Dharma Cafe

02/15/09

Hands on owners, great ambience

by canwetalk at Citysearch

Situated in an old building, with concrete floors & high ceilings, there is a great feeling of openess, not being crowded. There was live music playing, but not so loud as to prevent good conversation. The waiter was very good, familiar with the food (is it fresh, not frozen, what's in the sauce, etc.). I was uncertain about a particular wine, and a sample was brought over before we committed to a whole bottle. Upon leaving, all the ladies were presented with a single, long-stem rose for Valentine's Day. A lovely meal.

PS: One of the owners is ex-Enron, so if you have stories to share ...

• Pros: Live music, great ambience
• Cons: Parking, lack of dinner bread

02/08/09

Over rated, over priced brunch buffet

by sheilabac at Citysearch

The buffet is actually very small, not at all what we were expecting. The soup looked like Italian Wedding, but wasn't. I didn't care for it, but my daughter liked it. The asparagus was undercooked, while the salmon was overcooked, but tasty. There was only 1 pasta dish, and I don't know what they call it, but nothing to call me back for seconds.

It was difficult to get our waiter's attention to order an omelet and cinnamon roll. The omelet was properly cooked, but flavorless. They need better tasting eggs. The filling was skimpy, as well. My daughter said her cinnamon roll was hot, but hard.

For $17 per person we were expecting more variety and higher quality. There was nothing French about the food we had today.

They claim to be kid friendly, yet have no changing station in the restroom.

10/03/08

Wonderful food!

by kuchim at Citysearch

The food is outstanding - flavorful, not fussy, beautiful presentation. The Shrimp Mojo is to die for and the crab cakes a close second. Service is friendly and professional. This a wonderful cozy spot.

01/23/08

Down the Drain!

by FoodTechHouston at Citysearch

I knew when they moved it would no longer be speical. Sorry, I will have to find a new favorite place. Too many dumb people know about it now.

• Pros: Good Food
• Cons: Too Many Poeple

01/17/08

Spectacular Food and Service!

by justdanielle1 at Citysearch

I have had brunch and dinner at Dharma and both times they exceeded my expectations. The bartender is very good at what he does, very social, entertaining, and knowledgeable on the entire menu, bar, just everything. The food is positively delicious. Brunch on Sunday is a buffet style with made to order eggs. They offer any variety of eggs to order along with a special omelette of the day if you like. Last week's offering was light and delicious filled with cheese, jalapenos, tomaotes and mushrooms. It came out piping hot, fresh and exactly cooked how an omelette should be cooked. The buffett offereings were delicious as well with a good variety of items to choose from. The area was kept clean, neat, hot and stocked well. The bread pudding was out of this world as was the pasta, sausage, bacon, potatoes, well - you get the picture! Dinner menu is well thought out offering a variety of dishes of which I have only tried the scallops and salads which are wonderful but so many things look good it will need me to go on many more trips - thank goodness. This is a romantic restaurant at night in my opinion with the ecclectic furnishings, low lighting and good humor and professionalism from the staff. I highly recommend a glass of wine and a cozy dinner with your special someone at this delightful place.

• Pros: Sunday Brunch, atmosphere, great food all around
• Cons: Nothing

12/08/07

Bigger is not better but more expensive and noisy.

by pj52 at Citysearch

I was afraid that Cafe Dharma would become another restaurant after the move and it did.The ambiance it had when it was smaller is gone.It has become too expensive and noisy.The food is good if you are willing to pay their prices.

11/16/07

Bigger and Better

by augenguy at Citysearch

Had dinner here last night. I had the Ossa Bucco special and my partner enjoyed the blueberry chicken. The steak was exceptional: tender and seasoned to perfection. The chicken is a breast pounded and stuffed with riccota and blueberries. The flavor was magnificent.

I understand they have added the bar for the new location, and I mention this because the martinis were outstanding. The bartender is a real character and he personally came out to check that we were happy with our experience. The bar is made of Indonesian temple doors and was hand-built by the owner. I want to return for happy hour soon, if for no other reason than to see what other fun the barman can serve up. He certainly seemed to keep his patrons entertained.

The experience was complete and was complimented by attentive, but not intrusive, service and an atmosphere unlike anything else I have found in Houston. The menu is diverse, with a separate menu for lunch and dinner. The key lime pie is not to be missed! The prices are medium to high, but the portions and quality of the food put every penny on your plate. They have off-street parking in the rear and sidewalk tables in the front, though the noise from buses and cops is a bit disconcerting.

I recommend the Dharma for all-around quality and fun.

• Pros: food, bar, atmosphere
• Cons: noisy sidewalk dining

Praise to Buddha for this charming French-influenced downtown cafe.

by Contributor at Citysearch

In Short
While the name, a Sanskrit word meaning "spiritual work one does to remain centered," came to owners Susan Ralph and John Gurney from their Buddhist teachings, the menu is hardly Asian. Instead, it's rooted in the comfort of country French cooking as well as Alice Waters' West Coast fare. Lunch and dinner offer sandwiches, chicken, seafood and homemade pastas. Seating only 44, the restaurant makes for a cozy and romantic hideaway.

10/21/07

Great Atmostphere and food

by sclude at Citysearch

this place was great for sunday brunch. The brunch buffet line was real good. The teryaki style salmon was excellent and not dried out like one gets from a buffet line. Bannana pancakes were also great.

***PLEASE NOTE THEIR ADDRESS HAS CHANGED***

we found out the hard way the location is now 1718 Houston Ave.

The new restaurant looks great and very spacious.

• Pros: sunday brunch

05/27/07

cool cafe in a funky part of town.

by foodie1013 at Citysearch

Interesting cafe, in a funky part of town. I discovered it while roaming around the "warehouse district" of Houston. I'll need to go back, but I enjoyed the pizza and soup I had for lunch. Lot's of nice food items, and Basque night on Thursday sounds worth the trip.

• Pros: Ambience
• Cons: parking