Weekend mornings, Soirée Coffee Bar opens at 8 a.m. like any good coffee shop, with lattes going out over the counter. By noon it has turned into a brunch room with live music, and the espresso machine has competition.
Clive and LaFree Ryan opened Soirée in October 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic, on Singleton Boulevard at Trinity Groves in West Dallas. They built it as a jazz-themed coffee bar with a mission, a gathering place for the Black community that buys from Black vendors for much of what it serves. Six years later the jazz theme still runs through everything, down to the names on the drink menu.
Brunch is Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The music starts at noon and plays until close.
The kitchen cooks Southern with a strong Cajun accent, and gouda grits are the backbone of the menu. Start with the Cajun Fish N’ Grits, fried catfish set over the house Cajun sauce and a bed of those grits. The Oxtail N’ Gouda Grits puts thick, saucy stewed oxtail on the same base, and the Creole Shrimp N’ Grits swaps in Creole-seasoned shrimp.
The most ambitious plate is the Blackened Salmon Étouffée. A blackened salmon fillet gets topped with shrimp and crawfish étouffée and served over dirty rice, with asparagus on the side.
The breakfast plates are built for big appetites. The Lamb Chop Breakfast brings two chops with scrambled eggs, breakfast potatoes and Texas toast. The Pork Chop Breakfast follows the same plan, with the chop grilled or fried, your call. The Chicken N’ Waffle is three fried wings on a buttermilk waffle under a snowfall of powdered sugar.
Anyone looking for something lighter can go with the All That Jazz Avocado Toast. It’s piled on sourdough with thick-cut bacon, heirloom tomatoes, eggs, feta and a drizzle of honey, and it comes with a fruit bowl.
Save room for the Peach Cobbler Egg Rolls. They’re hand rolled, two to an order, and served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce.
The coffee bar side of the business shows up on the brunch menu too. The signature lattes are named for jazz singers. The Ella Fitzgerald is salted brown sugar, and The Billie Holiday is dulce de leche.
The cocktail list follows suit. The Duke, named for Duke Ellington, mixes Hennessy with triple sec, peach schnapps, orange juice and lemonade. The Calloway Express is the house espresso martini. Mimosas come by the glass or the carafe, including a Lavender Mimosa.
Reservations are suggested for brunch. You can book through Soirée’s brunch page, which also has the full menu. The weekend menu changes with availability, so ask your server what’s on that day.
Soirée Coffee Bar is at 320 Singleton Blvd., Suite 190. It’s open 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. 972-850-9030.
