SWEET RESCUE

Dynamic duo rescues iconic Texas candy brand Lammes from closure

Lammes Candies’ neon lamb sign announces the Austin candy maker’s return after it appeared to be closing for good.

Courtesy of Lammes Candies

Lammes Candies looked like it had reached the end of its 141-year run when the Austin confectionery announced in April that it would close, citing “changing market conditions and the long-term sustainability of our operations.”

But its death was short-lived. Craig Cavileer and Kayla Wilkie-Kinne, the Fort Worth duo behind Delightful Development Co., have made their mark reviving Texas icons like the Fort Worth Stockyards. Now they are stepping in to rescue one of Austin’s oldest and most beloved candy shops.

Delightful Development has acquired Lammes, with the Lamme family remaining involved in the transition and preservation of the company’s recipes and traditions. The first sweets are already on their way back: Sherbet Mints, Longhorns, and Texas Chewie Pecan Pralines in legacy boxes.

“Our vision isn’t to change what Lammes Candies is known for,” Wilkie-Kinne said in the announcement of the sale. “It’s to bring back the legacy recipes, traditions and heritage that made Lammes so special for 141 years.”

For now, Lammes’ return is happening solely online. A separate Austin developer purchased the former Lammes building this spring.

Preorders open September 29 at noon, with nationwide shipping beginning November 1. A fuller relaunch is planned for spring 2027, although no brick-and-mortar plans have been announced yet. Texans will be able to buy products from retail locations around the state.

Lammes’ holiday Sherbet Mints are among the first sweets returning in a limited legacy-box run.Photo courtesy of Lammes Candies

For generations of customers, Lammes was tied not just to candy, but to holiday gift boxes, Valentine’s chocolate-covered strawberries, chewy pralines, and the familiar candy cane pole outside its Airport Boulevard shop.

Lammes’ history began downtown. David T. Lamme Sr. opened his first candy shop at Eighth and Congress in 1885, later moving to 919 Congress and establishing the Red Front Candy Shop. The company’s chewy pecan pralines date to the 1890s, when Lamme used pecans from trees along the Colorado River. The lamb logo was adopted so customers would know how to pronounce the family name.

Over the decades, Lammes grew from a downtown candy shop into one of Austin’s most recognizable legacy businesses. Its Airport Boulevard factory opened in 1956, marked by the neon lamb sign and striped candy cane pole. Three generations of the Lamme family ran the business there, helping make the store a recognizable stop for Austin holidays, gifts, and candy-counter classics.

The company eventually became known well beyond Austin for its Texas Chewie Pecan Pralines and Longhorns, made with chocolate, caramel, and pecans.

Cavileer and Wilkie-Kinne previously worked on the modern redevelopment of the Fort Worth Stockyards, including Mule Alley and Hotel Drover. Delightful Development has also purchased the historic Williamson County Jail in Georgetown, another landmark property being considered for adaptive reuse. Their new company was founded in 2025 to develop hospitality destinations and build on legacy brands in Texas.

“Lammes Candies is more than a confection and candy company,” Wilkie-Kinne said in the release. “It’s a significant piece of Texas history that Craig and I will honor, preserve, and celebrate with future generations of Texans and customers around the country.”

Lammes Christmas and Easter Sherbet Mints will also be available at select Cracker Barrel Old Country Store locations nationwide. Details on future restocks and new releases have not yet been announced. Updates will be posted at lammes.com and on Instagram.

reopenings openings desserts candy

PLATE EXPECTATIONS

Houston falters on surprising new list of America's best foodie cities

Photo by Vivian Leba

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Houstonians have a lot of pride for their city's diverse food scene and its wealth of culinary all-stars, but a new report has declared Houston's food scene apparently doesn't stack up among the top 10 best U.S. cities for foodies.

Houston claimed the No. 13 spot in WalletHub's just-released study comparing the "Best Foodie Cities in America."

To determine the rankings, analysts compared 182 U.S. cities across two key dimensions — "affordability" and "diversity, accessibility, and quality" — using 28 relevant metrics, such as the cost of groceries; the number of restaurants, food trucks, grocery stores, cooking schools, and others; restaurant diversity and ratings; and more.

The top five best foodie cities in America, according to WalletHub, are: Miami (No. 1); Portland, Oregon (No. 2); San Francisco (No. 3); Seattle (No. 4); and Austin (No. 5). The study comes to some surprising conclusions, as top culinary destinations such as New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles are outside the top 10 in favor of places like Tampa, Florida and Denver.

Houston's food scene ranked 18th in the national diversity, accessibility, and quality category, which examined the prevalence of certain dining establishments, the diversity of restaurant cuisine, and restaurant growth.

The local food scene ranked 24th in the national category for affordability, which prioritized the accessibility and affordability of high-quality restaurants, the costs for groceries and restaurant meals, sales and food taxes, and the average price for beer and wine.

People who consider themselves foodies don't have to limit themselves to a local restaurant scene, the report's author says. Foodies can discover new flavors and cuisines "wherever they can find them," including exploring in their own kitchens, checking out a food festival, or visiting "less prominent establishments" like food trucks.

"For these culinary enthusiasts, the experience of eating is elevated to a hobby or even a lifestyle," the report said. "While being a foodie can be quite expensive, culinary hotspots across the U.S. offer plenty of affordable and delicious options. These wallet-friendly cities cater to diners who prefer to cook at home, explore the local flavors, or both."

The Houston metro has been a hotbed for restaurant debuts and reopenings this year, including a lavishly renovated Chinese buffet, the return of two staple Mexican eateries, a new Brazilian steakhouse in Katy, a tequila-focused upscale Mexican restaurant opening in Cypress, and a new chic Italian eatery in The Woodlands, among others. And there's more new concepts coming to Houston later this year or in 2027. In addition, Houston restaurants took home two 2026 James Beard Awards and the state's only Food & Wine Best New Chef award.

Top foodie cities across Texas
Austin was the only Texas city to star among the top 10 best foodie cities nationwide. Austin's food scene ranked 11th in the national diversity, accessibility, and quality category, and it ranked 15th in the national category for affordability.

San Antonio, however, had the 2nd most affordable local foodie scene in the nation, but WalletHub claimed its culinary diversity, accessibility, and quality (No. 30) lacked in comparison. The combined rankings, plus additional factors analyzed by WalletHub, resulted in San Antonio being declared the 18th best foodie city in the U.S.

Dallas' food scene suffered a tumble to the 36th spot overall this year after ranking as the 25th best foodie city in 2025, but Fort Worth made a leap from No. 89 last year to No. 74 in 2026. Fort Worth was also ranked the ninth cheapest foodie city in the U.S.

The local food scenes in the suburbs of Dallas-Fort Worth leave much to be desired, according to the report. Out of all 182 U.S. cities, Plano (No. 94) was the only suburb that ranked among the top 100, which left out Arlington (No. 118), Garland (No. 120), Irving (No. 128), and Grand Prairie (No. 160).

The top 10 best foodie cities in America for 2026 are:

No. 1 – Miami, Florida
No. 2 – Portland, Oregon
No. 3 – San Francisco, California
No. 4 – Seattle, Washington
No. 5 – Austin, Texas
No. 6 – Orlando, Florida
No. 7 – Tampa, Florida
No. 8 – Las Vegas, Nevada
No. 9 – Sacramento, California
No. 10 – Denver, Colorado

restaurants wallethub reports