In College Station, Texas, Stella Southern Cafe turns buttermilk biscuits, stone-ground grits, and fresh-squeezed orange juice into a morning ritual for locals.
This family-owned cafe opened in 2018 and has been winning awards ever since. 🏆
Order at the counter and let the Southern hospitality begin. ☕
How Stella Southern Cafe won College Station’s hearts
Michael Lair and his parents, Pete and Phyllis, opened Stella’s doors on July 28, 2018, and the Lair family has deep roots in the College Station dining scene. 🏡
Michael first imagined a Southern market and deli, but his landlord had one rule for becoming a tenant: the restaurant had to serve breakfast.
Strong community interest in biscuits and grits did the rest.
The name Stella honors a beloved 1995 Dodge Dakota that Michael drove for 16 years, and it is meant to evoke the same reliability. 🛻
The kitchen uses old school stone ground grits and squeezes every glass of orange juice on site, with New Orleans-style beignets and seasonal French toasts on the menu. 🍊
The cafe was voted Best of the Brazos Valley for Breakfast/Brunch in 2020 and named best breakfast by Eagle readers in 2021. 🏆
Beyond the plates, the Lair family set up a donation system for people who lost homes in Hurricane Harvey and cooked hot meals for displaced families. ❤️
That blend of Southern breakfast, local ingredients, and genuine caring is why this family-owned cafe earned its place in the Brazos Valley.
Food Highlights 🍳
- Pot Roast & Eggs: Melt-in-your-mouth pot roast, gravy, and carrots over stone-ground grits, topped with two pasture-raised Vital Farms eggs. 🥩
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The Southern Benny: A homemade buttermilk biscuit topped with pit-smoked ham, scratch-made sausage gravy, and two pasture-raised Vital Farms eggs. 🥚
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Rise & Swine: A buttermilk biscuit with crispy cornflake-crusted chicken breast, applewood smoked bacon, and scratch-made sausage gravy, topped with shredded lettuce. 🍗
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Huevos Rancheros: Two blue corn tostadas with homemade black beans, fresh pico, queso fresco, two Vital Farms eggs, mashed avocado, charred chipotle salsa, and cilantro. 🌮
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Buttermilk Biscuit & Sausage Gravy: A flaky homemade buttermilk biscuit covered in scratch-made sausage gravy. 🥄
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Berries & Cream French Toast: Biscuit French toast topped with strawberries, blueberries, fresh whipped cream, and organic maple syrup. 🍓
- Churro French Toast: Deep-fried biscuit French toast coated in cinnamon sugar, topped with dulce de leche and fresh whipped cream. 🍯
Atmosphere 🏡
Stella’s feels like an industrial-chic cafe with local artwork inside and a mural by Sarah Blackmon on the outside back wall.
You order at the front counter, and the mood is family-friendly and welcoming. It can get noisy when busy, which adds to the lively, happy buzz of a beloved breakfast spot. ☕
Bottom Line 🏆
Visit for biscuit-based biscuits and gravy, creative French toasts, fresh huevos rancheros, scratch-made Southern comfort, and a warm family-run welcome in College Station. 🥞
Address:
4040 State Highway 6 South, Suite 100, College Station, TX 77845 📍
📞 (979) 704-3207
🕖 Open daily, 7 AM-2 PM