Is Calm the New Caffinated? New Wellness Driven Cafe Opens Downtown

The wellness-focused Cafe Olivia opens Tuesday, Feb. 17, inside the recently renovated Dallas Arts Tower (2200 Ross Ave.) in the Arts District. The cafe aims to bring “thoughtfully crafted food, coffee and hospitality to the city’s urban core,” according to a press release.

Cafe Olivia is from On Brand Hospitality, which is co-owned by Torry Cray and Adrian Verdin. Looks like this is their only concept at this point. Cray sees this cafe as a true escape, where you can enjoy a guilt-free meal, coffee or match and “genuinely exhale.”

Cafe Olivia was created to redefine modern cafe culture as a daily wellness ritual, with clean ingredients (and coffee) in a space designed to feel “calm, restorative, and beautiful,” per a press statement. Seed oils are out, replaced by options like beef tallow and avocado oil, with an emphasis on organic, grass-fed and locally sourced ingredients when possible.

Vendors listed on the menu include True Harvest, a hydroponic farm, Jersey Girls Dairy and Cedar Ridge Eggs.

Cafe Olivia, which also has a location in Addison, is a key component of the multi-million dollar Dallas Arts Tower renovation.

The cafe has a full breakfast and lunch menu, along with coffee, cocktails, and a grab-and-go section.

Cafe Olivia’s Food Menu

Cafe Olivia serves breakfast — sandwiches and entrees — from 7 to 10:45 a.m. There are five sandwiches ($12 to $19) with things like The Breakfast Club, which is made with egg, chicken-apple sausage, whipped feta, arugula and tomato spread ($17).

Of course, you can get avocado toast or an acai bowl. There’s a farmers’ market scramble with apple chicken sausage, potatoes, fruit and sourdough toast ($14).

Lunch runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and includes sandwiches, salads, entrees, soups and snacks, with vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options. Get a steak melt ($19) with smoked gouda and black garlic aioli on a baguette or a Peas and Love sandwich with carrots, chickpeas (thankfully not green peas), grilled tomatoes, baby greens and pistachio pesto ($17).

The Dirnks: Buzzed or Buzzed

Cafe Olivia offers all the classic coffee drinks (lattes, drip, cortado, Americano, chai latte) along with signature drinks made with either espresso or matcha. The Golden Hour is made with almond milk, honey, cinnamon and turmeric. All the standard customizations are available, from pistachio milk to rose water syrup.

Get something a little stronger from the Olivia’s Libations section. The Matcha Martini ($12) has vodka, house matcha, vanilla bean, Licor 43, and horchata cold foam. I’d drink that. Gabe’s Boulevardier has espresso-infused Campari, whiskey and sweet vermouth. There are four wines on offer, including Avaline, which is supposed to be a wellness brand.

Cafe Olivia, 2200 Ross Ave., Monday – Friday 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.