IRVING, Texas — When he immigrated to the United States at 3 years old, Victor Garcia saw a world of opportunity. But what really struck him is what he didn’t see.
“Inside, it just tore me up,” Garcia said. “I was like, ‘this can’t be the case.’”
Born in Mexico, Garcia says nothing gave him a taste of home like ice cream. Specifically, a style – and flavors – you can only find across the border.
“You get to visit these little paletarias and the things that they serve you are very different from what you find here,” he said. “It’s more like gelato, which is a very slow-churned ice cream.
That Mexican style of ice cream was always one small way Garcia connected to his culture.
Unfortunately, in the states, there was just nothing like it.
“I was like, ‘I’ve got to change this someday,’” Garcia said. “And so, that’s kind of where everything, that fire started.”
After becoming the first in his family to graduate college, Garcia quit his job in accounting to churn out a new idea.
His ice cream company, Sol Dias, just opened its second store in Irving and seeks to bring those flavors of Mexico to North Texas.
Garcia offers unique ice creams like mango, tres leches, churro, pistachio avocado and cheese.
“When people bite into it they remember Mexico, they relive their childhood or in their head they travel back home,” he said.
Indeed, a lot of customers have said it reminds them of Mexico.
For Garcia especially, it’s been a real treat.
For a while, he says he felt disconnected from his past. When he left for college, he had no reason to speak the language, no place to enjoy the customs and no way to connect to his past.
But through Sol Dias, he’s rediscovered his roots and says he is so thankful he’s able to plant them in the country he now calls home.
“I’m absolutely blessed and grateful to do what I do everyday,” Garcia said.
As he’s discovered, there’s nothing sweeter than that.