be at the grand opening.
