Café Lago

9219 Garland Road, Suite 1102
Dallas, TX 75218
214-320-0726
www.cafe-lago.com

In January 2007, the City of Dallas passed an ordinance for restaurant owners to legally allow dogs on their patios. Local dog-lovers were ecstatic until we realized that several months after the ordinance had passed, no restaurants had been officially designated as "dog-friendly." The ordinance required restaurant owners to comply with a lengthy set of rules and improvements for their patios, which were sometimes cost prohibitive and impractical for many restaurants. On May 28, 2008 the Dallas City Council updated the Dog Variance Ordinance with some more relaxed rules - primarily that owners must ensure that the dogs are on leashes and that staff does not touch the dogs. Café Lago was the first to receive a permit (#001) to allow dogs on their patio, so DallasDogLife went to check it out.

Café Lago is located on Garland Road just west of Buckner Boulevard near White Rock Lake and has been open for eight years. This neighborhood restaurant has free wireless internet access, live music on weekends, and is known for the breakfast and brunch menu. A few Saturdays ago, DDL tester Buster and his friend Angel the King Charles Cavalier Spaniel were able to see first-hand exactly how friendly the patio really is. When I arrived with Buster, there were only two other tables with patrons in the patio area and a few guests inside the restaurant so I had my pick of seating. I chose a table in the shade away from the other diners (because you never know how people will react to having a dog near them). There were dog bowls for water on the ground around the table so Buster was able to have a drink while we waited to place our orders. The waitress brought a regular menu and a "doggie menu" that outlined the rules for dog-friendly dining on one side and the puppy menu on the other. Menu items are served without spices or seasonings on a disposable plate and should be placed on the ground or hand-fed to your pup, as dogs are not allowed on the patio tables or chairs.

We ordered Sliced Turkey Meat ($3) for Angel and Egg with Turkey Pieces ($4) for Buster. Other doggie menu items are Grilled Chicken ($6 for a quarter pound) and Two Scrambled Eggs ($3). Interesting fact - 15% of all Café Lago doggie menu item sales goes to benefit the East Lake Pet Orphanage. We humans ordered the Lago Omelette ($8.25), the Dallas Mozzarella and Tomatoes salad ($7.25), and a bowl of Gazpacho soup ($3.50). All the food that arrived was really tasty, especially the gazpacho. The service, however, was slow which was odd considering that the restaurant was not really packed. Other than waiting several minutes for tea and water refills, we had no issues with our order and thoroughly enjoyed our meals.

Buster and Angel's food arrived warm but not too hot to eat and the proportions were generous for the price. We started off hand-feeding them but soon realized that it was distracting us from eating our own meals. We set the disposable bowls down on the ground and within minutes, both Angel and Buster had wolfed down their food and were looking to us for more. The Café Lago menu says that humans will be given a treat to give to their dogs but neither of us received one, so the dogs just rested beneath the table while we finished our meals. A few patrons stopped by to ask about our dogs and in general the atmosphere was very accommodating to us and our pooches.

The restaurant is open Tuesdays through Saturday and is closed on Mondays. You can find more information about Café Lago - including online menus, a calendar of events, and more information about the rules for dog-friendly dining - on their website at www.cafe-lago.com. You can also get updates about Café Lago by following them on Twitter. To contact someone at Café Lago directly, please call 214-320-0726.