Serving Argyle, Bartonville, Canyon Falls, Copper Canyon, Double Oak, Flower Mound, Harvest, Highland Village, Lantana and Robson Ranch
April 2017
www.CrossTimbersGazette.com
Since 1979
Overseas Inspiration Results in Cool Hangout By Noelle M. Hood, Contributing Writer
What do local business owner Richard Baldwin and Marco Polo, an Italian traveler born seven centuries ago who was employed by Mongolian Kublai Khan for 17-years, have in common? You guessed it--both are/were fond of gelato. To clear up any questions held by the uninitiated, gelato is a luxury ice cream the world attributes to the Italians, but-- truth be told-- gelato was created by an unknown Chinese chef in the Middle Ages. And it is probably a good guess that Kublai Khan, grandson of the great Genghis Khan and Chinese Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty, had a weakness for the stuff, too. We will never know if the Mongol hordes stole the recipe during a burn-and-pillage adventure south of the Great Wall-- then introduced this scrumptious sweet to their Italian visitor/roving ambassador-- or if he got the recipe first, then made the introduction. In any case, Polo returned to Venice
around 1295 (that’s 200-years before his countryman, Christopher Columbus, discovered the Americas) with recipes for gunpowder, spaghetti noodles and the silken, icy treat produced every day at Epic Gelato; Baldwin’s eatery on a corner in The Shops at Lakeside on Flower Mound’s Lakeside Parkway. Baldwin started life in 1968 Mount Vernon, Ind. “After high school, I became a Liberal Arts hippie at the University of Illinois,” said Baldwin. “My bachelor’s degree is in philosophy and photography.” So, what does a man do with those credentials? “Me and my ponytail and combat boots became interns setting up scenes for Spiegel Catalogue photo shoots,” he said. “Some of my coworkers pointed out I could get better pay if I looked more conventional. I’m a practical guy, so I got a haircut, bought a See GELATO on Page A23
Photo by Brian Maschino
Richard Baldwin of Flower Mound has the scoop on tasty gelato and coffee artisanship.
“Downtown” Flower Mound Becoming Reality By Lyn Rejahl Pry, Editor
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A rendering of The River Walk at Central Park looking south shows the amphitheater, splash pad, restaurant row and chapel.
It’s taken nearly a decade and multiple developers, but Flower Mound’s “downtown” development, The River Walk at Central Park, will hold a Grand Opening Celebration on the evening of Tuesday, April 25, from 6 to 9 p.m., at 4272 Riverside Drive. The River Walk is a 158-acre mixed-use development that integrates commercial, office, retail, dining, medical, civic and residential with 46.5 acres of parks and open spaces. The River Walk is located north of FM 1171, west of Morriss Road and east of FM 2499. “The event by [developer] Centurion American is to showcase The River Walk and its amenities,” said Angie Tassan, Vice President of Marketing with Crozier & Henderson Pro-
ductions and Hot On! Homes. “There will be community tours, food trucks, family entertainment, the Marcus High School Drumline, the popular cover-band Triple Lindy, plus we’re trying to get Flower Mound High School Band members, if they don’t have auditions and other obligations.” See RIVER WALK on Page A9
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