Could a coffee shop have the best breakfast in our city? Not Just Coffee Dilworth making strong case

When Not Just Coffee debuted a breakfast menu at their new Dilworth location, I was admittedly skeptical.

Most coffee shops half-ass breakfast with mediocre pastries and sloppy sandwiches — but that’s not the case with Not Just Coffee Dilworth. Their breakfast dishes look like a work of art and are almost too beautiful to eat. Almost.

“The response to our breakfast menu has been terrific,” co-owner James Yoder told me. “Sales have been fairly strong, especially on the weekends.”

The new Not Just Coffee Dilworth space itself isn’t big.

I’ve been on both a weekday and weekend.  On weekdays, it’s easy to get a table. On weekends, not so much.

Inside the clean, tastefully designed coffee shop, you’ll find a nine-person bar, four-person window bar and six tables (there are four outside tables too). On weekdays, it’s the perfect size. On weekends, I wish it was larger.

There are only six dishes on Not Just Coffee’s simple breakfast menu.

• Spiced Muesli ($7.50) – Rolled oats soaked in oat-milk, honey & spices topped with dried fruit & nuts (vegan).
• Avocado Toast ($8) – Sliced avocado on sourdough, garnished with sundried tomatoes
• Yogurt Parfait ($7.75) – Layered whipped Greek yogurt & house made granola, spiced honey & seasonal fruit.
• Lox Eggs Benedict ($11) – Smoked salmon & tomato served on a toasted texas bun with poached egg, drizzled with a dill hollandaise.
• Savory Porridge ($10) – Steel cut oats in a mushroom broth with fresh cut vegetables & a soft egg
• Liege Waffles ($9.50) – Liege waffles with fresh seasonal fruit & cinnamon honey

The food program is led by Johnson and Wales graduate Carmen Fisher. Carmen was introduced to Not Just Coffee’s owners by one of their staff. She started as a barista for several months before taking over the food program in Dilworth.

“The menu is a combination of things I’ve been wanting to do for several years as well some new items Carmen has developed,” James said.  “As we worked on the menu for the months leading up to opening, I shared dishes that I was inspired by and she built all the recipes.”

Top three Not Just Coffee breakfast dishes, ranked

#3 Avocado Toast. I know, I know — how millennial of me. I love the thin sliced avocado, the sourdough is super fresh and the sun-dried tomatoes make the dish.

#2 Lox Eggs Benedict. Each bite of smoked salmon, poached egg, and tomato on Texas toast feels just right. The dill hollandaise provides an excellent complement to the dish — this somehow feels like a healthy eggs benedict.  

#1 Liege Waffles. I sound dramatic, but I’ve never tasted a waffle like this. So much thicker than a Belgian Waffle. It almost tastes undercooked which gives it that cookie-dough type texture. It’s their top seller for a reason.

And of course, all Not Just Coffee breakfast dishes pair well with the top lattes in the city.

“A full food menu has been a goal for quite awhile now and we’re really excited to be able to add this to Not Just Coffee’s brand see where it leads!” James said. Me too.