Dandelion Cafe Bellaire
Cafe · Gulfton ·
Award-winning chicken & waffles, brunch, lunch, coffee & pastries
Award-winning chicken & waffles, brunch, lunch, coffee & pastries
"The charming neighborhood café offers a daily menu of locally sourced, made-from-scratch breakfast, brunch, and lunch options. Aside from breakfast highlights like buttermilk pancakes, French toast, and biscuits and gravy, the café also offers paninis, salads, and occasional off-menu features by chef JC Ricks. Coffee is, of course. serious business. Made by local brewers like Greenway Coffee, Dandelon’s drinks are prepared with housemade flavored syrups, including bourbon caramel and peppermint." - Minh Truong, Sean Hekmat
"Family-owned Bellaire restaurant and coffee shop known for its competition-worthy chicken and waffles was hit hard when Hurricane Beryl knocked out power on July 8, leaving the cafe without electricity for nine days and causing an estimated $50,000 in food losses and significant lost income for employees. “It’s devastating. Our employees are why we’re so successful,” Ricks said on Good Morning America, and the owners returned to the show on July 19 where James Beard Award-winning chef Chris Shepherd and his wife Lindsey Brown presented $4,800 in disaster relief and CashApp announced a $10,000 donation—support Lieberman called a relief that “will help us take care of our employees.” The cafe had built a relationship with the morning show after appearing in its June 2023 “United States of Breakfast” competition (where it beat The Breakfast Klub), and Ricks had worked with Shepherd for a year before opening the restaurant. Local diners have supported the business by buying gift cards and visiting its second location on Rice University’s campus; the Bellaire flagship, which regained power on Monday, is still getting on its feet since opening Wednesday, July 17, and has been serving a limited menu. Open 7 a.m.–4 p.m. Monday–Saturday and 8 a.m.–3 p.m. Sundays." - Brittany Britto Garley
"The coffee shop and breakfast spot Dandelion Cafe is beloved by the neighborhood folks in Bellaire. We can’t tell if that’s due to how bright and colorful every square inch of the cafe is, or how ridiculously good the fried chicken and waffle tastes. Probably both. If you want breakfast, Dandelion can set you straight, fill you up, and maybe even make you feel as though you are being lovingly tucked into bed. Try a soft scrambled egg breakfast sandwich on a kaiser roll, chicken chilaquiles, and, of course, the 24-hour marinated fried chicken served over a fluffy cornbread waffle with spicy maple butter. Load up on espresso, juice, or even a few flavored mimosas if that’s how you roll at brunch." - gianni greene, chelsea thomas
"If you want breakfast, Dandelion Cafe in Bellaire can set you straight, fill you up, and maybe even make you feel as though you are being lovingly tucked into bed. Try a soft scrambled egg breakfast sandwich on a kaiser roll, chicken chilaquiles, and, of course, the 24-hour marinated fried chicken served over a fluffy cornbread waffle with spicy maple butter. We appreciate the large coffee menu, fresh juice, and the build your own omelet option—something a small cafe like Dandelion is brave and talented for offering. Get here early on weekdays to avoid the neighborhood crowd of early office lunch-goers and parents holding impromptu PTA meetings." - chelsea thomas, gianni greene
"This Bellaire cafe welcomes the community to kickstart their day with freshly brewed coffee concoctions, build-your-own omelets, breakfast tacos, and “sweet stuff” such as buttermilk pancakes and blueberry lemon curd French toast sticks. Be sure to try out its competition-winning chicken and waffles — a combination of cornbread buttermilk waffles and marinated and fried boneless chicken, served with compound butter, maple syrup, honey, chili flakes, and hot sauce, with a sprinkle of powdered sugar." - Sean Hekmat, Brittany Britto Garley
