We’re toy fiends in my household. With kids ages 1, 3, and 5 who are always game for entertainment, I’m always on the lookout for unique and imaginative toys. But there’s only so many Amazon purchases and visits to big-box stores one can make before the excitement fades. That’s why I’ve ventured off the internet and abandoned Target sprees to discover charming small town toy stores emboldened with character, creativity, craftsmanship, and a passion for play. Places where a kid can be a kid and adults can feel transported back to childhood—or, perhaps, to an earlier era when screens didn’t exist and the art of play was a sacred ritual.
If you’re wondering where you can experience this in the Lone Star State, you’re in luck. We found six road trip-worthy spots in Belton, Georgetown, Mission, and other towns that offer experiences laden with soda fountains, decadent ice creams, locally made wooden toys, unexpected vintage treasures, memory-evoking stuffed animals, and other delightful goods just in time for the holiday season.
Z&H Old-Fashioned Candy, Toys, and Soda, Belton
From the moment you walk into the turn of the century-styled Z&H Old-Fashioned Candy, Toys, and Soda, you’re hit with blasts from the past including paper airplanes, pennant string flags, and hot air balloon lanterns hanging from the ceiling. There’s a working Kellog rotary phone that store employees help the kids call from parents’ cellphones, an antique cash register, a player piano that kids swear is magical, and an adorable rainbow dollhouse. There’s even a refurbished soda fountain featuring flavors like vintage root beer, an ice cream bar with selections from Temple-based Freezing Point Creamery, and handmade wooden toys crafted by a local maker. You won’t find any beeping, flashing, noisy—aka battery-operated—goods in this 410-square-foot building constructed in the 1920s. Instead, you’ll find materials that foster imagination, creativity, and a sense of wonder in all ages.
Right from the store’s opening in 2023, owner Virginia Benavidez focused on sourcing local goods to honor the legacy of traditional stores that paved the path for her own—places she enjoyed visiting as a child. “If you go in with the intention of opening a store like this, you can’t go with mass-produced, cheap products because stores like this weren’t doing that back in the day,” she says.
Benavidez is intentional with every feature, from the wooden stick horses handmade by her dad, children’s books penned by local authors, and the ever constant encouragement of play and imagination, even with delicate pieces. “I’ve had parents say to me, ‘You can’t let kids play with the old piano, the dollhouse, or the phone. They might break them,’” Benavidez says. “But my opinion is I’d rather let these things be played with and enjoyed than be fussy and let the pieces sit there going to waste.” 203 N. East St., Belton. 254-613-4068; zandhcandy.com
All Things Kids, Georgetown
When Karen Soeffker and her husband, Christian, moved from Germany to the United States in 2006, one thing that surprised them was the lack of quality toys available in America. So to keep their 1-year-old son entertained, the couple relied on family in Europe to send them wooden toys for their son to play with. When their fellow parents in Austin took notice of the foreign toys’ quality, the couple realized they had something special on their hands.
Today, the family’s 14-year-old, 3,000-square-foot toy store, All Things Kids, has become a celebrated institution for families seeking timeless and beautifully crafted toys, classic children’s books, award-winning games, and treats like ice cream, root beer floats, and old-fashioned candy. The 120-year-old building beckons patrons and passersby with the scent of freshly made waffle cones wafting through Georgetown Square, but once you step inside, it’s hard to resist the allure of the shop’s meticulously curated collection, ranging from Europe-sourced wooden toys, classic hardcover books, fill-your-bag candies, and an ice cream bar with over 40 flavors, including white chocolate cranberry and caliente cocoa, from Beth Marie’s Old Fashioned Ice Cream in Denton.
The space itself looks like a vintage hardware store, with wood floors and shelves, exposed brick walls, and nostalgic designs that transport you to a bygone era. For parents seeking a relaxed shopping experience that doesn’t involve shouting “Don’t touch that,” relax, because this store prioritizes immersion. “On my business card it says CEO, which stands for chief experience officer, and I mean that,” Soeffker says. “You can’t buy an experience on Amazon, but here it’s a sensory experience, and that’s something that’ll never change.” 703 S. Main St., Georgetown. 512-868-2659; allthingskids.us
T&E Treasures, Mission
There’s something about a stuffed animal that brings out the kid in everyone. At least that’s the experience Erica Saenz wants visitors to have at her shop. T&E Treasures, located in Mission just outside of McAllen, is nestled in the City Plaza shopping center and features novelty and vintage collectible figurines, Loungefly bags, comic books, and enamel pins. But the hot commodity is the collection of over 10,000 stuffed animals from around the world. The all-ages store has been open for nine years and has patrons planning day trips just to see these cuddly companions up close and personal, and of course, to take some home. “What amazes us is that even though we’re a small town, we’ve had families drive like six hours to come visit us, so to be a bucket list place for people is incredible,” Saenz says.
Here in this 1,500-square-foot space visitors will find modern, social media-famous collectibles like Jellycat and Squishmallows. The bestsellers, though, are memory-evoking pieces that highlight blast-from-the-past characters, like Garfield, E.T., Alf, and The Simpsons, that parents and kids equally adore. Many of the patrons come in search of stuffed animals that “they’ve lost one way or another over the years,” Saenz says. “When you see someone find their childhood plush, you can see it means the world to them.” 409 N. Bryan Road, Suite 103, Mission. 956-651-3867; toystorergv.square.site
The Barnhill Toys and Books, Brenham
When owner Betsy Barnhill Newman decided to open a toy store, she kept it in the family. The result is a space that feels very much like home. Newman operates her nearly 35-year-old, family-owned business out of her grandparents’ 1956 home and the space is a haven where kids can be kids, with the freedom to touch, play, and explore the old brick home. The Barnhill Toys and Books near downtown Brenham provides shoppers with enduring entertainment pieces like rocking horses, Slinkies, jack-in-the-boxes, puzzles, toy vehicles, costumes, dolls, and classic storybooks. What once used to be the living room where her grandmother, C.C., hosted bridge parties is now filled with Fisher-Price, Lincoln Logs, Lite-Brite, Playforever cars, and baby goods. The old den houses Bruder and Tonka trucks, Madame Alexander dolls, Jellycat animals, and craft supplies, and the hallway is a dress-up paradise with princess dresses, first-responder and superhero costumes, and accessories. Lastly, the dining room is now fondly called “the fidget room,” with board games, squeeze toys, and party favors.
While many modern toy stores are looking to trends and social media to inspire their in-store stock, Newman and her family members (who have all worked in the store in some fashion assembling toys, gift-wrapping, and accounting) focus on creating a personable in-store experience, forgoing an online store, nationwide shipping, or the latest viral toys. “I like to keep it classic, and I always say if I can get the attention of an 11-year-old boy, then we’re doing something right here, because those kids are always the hardest to impress,” she says. 606 S. Austin St., Brenham. 979-836-1817; thebarnhillhouse.com
The Magical Warehouse, Alpine
For years, Connie Santillan and Martin Isaac Gutierrez loved collecting sports memorabilia and old toys. However, living in a small town like Alpine often required traveling out of town to source pieces that engaged the married couple’s passions. That’s why it made sense for them to bring nifty, novelty treasures to their community by opening The Magical Warehouse in 2021. Located in the middle of downtown next to the old Rangra Theatre, the shop is a well-organized destination where visitors can find a variety of pop culture-centric collectibles including Star Wars and Funko Pop! figurines and accessories, Pokémon and Magic: The Gathering trading cards, sports memorabilia, comic books, vintage action figures, old video game consoles—you name it, it can be found here..
The Magical Warehouse itself is a treat to explore, but the shop also hosts in-store meetups and community events, like next month’s Far West Comic Con. That engagement with the local and collector communities is what Santillan loves to witness, she says: “When you see kids and parents responding to what we have in store, like if a mom picks up a Power Ranger and says, ‘This is Tommy, an original Power Ranger,’ and has a conversation with her kid about her childhood, or if a dad walks in and finds something Michael Jordan and his son finds something Lebron James, that’s incredible.” 113 E. Holland Ave., Alpine. 432-294-1836; facebook.com/magicalwarehouse
Pop’s Toys and Collectibles, Spring
Sometimes you step into a store and immediately realize you’re in the midst of a treasure hunt, in search of pieces you never knew you needed. Pop’s Toys and Collectibles, open three years in Spring, is one of those rare places, where every shelf introduces visitors to new and vintage collectibles that spark joy.
The 1,100-square-foot store is housed in the historic Old Town Spring district, where owner Chris Nolen confesses visitors will feel like they’ve been transported “right into a Hallmark movie.” Nolen keeps track of all the countries his customers have traveled from by sticking pins in a globe—he estimates there are about 30 pins thus far. “The wonderful thing is you have people who happen upon you every week, and you can’t get that just anywhere you go,” he says.
In the porch-adorned building that was once a modular home, there’s a heaping of just about every interest and brand from present day to decades past, including wrestling memorabilia, Funko Pop!, Barbie, Star Wars, Hello Kitty, Hot Wheels, and Star Trek. I even spotted a Titanic Barbie in the stash. One of the things Nolen prides himself on is the store’s affordability, with prices ranging from 25-cent Hot Wheels to $300 collectibles. “We have parents who come in here and tell the kids, ‘OK, you have $5,’ and in a lot of stores that wouldn’t be possible,” he says. “But in here, everyone can walk out with something.” 310 Gentry St., Spring. 713-248-6059; popstoysandcollectibles.net
