(828) 526-0173 | [email protected] | Copyright 2024 – All Rights Reserved.
Highlands New Breakfast Spot
Written By: Marlene Osteen | Issue: October 2024 | Photograph By: Susan Renfro
DonLeon’s spreading the good times – he and Susan are serving up breakfast now – free coffee, hot tea, and conversation are also on the menu. Discover for yourself at 462 Dillard Road in Highlands.
DonLeon
When Susan and DonLeon returned to Highlands in 2020, they were greeted like old friends – welcomed back with open arms and hungry appetites. DonLeon’s Deli Café had been a staple of Highlands from 2000 to 2007, before Leon and Susan decided to hit the road for new adventures.
But it didn’t take long for them to realize that there’s no place quite like Highlands, and during a whirlwind moment in March 2020, they returned – unpacking their truck just as Covid hit. Thomas Craig, owner of the High Dive, offered them the chance to rent his food truck parked outside the bar. The response was immediate – long lines of locals eager to reconnect with DonLeon’s cooking.
After eight successful months in the truck, they knew they were right where they belonged. In April 2023, they opened DonLeon’s Restaurant on Dillard Road, initially focusing on the lunch favorites that had made DonLeon a Highlands icon.
But there was a catch. Customers kept asking, “What about breakfast?” With only two other breakfast spots in town—both on the pricier side – DonLeon saw an opportunity. So, just a few weeks ago, DonLeon’s rolled out a $10 breakfast menu, including free coffee and hot tea, and as always, Leon and Susan have ensured the atmosphere is as welcoming as the food.
The breakfast offerings reflect DonLeon’s straightforward, no-nonsense approach to great food. Take Breakfast 1: fresh farm eggs, either perfectly fried or softly scrambled, served with your choice of thick cut, applewood-smoked bacon or their pork sausage. Pair that with griddled shredded potatoes or creamy smoked gouda grits. Whoever came up with the idea of adding gouda cheese to grits gets too little credit for this culinary achievement
If you’re craving comfort food, Breakfast 2 is all about two fluffy biscuits smothered in tasty pork sausage gravy – a satisfying blend of milk, butter, and chicken broth with two eggs on the side. And if you don’t have time to stay for a full platter, there’s Grab and Go: breakfast biscuits or English muffins with egg, bacon, and cheese for just $5.
Breakfast starts at 7:30 A.M., and there’s always free coffee or hot tea with your meal.
Luke Osteen, editor of this publication said it best: “Don Leon brings his impeccable menu and breezy personality to a new location. To Don Leon, you were a regular, even if you were walking in for the first time.”
