Restaurant Review: Dandelion Café – Heights

Dandelion Café has been a popular spot at their Bellaire location since they opened their doors in 2016, and recently they have opened a second location at the historic Heights Clock Tower. They may have started out as a small coffee shop here in town, but eventually expanded to serve a full menu. Chef JC Ricks led this revamp along with co owner Sarah Lieberman, who is living out her dream of running her own small business. Now with three locations across the city, this local business serves elevated breakfast, lunch, and brunch options to Houstonians daily.

Experience & Ambience

The café is on the first floor of Heights Clock Tower, a building with a considerable amount of historical character compared to many of the other neighborhood businesses. Walking past the nice little courtyard by the entrance, up the steps and through the door, the brightly colored atmosphere welcomes you in. There is a substantial amount of natural light flowing in through the walls of windows, tiled yellow walls with green accents and simple wooden seating that gives the location a classic diner feel while still retaining a more modern flair. As you enter, you will be standing directly in front of the counter where orders are placed, and you will receive an electronic device to set upon the table you choose. This will tell the servers where to bring your food when it’s ready. You can take your pick of tables by the windows or seats at the bar, where you can get a glimpse into the kitchen behind the counter.

Prices & Rating

Speaking on the prices, there are dishes ranging from averagely priced $10 plates of two breakfast tacos, or some of the other simpler menu items like pancakes, to the more expensive signature dishes like the chicken and waffles or the Big Dandy Omelette which run closer to $20. Most of the more substantial options sit between 15 and 20 dollars making it a bit on the expensive side for breakfast food, which is generally priced a bit lower around the $10 to $15 range. Side dishes run about $4 on average, and coffee from 4 to 7 dollars making this cafe fall mostly in line with the average price of other coffee shops around the city. While the price of some of their dishes are higher than average, the portion sizes are substantial, and their daily specials offer customers good deals on select items such as mimosas, tacos, and pancakes. While I find some of the menu items are a bit expensive for how simple/cheap they are to make at home and the pancakes fell a bit short of my expectations, those would be the largest detractors that I could point out. Overall, there are quite a few solid dishes on the menu that represent a more modern, upscale take on American breakfast food that is quite good, and there is an entire second menu of beverages to pair with whatever breakfast you are interested in. The atmosphere of the cafe is leaning towards the vibe of a cozy diner, with a scenic outdoor patio area that is very enjoyable during nicer weather. If you are a fan of American breakfast food, or a frequenter of local cafes, this restaurant does a great job of fulfilling that role.

What’s On The Menu?

There are quite a few options to choose from on the menu including several signature takes on classic breakfast foods. Perhaps the most notable item on the menu is Chef JC’s Award Winning Chicken and Waffles, which combines buttermilk marinated fried chicken and their special cornbread waffles for a new take on the dish amidst its recent rise in popularity. The Big Dandy Omelette with bacon, maple and pollo sausages, bell peppers, caramelized onions, cheddar cheese, their creamy chipotle sauce, and a side of hashbrowns is a new signature dish added to the menu that is quite good. Their Avocado Toast on focaccia bread with caramelized onions and shallots is a unique take on this modern staple, and The Dandy Classic checks the box for a traditional American breakfast plate with your choice of bacon, maple sausage, pollo sausage, chorizo, or avocado along with 2 eggs, hash browns, and your choice of toast. The Breakfast Tacos, Dandy Chicken Chilaquiles and the Black Bean Tostadas are a few of the fusion style dishes offered and the Superfood Salad is a nice heath oriented option.

Apart from their signature dishes, they offer a few different sandwiches including a simple Breakfast Sandwich with the customer’s choice of meat, 2 eggs, and cheddar cheese on a Kaiser roll. The BLTA Sandwich comes with the classic bacon, lettuce, tomato, and avocado toppings on white bread as well as a second version with smoked salmon. Also offered are a Club Sandwich with sliced turkey, ham, bacon, avocado, tomatoes, spring mix, roasted garlic aioli on seeded wheat bread or a Grilled Cheese with a mix of cheddar, provolone, and queso fresco.

For sweet options, they have both the Strawberry Cream French Toast and the Lemon Blueberry French Toast Sticks, the first of which is made with a brioche bread, strawberries, and a cream filling. The second option instead uses a unique combination of focaccia French toast sticks topped with blueberry compote, lemon curd, candied lemon peel, and whipped cream. Their extraordinary large Buttermilk Pancakes are a spectacle to behold and can be made with a few different fruits mixed into the batter, although their base flavor is somewhat lackluster.

In addition to their expanded food menu, they offer a wide selection of drinks, including every variety of coffee you could think of from Drip Coffee, to Lattes, Cappuccinos, Cortados, and Macchiatos. On the other hand, they have frozen and fruity beverages like Frappes, Frozen Lemonade, Agua Fresca, Homemade Juice Blends, and Fruit Smoothies. Mimosas are also available in a variety of flavors including orange, strawberry, blueberry, pomegranate orange, hibiscus honey, and vanilla lavender.

Daily Specials depend on the day of the week, but can give you a pretty good deal on select menu items. On Mimosa Mondays get your second mimosa for only a penny, on Taco Tuesday they have a bogo on breakfast tacos. On Wednesdays pancakes are half off, and Thirsty Thursdays grant customers $3 off smoothies, mimosas, and beers.

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