One of the best bakeries in Dallas-Fort Worth is expanding into the most popular meal of the day. La Casita Bakeshop, which has earned national acclaim for its croissants and baked goods, is now serving breakfast and brunch at its storefront headquarters in Richardson at 580 W. Arapano Rd. #154.

The bakery unrolled the new service in November with a tempting menu of dishes such as:

• French toast
• Hazelnut praline banana pancakes
• Mojo pork eggs Benedict
• Vegetable hash
• Chilaquiles
• Ham and cheese quiche

There are three toasts - Mushroom toast, Egg salad toast, and Avocado toast - and a selection of sandwiches including:

• Pork belly sandwich
• Nashville hot chicken sandwich
• Crispy potato sandwich
• Chicken Parmesan sandwich
• Italian Sandwich
• Pesto lox bagel
• Cubano

There's also a kids' menu with pancakes, grilled cheese sandwich, and a breakfast plate with eggs.

... plus all their trademark monthly specialty pastries.

The new offering is an organic outgrowth in what has been a long-in-the-making extension from the original pastries and desserts menu into savory items such as sandwiches, as well as catering menus for holidays such as Thanksgiving, when they've offered an entire turkey dinner with stuffing, gravy, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, pie, and Parker house rolls.

The menu was already in motion, it was more about the logistics of adding a sit-down meal service including additional days, says chef-founder Maricsa Trejo.

Previously, they were open Saturdays and Sundays, and you could always order pastries and coffee. Now with breakfast/brunch, they're open Wednesday-Friday from 7 am-3 pm, as well as Saturday-Sunday from 8 am-3 pm.

"We were already doing savory foods, so we figured, why not add an eggs Benedict and pancakes?" Trejo says.

Part of their motivation was also to improve conditions for their staff.

"We love our staff and we wanted to create a situation where our cooks and bakers could make more money," Trejo says. "Being open only two days can be a struggle, so it made sense to start brunch."

They're still ironing out the logistics, like creating a host stand and establishing an ordering system which is basically fast-casual, where customrs place their order at the counter and the food is brought to the table.

"We don't have servers, so we're figuring out what works, but our regulars and new customers have helped us roll it out," she says.

Trejo and her husband and partner Alex Henderson founded La Casita in 2017 as a wholesale business, supplying croissants, muffins, and scones to restaurants and coffee shops such as Cultivar Coffee and Tribal Cafe, with only the. occasional pop-up for retail sales. Finally, in 2020, they opened a storefront in Richardson, and have since earned awards and national notice including a Tastemaker Award in 2020 for Best Chef, as well as a nomination from James Beard.

In January 2023 they opened La Casita Coffee, an outlet in Rowlett, where they serve coffee and La Casita baked goods.

One guarantee: Their offerings are never average. They're making their pancakes in an oven instead of on a flat-top for a hybrid between regular pancakes and the souffle Japanese style. Their French toast pane muerto with orange blossom covered in coffee custard. Their Benedict is a distinctive foodie twist featuring with pork a mojo

"We have bacon, we have eggs, if you want that, it’s there, but that's not going to be a menu item," Trejo says.