Based on a couple of recent visits, it appears dinner hasn’t yet caught on at Satellite Cafe. We’re not sure why.

The Heights isn’t overrun with decent
dinner options, and Satellite is doing a pretty good job with its
smallish menu of interesting, decently priced dinner offerings. It is a
familiar destination for so many who for years have crowded the place
for lunch and even more so for weekend breakfast/brunch. (The
restaurant has built a large legion of breakfast/lunch fans since it
moved from downtown into the former location of Hall’s Drug Store 11
years ago.) There’s a great happy hour that includes $1 off already
low-priced mixed drinks and glasses of wine. And our server was as
attentive, helpful and friendly as he could be in an unobtrusive way.

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However, it was almost as if we caught
our waiter off guard when we ordered a full dinner – one appetizer, one
soup, two main courses, one dessert, wine, a cocktail and a coffee. He
told us a family emergency had sent the head chef out of town, that
there was no duck (the menu description made it sound very appealing),
and that the vegetable terrine wouldn’t be accompanying the tilapia as
advertised. And, of the five desserts on the menu, the chocolate creme
brulee was the only one available.

But, hey, the things we could get and
did get were all pretty dang good. We were worried there wouldn’t be
enough quail clinging to the tiny carcass to make it worth splitting as
an appetizer, but we were wrong. Lightly fried, moist and juicy, the
quail ($9) was a hit, though it’s wise to watch out for tiny bones. The
tortilla soup ($3.50) was aggressively spiced with cumin and was ample,
hearty and filling.

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The pan-seared tilapia ($15) was an
excellent and excellently prepared piece of mild, delicate fish,
crisped just a bit but very succulent inside. With no veggie terrine to
accent it, our sub-chef decided on a bed of wilted spinach, and it
worked very well, melded with the slab of gruyere that was supposed to
be atop the terrine. Nice save by the kitchen!

Our ribeye ($21) was cooked just like
we wanted, and while a little fatty it was very flavorful, and plenty
ample to box up the remains for another meal. The accompanying
scalloped potatoes were sinfully rich, tender slices of potatoes
drowning in a thick white sauce. The excess sauce was perfect for
sopping with the slices of ciabatta our waiter kindly grilled with a
bit of olive oil when we requested bread. Again, nice touch – served
quickly, hot, and with no sense we were burdening anyone.

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The chocolate creme brulee – is there
any mid-range restaurant that DOESN’T do brulee these days? – was
soupier than most, but no less decadent than its firmer cousins. A side
order of vanilla bean ice cream was thrown in gratis, maybe because of
the frowns we exhibited when we learned there were no fried pies.

We’d split a piping-hot, crisp-crusted
apricot fried pie topped with rapidly melting ice cream on a previous
lunch visit, and it definitely made us want another. We started that
meal with two soups – white bean chicken chili and seafood bisque, the
soup special that day. The broth-based chili was flavorful, but lighter
than we’d expected, almost delicate. The bisque was as rich and creamy
as you’d expect and left us scraping the bottom of the cup for
remaining droplets.

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There’s a lot to like about the juicy
drug store burger ($7.50) – it’s a decent-sized, hand-formed patty that
is allowed to cook slowly without being smooshed. It was shy on the
salt and pepper though and could have used a little garlic powder to
liven it up. The accompanying fries were crispy shoestrings, and there
were plenty for two.

The steak and brie sandwich ($13) also
needed some help. Meat, cheese and bread alone is fine for a
9-year-old’s cheeseburger, but this sandwich had great potential. It
just needed a fancy mayonnaise, maybe some grilled onions or even
lettuce and tomato to make it more interesting. The steak was a little
chewy, but that is understandable. Fork-tender filet isn’t going to
show up on a sandwich this size and price.

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Breakfast remains the bomb at
Satellite; it is the variety and creativity that separate Satellite
from greasier-spoon breakfast spots. Blueberry pancakes, huevos
rancheros, design-your-own omelets, French toast made with whole-grain
breads and cinnamon apples are just a few of the competitive
differentiators.

Satellite has a good vibe all the way
around. It’s a booth-only restaurant – plus stools at the bar – and
comfortably funky in a bohemian sort of way. There is live music two
nights a week, and the recorded music played the rest of the time is
generally good as well. Folks are friendly, and it’s a great place for
conversation, or checking e-mail or just hanging out. There’s even a
drive-through for picking up to-go orders.

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For all those reasons and then some, more people need to try Satellite Cafe – especially for dinner.

 

Satellite Cafe

5923 Kavanaugh Blvd.

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501-663-6336

Quick bite

Happy hour is a good deal at Satellite, with
$2.50 highballs and $1 also off on glasses of wine. And stick around
for dinner afterward. You’ll be glad you did.

Hours

7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mon., 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Tues., 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Wed. and Thurs., 7 a.m. to midnight Fri., 7
a.m. to midnight Sat., 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sun.

Other info

Full bar. Credit cards accepted.

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