Restaurant review: Cafe Expresso in Dallas

by Katie & Emily Garrett of The Dish On Dallas

The "create your own pasta" option was a winner for the Garrett sisters.

Cafe Expresso soup

Cafe Expresso is located near Preston & Northwest Highway, and it's a hidden gem. I've been around that area many times for Blue Plate, Snuffer's, and even Orange Cup, but I'd never seen Cafe Expresso. I think that is what makes it so appealing.

The clientele knew the staff. I overheard one lady order "the usual, please," and the waitress seemed to have no trouble. There was a table full of men in suits, several matronly ladies, and a group of stay-at-home-moms dining with us for lunch on Friday, so it's a very mixed bag as far as the diners go. The service is slow, so don't go if you're in a hurry. However, the service is so pleasant and friendly that we didn't mind things moving at a slower pace.

Hot bread and butter arrived at the table first -- you know we were already impressed. From there, we tried the Rosemary Chicken Soup with Rice. Again, impressed. This tastes just like something your mom would make on an overcast wintry day. It was perfect. The chicken had been grilled, which gave it a leg up on its normal chicken soup competition. This is a definite re-order!

Cafe Expresso salad

From the soup, we moved to the spinach salad with pink peppercorn. That peppercorn was spicy, but it gave a nice kick to something that can be kind of bland. The salad was tasty, but didn't blow my socks off. We wrapped up with the "create your own pasta" option. You select which pasta shape you enjoy, then you add a sauce and, if you want, a meat. We chose the farfalle pasta with carbonara sauce and pretty much licked the bowl clean. They have a ton of options to choose from when creating your own pasta. This was a winner for us, but you can choose to go lighter or you can choose a dish that they have already paired for you.

Our food was fresh, delivered with a smile, and had a very home-cooking type of appeal. Cafe Expresso isn't loud -- you can have a whole convo with your table mate and no one has to yell. In fact, you might even need to talk quietly if you want to keep it private. There aren't many places in Dallas where that is true. The owner personally came over to the table and chatted with us, a kind gesture on this busy Friday afternoon. We were both impressed and will definitely schedule a re-visit.