Hot Dish

Waxahachie is the perfect distance for a springtime day trip, and it's full of antique and curiosity shops. The only problem has been, where to eat? Cafe d'Amici is the answer. The old Rogers Hotel was empty for years. In fact, they used to use it for a Halloween haunted house, and when the current owner first saw the beautiful building on the square, it was still festooned with body parts, and its intricate tile floor was spotted with fake blood. The hotel was refurbished and reopened as that epitome of current civilization: a coffee house. And now it's more. There's not only a beautiful espresso machine, but you can order sandwiches and sweets at lunch, treat yourself to a full upscale dinner in the evening, and even rent the whole romantic shebang for a special, champagne-popping event.

Cafe d'Amici, 938-7838, Waxahachie.

--Mary Brown Malouf