We all know breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but there is something really special about the classic, American take on this meal. Eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, and of course, in the south, grits and biscuits. In downtown Winston-Salem, there is a new restaurant taking that classic American breakfast to the next level. Young Cardinal Cafe & Co. is now open serving fresh, local, classic American breakfast dishes all day, in addition to lunch and a late-night menu.
Owner Adam Andrews is no stranger to the Winston-Salem restaurant scene. In fact, he started as a dishwasher at Town and Country in King, NC. After working his way up in that restaurant, he attended Le Cordon Bleu Institute of Culinary Arts in Pittsburgh. After graduating, he worked for one year in Pittsburg as a chef at Atrias. At that time, he heard about a job in Winston-Salem at 4th Street Filling Station. He knew it was time to come home. Andrews said, “Coming back here in the early 2000s, the growth that Winston-Salem was experiencing was so exciting. Restaurants and nightlife were really beginning to flourish, and I wanted to be a part of it.”
Over the past several years, Andrews has been growing into his role in the local restaurant community. He and business partner Jeff Bassett opened Jeffery Adams in 2012. He then opened Andrews Farms to provide local produce for his restaurants for a true farm to table experience in 2014. Then 2017 brought the opening of Dogwood Hops and Crops and The Trophy Room in collaboration with his friends Austin Ridge and Joe Hurdle.
And in February of this year, he opened Young Cardinal Cafe & Co. to bring something new to the table downtown. Andrews went on to say, “I love being a part of this community. Everyone in the hospitality business here cheers each other on and has each other’s back. It’s very special.”
When the space on the corner of Fourth and Spruce became available, Andrews knew it was the perfect place for a breakfast spot. But he is taking it one step further. Young Cardinal Cafe & Co. will have delicious, affordable breakfast and lunch options served all day and a full bar. He has a fantastic team in place that includes Chef David Swing and front house manager, Nick Shea. Swing is the former chef at Sir Winston and Firebirds, and Shea has been at Jeffery Adams with Andrews since day one.
The menu at Young Cardinal Cafe & Co. makes it a stand out downtown establishment. The breakfast selections give you the option of classics and specialty items. You can enjoy biscuits, Benedicts, building your own omelet, and hash browns topped with just about anything you can imagine. If you are looking for something sweet, you will want to try their French toast, waffles, and pancakes. They also have some delicious specialty breakfast items like the chicken and grits with pork rind encrusted fried chicken, chorizo, Texas Pete tomato gravy, spinach, and creamy stone-ground grits. Lunch items include fresh salads and sandwiches like the Prime Rib Sandwich with sliced prime rib, mushrooms, caramelized onions, bell peppers, Swiss cheese, and horseradish sauce. The late-night menu will be scaled down, but have some unique items like breakfast panini sandwiches.
Don’t forget about the full bar that has a variety of specialty drinks to make your meal complete. In addition to draft beer, bottled beer, and a nice selection of wines, there are really great signature drinks. One of the boozy coffees you might enjoy is the Bourbon Salted Caramel made with Maker’s Mark Bourbon, caramel, and espresso. They also have some exciting bloody Marys made with a house-made bloody Mary mix. The bar will also be open until 12:00 AM Thursday, Friday, and Saturdays during their late-night service.
If you are looking for a great new place for breakfast, lunch, or late-night eats, you have to try Young Cardinal Cafe & Co. It is located at 424 4th Street NW in downtown Winston-Salem. They are open Tuesday – Friday from 7AM-3PM, Saturday – Sunday from 8AM-3PM, late night Thursday, Friday & Saturday from 9PM-2:30AM and closed Mondays.
For more information, you can check out their website at youngcardinalws.com. To see the latest things going on, follow them on Instagram at youngcardinalws and on Facebook.
