The Sweet Life

You can’t miss Doughmonkey’s chef Rhonda Ruckman; she performs her pastry-baking in the front window of the charming shop in Snider Plaza. She uses old-world techniques and only the highest-quality ingredients, like Michel Cluizel chocolate, Plugrá butter, Tasmanian honey, and the store-made Grey Goose vodka Tahitian vanilla extract. Her specialties include Valrhona chocolate cake (pictured), mango mousse cake, and Old Whiskey River pecan pie. 6708 Snider Plaza. 214-890-1300. —NANCY NICHOLS