​Saquella Cafe is celebrating 13 years of business this year. While they have always been known for their amazing coffee and tasty pastries they have been offering much more for some time now. I had the opportunity to taste some of their amazing dinner menu items and was very impressed.  Saquella has a European bakery feel with a menu that is Italian and Mediterranean inspired.  They pride themselves on being a fry free kitchen and sourcing as many ingredients locally as they can; everything from fresh mozzarella cheese to local pita.

All images appearing in this post photographed by foodinfocus.photography 

We started off our night with a Cran-tini with cranberry infused vodka which is made in house. The best part was the fresh cranberries that were super tart. If you are a cranberry lover this is the perfect drink, if not don’t’ worry they have a great wine list and a full bar.

First up was the Goat Cheese Croquette’s which was one of my favorite dishes on the menu. The goat cheese was super creamy and not too tangy and it was served with grilled baguette and a fig jam that was delicious.

Next up was the Medi’ Platter which was a whole plate of Mediterranean goodness. The platter had hummus, tahini, grilled veggies, pita, cauliflower with a lavender dressing that was to die for, and falafel. The falafel was some of the best I’ve had. And bonus is they are chick pea and quinoa based so they are gluten free, making this platter a great option for people with dietary restrictions.

The shakshuka was by far my favorite dish we tasted. Shakshuka is a traditional middle eastern dish of poached eggs in a rustic tomato sauce and at Saquella they top it with fresh local made mozzarella. I’m a big egg fan so I love the concept of this dish but the sauce was to die for!  Plus it comes with fresh bread so that you can enjoy this dish in the traditional way by using the bread to eat it.

Saquella offers a full dinner menu with dinner specials as well. The quinoa crusted salmon came on top of a roasted beet goat cheese puree and then it was topped with a fennel radish salad.

Another dinner menu item was the Sunflower Seed Crusted Chicken with celery root puree, avocado, corn ammoglio and micro arugula. I loved the unique idea of encrusting with sunflower seeds and the presentation was beautiful!

The last main dish of the evening was the 6 hour Short Rib Asparagus Risotto. This was the dish that everyone at the table couldn’t stop talking about.  The short ribs melted in your mouth the risotto was perfectly cooked.

With Saquella being a bake shop we of course finished out the night with a tasty array of desserts. The peach cobbler French toast was amazing (hint: this is actually on their brunch menu) and was topped with a bourbon salted caramel sauce and candied walnuts.

If the French toast wasn’t amazing enough, we also had the Medi’ Delight which was Petrini Vanilla Gelato (and if you’ve ever been to Saquella you know their gelato is amazing) on a kadaif nest with halva which is made from sesame paste.  We also got a small sampling of some of their delicious pastries.

To cap off the night we had an X Rated Affogato which was the perfect ending. I’ve been to Saquella before specifically for their affogato (espresso or latte with gelato added in), the X rated version took that up a notch with some Marula cream liqueur for a perfect after dinner drink.

And just because it’s Saquella and their coffee is amazing, we finished the light off with a latte.

Saquella Café,  Scratch Kitchen and Bake Shop, is located in Royal Palm Plaza in Boca Raton and is open for breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner.

 Megan is a contributor for The South Florida Sage. She is a trained chef, registered dietitian and food photographer. She has a total love affair with food. You can find her on instagram @foodinfocusphoto and online at foodinfocus.photography. All images appearing in this post photographed by Megan Huard.

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Disclaimer: I received a complimentary tasting at ​Saquella Cafe.