Considered a Queensland “institution”, the much-adored Dandelion & Driftwood café has made its return to Hendra, opening the doors of its new location at 20 Doncaster Road, Hendra on 28 February.
Dandelion & Driftwood had garnered a fiercely loyal following while the first edition of the café operated in the Hendra community for some eight years in a nearby location. The second edition of Dandelion & Driftwood was at Brisbane’s International Airport but closed due to COVID-19, so the re-opening in Hendra is steeped in history and sentiment for the brand.
Set to surprise and delight fans with seven day a week trading, Dandelion & Driftwood is now fully licenced and returns with many old favourites from its signature breakfast, lunch, and fanfare high tea offerings but adding a new twist with ‘After Dark’ – cocktails and a “sumptuous” dinner menu Thursday to Saturday evenings.
Dandelion & Driftwood is the brainchild of Penny and Peter Wolff of Wolff Coffee Roasters, who revel in being able to educate, immerse, and spread their love and passion for coffee and tea flavour explosions – another cornerstone of the incredibly unique Dandelion & Driftwood offering.
“This exciting new chapter for Dandelion & Driftwood is an opportunity for us to bring our beloved local community an exceptionally inviting café experience but also bring high tea to the area and a chic ‘After Dark’ evening experience where we can’t wait to shake daring cocktails and deliver a stunning dinner menu – which is new for the Dandelion & Driftwood,” Penny says.
“We pride ourselves on Dandelion & Driftwood being that quirky venue that offers a chance for our customers to broaden their hearts, minds and palates to the endless possibilities of coffee and tea flavours, and we look forward to them being able to express their tastes with our new D&D tasting cards.”
Just a few of the other unique Dandelion & Driftwood charm specialities include cake trolleys, exquisitely presented high teas, and double decker food dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. These dishes feature one deck laden with savoury favourites while the top deck features the D&D signature sweet waffle.
“We are thrilled to be back with this new instalment of Dandelion & Driftwood and while lots is new – specifically on our menus thanks to our team of hand-picked chefs – we also can’t wait to be serving up old favourites such as our breakfast dishes, Dandy Man [corn and zucchini fritters, avocado with eggs] and Drifter Woman [old school potato rosti, smoked bacon with eggs],” Penny says.
“We are so proud of the longevity and following of our Dandelion & Driftwood brand and that each edition of D&D has enabled us to add some extra innovation, so we are looking forward to seeing how the new D&D modern twists are received.”
Breakfast and brunch Dandelion & Driftwood style has some sumptuous nostalgic dishes such as ‘first crack’ – savoury cheese and chive waffle served with bacon, rocket and hickory smoked honey, ‘sensory lexicon’ – twice cooked lamb with hickory and brown sugar bbq sauce served with slaw or ‘twin rivers of gold’ to name but a few.
Penny and Peter have crafted two signature coffee blends that will be completely exclusive to Dandelion & Driftwood. The Dandelion Blend focusses on the “feminine and the delicate fruit and brightness” that is memorable and comforting, while the Driftwood Blend is more masculine in focus, providing a robust, earthy risky, “action hero experience” that focusses on a complete mouth explosion.
Brewed coffee options will also be a highlight offering four alternate filter brew: Samantha Brewer, Delta Press, Toddy Cold Brew, and Bodum Immersion Brewing each served with high end filter roasted single origins exclusive to D&D through Wolff Coffee Roasters.
Dandelion & Driftwood’s ‘After Dark’ will see an expertly curated wine and beer list, adventurous cocktails and of course, coffee favourite, the Espresso Martini is sure to be a menu highlight.
Some of the creative and delicious ‘After Dark’ cocktails making their debut on the Dandelion & Driftwood menu include clever twists on old favourites, all with quirky names honouring D&D or the local neighbourhood. These include the Driftwood Martini, Pina Colada on Doncaster, D&D After Dark margarita, and Hendra Mojito.
One of the most daring cocktails will be Inkredible Pleasurable, featuring botanical Ink Gin with tonic water, egg whites, rosella dust, and edible flowers.
Dandelion & Driftwood’s interior is quirky contemporary heritage, tempering yesteryear elegance – with a mix of solid and fabric chairs, marble tabletops, vintage feature furnishings, old style lighting, and sleek tableware.
Pushing the boundaries between old and new, old school service with a modern twist yet offering a dining destination that is comfortable and inviting for all.
Dandelion & Driftwood is broken up into four areas. A coffee/cakes dining area complete with fabric chairs, low tables, and the infamous D&D cake trolley, the inside dining room, an outside tea garden, and the Cecil Ernest Private Dining Room that can seat between 8-14 guests. The private dining room named in honour of Penny’s Grandfather, Cecil Kroll, a former well-known mayor of Redcliffe.
Dandelion & Driftwood will be open Sunday to Wednesday, 7am to 4pm and Thursday to Saturday, 7am to 9pm.
Breakfast, lunch and high tea are all on offer seven days a week while Dandelion & Driftwood’s exciting ‘After Dark’ offering with full bar, cocktails, and dinner menu is on offer Thursday to Saturday only.
For more information, visit www.dandeliondriftwood.com, or follow on Facebook HERE or on Instagram at @dandeliondriftwood.