Dog Lane Cafe

Best place to get smoothie on campus. It’s a little expensive but since tax is included I think it’s worth it. They also have different specials everyday. Always live try the different concoction of lattes, coffee or smoothies. Services here is one of the best I know. Love Liz, Steve and the girls. If there is something you want that isn’t on the menu, they will try accommodate your needs. The food is great, smoothies are refreshing but it’s really the friendly face and services that brings me back.

A little pricey but so worth it! The staff is amazing. Quite possibly the friendliest people in the food game. They alter any drink or meal to make you happy and are all about your satisfaction, even if it’s just for a coffee. The food and drinks are all great!!!

When you think about normal college food options, you probably think mostly of places that serve food in a paper bag. Dog Lane is definitely different in that respect. I have been coming to Dog Lane for about 8 months now and I always enjoy it. That doesn’t mean that I have loved every food item i’ve had, but I always enjoy the atmosphere. The waitresses/​waiters are always friendly and helpful when I can’t make up my mind. Their daily specials are always diverse and the food proportions are large. It may be $ 4 for a mocha, but it’s served in a HUGE mug. Dog Lane is just cozy and most of the food is good, some of it is even great (like the grilled cheeses!). As many people have already stated, there are no outlets, so, ya, they don’t want you to stay all day– otherwise they wouldn’t make any money, duh. Besides that, I would say that they make a mean Chai latte. I love it! Their coffee is good, not wow, this is the best; but, good. It’s a great alternative if you are in Storrs and want something more homemade and don’t want to sit in a noisy bar or fast food joint.

One of my favorite spots on campus! Dog lane has great coffee drinks and sandwiches. I usually go for a BLT, bacon egg and cheese, or grilled cheese. Atmosphere is warm and friendly. Perfect to bring family to when they visit. Staff are friendly and timely.

Dog Lane has a lot going for it. First of all, it is centrally located in downtown Storrs. It has a massive and diverse menu of both breakfast and lunch options. There’s unlimited coffee and they offer Harney & Sons teas which are top notch quality. It’s mega cozy despite it being somewhat noisy. The staff is always incredibly nice, helpful, and diligent to clean up after patrons (although you order at the counter, you do not have to bus your own food).
With that said, I’ve been very disappointed with every item off the food menu, save for their chili. The food I’ve ordered (dabbling in both breakfast items like the egg sandwiches and lunch items such as the soups, salads, and even sandwiches) is always bland, greasy, and ridiculously overpriced for what it is. The coffee, albeit unlimited, is mediocre. And, if you’re planning on holing up to do work, don’t plan on staying there all day — despite providing free wifi, there are zero outlets (most likely strategic, in order to prevent students from holing up there all day).
It’s a nice, UConn specific alternative to the many Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks peppered around the campus. And, recently, I had a very delicious cappuccino despite arriving at my table somewhat tepid. I will most likely never eat here again though. I only spend a lot of time there when I have something to get done while on the UConn campus and I don’t think my computer will die.

Overpriced grilled chicken salad was tasteless, unimaginative, with questionably old shredded beets, lettuce only, dry chicken, and very little, and oily, dressing. $ 11.50 was a crazy price for this disappointing salad.

My parents live in Storrs and I spent most of my life growing up there. I was very excited to find out that a Café of this sort was going to be opening. DLC was one of the first businesses to open in the recent Storrs Downtown project. From my knowledge, DLC’s sister is the Vanilla Bean is Pomfret, CT. For those of you who don’t know or remember the Vanilla Bean was put on the map over a decade ago when Vanilla Coke first hit the market. The Vanilla Bean was chosen to debut the new flavor of Coke, it even made national news. With that being said, the Vanilla Bean has always maintained a wonderful reputation.
The first impression of DLC walking in, it is very big. There is a large counter area where you can order food, smoothies, or coffees alike. The is a large amount of table seating with the surrounding high tops along the windows. Closer to the brewed coffee bar, there are large arm chairs.
Their sandwiches are delicious, but on the pricier side. The only downside of DLC is how expensive their food is in comparison to the beverages. The variety of fresh brewed coffee at a reasonable price, makes for a nice stay.
It is nice to finally have an established café of DLC’s kind on campus. As far back as 25 years ago there was Sugar Shack which was famous for it’s freshly baked donuts and fresh coffee. Sugar Shack closed and a few years later the Husky Bean Café. The Husky Bean didn’t last very long, but was never seemingly busy because Starbucks was in the neighboring plaza. Its great having DLC as a fixture on campus.

Great food, great environment, just expensive. I’ve always been impressed by the sandwiches and salads served here. It’s a great college vibe perfect for a lunch date of a feeling of just being part of the Uconn community. The salad portions are large the sandwiches are not just a heads up.

Delicious organic, gluten-​free options. Right now their 12 ounce cold apple cider is my favorite. The andouille pepper jack sandwich on potato bread is quite yummy in the mornings. Beef glazed short ribs is ridiculously mouth-​watering. The healthy monkey is pretty good. Make sure you inform them of any allergies when you place the order. You also have to request water, because it’s not automatically served

I really wish DLC was around when I was a student at UConn! It would be a great place to grab a quick bite to eat and a coffee while studying.
With that being said, it’s overpriced, the ordering and pickup process is a little confusing and although not bad, I wouldn’t be running back to eat the food.
All in all, I think this is a great place for students, but if you’re in the area and looking for lunch, there are definitely better options out there.

Will stop supporting this place. I want to cry every time I read the delicious sounding menu items but the price is sky high. Don’t get me wrong, this café was very lovely and cozy. I used to study here all the time (except wi-​fi was lacking) but the prices here are not college budget friendly at all. Ironic that it’s located on a college campus. I ended having to go elsewhere to find food because I couldn’t afford their $ 10+ sandwiches and skeptical as to how good they were before spending. I got the In-​House bottomless coffee once which came in handy for those hard study grinds but the coffee station I felt was neglected. There was a good fall time white chocolate coffee brew but it was all out! There was not just one coffee dispenser for this flavor but TWO… also empty! One incidence, my friend and I just had Wooster’s pizza nearby and had leftovers with us. It was cold, raining out and we were waiting for a friend nearby so we decided to wait inside Dog Lane. The man who we assumed was the manager was very rude to my friend to express his disapproval of us bringing in «someone else’s food» into their café. The man used the word «stupid» and treated my friend like he was some college punk below him. I could understand if he asked us nicely but he was very unprofessional about it. It was not like we were using their place to eat the food either. The café was not packed either so we were not taking up space from other customers. We only needed a place to wait but instead left and felt mistreated.

In general, fine food. Good beer and wine selection. A good place to grab coffee and a pastry in the morning, good salads, soup is ok. Wide variety of smoothies if you’re into that and a large menu.

Went over to dog lane the other night and got some of their specials… tuna tartare and an eggplant with a sweet balsamic type glaze… both unreal. Great spot to grab something to eat or sit and sip a coffee… cool venue, great folks working… good stuff.

I bought a cranberry chicken salad sandwich. It was really good and filling. It tasted very fresh and the bread was delicious. However this place is very expensive as noted by the other reviewers. I’m not sure how any college student can afford this place on a regular basis. However I do like that it’s a small business and it is a much-​needed place in Storrs. I would definitely come back again. However I would recommend that the owners either lower their prices or increase the quantity of food provided. In addition, my friend and I shared a carrot cake. The carrot cake was decent but definitely not worth the price. We had a complimentary dessert card, but if we did not have the card I would not get dessert. The prices are definitely way too high for the quantity and quality of the dessert. Also, as noted by another reviewer, I am not sure that any of the dessert is actually fresh or made there. However that is just an assumption. Overall, it’s a great place to have in Storrs but not the best location for its price since most college students are on a budget.
Update: I went again and got the black bean burger. It was okay but I’ve had much better burgers for cheaper. To make it taste better I put my chips inside the burger which created a nice crunch factor. Overall it wasn’t bad but I wouldn’t get it again.

Had a nice lunch here today — basically, I’ll echo what most Unilocalers are saying. The food is tasty, fresh, and the café atmosphere is great. Friendly service, too: we were greeted right away and since it was our first time there they explained how it works. It’s actually quite nice to order at the counter and then have the food brought to your table. It’s also nice that tax is already included in the price; however, as most people have pointed out, all the dishes seem to be overpriced by about $ 3 – 5 each.
The gazpacho was my favorite dish (it was fresh, refreshing, and a very generous portion) and I also enjoyed the ahi tuna wrap. The cranberry chicken salad sandwich was good but nothing to write home about. Love that the sandwiches come with Deep River chips and a pickle. The real highlights, though, were the drinks. I had an iced chai tea that was way better than Starbucks, and I also go to try the frozen java chip chai tea (one of the specials). It was delicious but then again a bit pricey at $ 6. I’ll definitely be back to try more of their drinks!

Things that are OK:
Turkey Avocado breakfast sandwich
Home fries — which are NOT actually french fries, but potato pieces. seasoned well but too chewy
Chorizo Burrito — nothing special; the fillings are so separated throughout the burrito
Beef and Provolone sandwich — i heard this was good
Clam Chowder — good, but a little salty
Bagel with smoked salmon platter — good, but it doesn’t seem worth it
Ginger Lemonade — my friend really liked this but i thought it was unbearable — only get it if you really like both ginger and lemonade
Turkey Bacon sandwich — i thought this was good, but felt a little overpriced
Do not get:
Mango Lada smoothie — the mango-​coconut combination sounds good but it’s super tart (not very sweet at all), plus there are coconut shavings in it so it feels like you’re swallowing specks and i did start coughing when i wasnt careful
Crab Cake sandwich — too salty, sandwich falls apart

Breakfasts here are overpriced compared to several of the places nearby where breakfast is more order and go rather than sit down. Their bottomless coffee is a perk I absolutely love and ultimately what keeps me coming back, I love the seasonal flavors they always have!
BUT the wi-​fi never works! Several times I have bought a coffee intending to sit for a few hours sipping java and working only to find out there is no wifi signal! The food and drinks alone aren’t worth the price but the ability to work in a café by campus made up for that while the wifi was working, fix your router dog lane!

I used to frequent The Vanilla Bean quite a bit (one of this place’s sister restaurants in Pomfret), but was very happy when this one opened up on the Storrs UConn campus (much closer to where I live).
I love the options they offer here. Everything is fresh, local when possible, and they have vegetarian/​vegan options. They have a huge variety of tea and coffee and amazing smoothies.
Breakfast options include eggs, omelettes, pancakes, fruit, etc. When I was there on Saturday, I tried one of the rotating specials (the Chèvre Scramble, which was scrambled eggs with chèvre cheese, spinach, carmelized onions, and roasted red peppers, served with an English muffin, home fries, and perfectly ripe honeydew melon and pineapple). The home fries had a tiny bit of a kick to them, but nothing too hot to handle.
Lunch and dinner options include soups, salads, burgers (including local grass fed, vegetarian, and organic selections), sandwiches, and wraps. Two of my go-​to favorites are the Vegetarian and the Black Bean Burrito.
They have a variety of in-​house desserts available. I wasn’t really pleased with my dessert last time I got one (it was some kind of cookie dough pie, but it was WAY too sweet), but I have had some other good desserts there so I wouldn’t rule it out. They do also serve beer and wine.
This is a cool spot on the UConn campus that’s definitely worth checking out if you’re looking for the opportunity to eat a healthier, wholesome meal.

Right on the corner of 195 and Dog Lane, this is one of the cute café options in the newly completed Storrs center. They have a wide variety of soups, salads, and sandwiches to choose from and it seems very popular with the university crowd.
On my visit up there, I had the black bean burrito at the manager’s suggestion. It was actually pretty tasty. Inside a whole wheat tortilla, they stuff a black bean burger, smoked Pepperjack, Caramelized Onions, Kale, and House Salsa. It was served with kettle chips, which I didn’t eat because of how full I was! Definitely a stick to your ribs meal.
They had a line of artisan grilled cheeses that looked delicious, especially one made with short ribs.
I’m sure I’ll be back at some point, but there are other places I’d try first. I’m just glad students, faculty, staff, and Mansfield residents have some choices now!

I’ve ordered food and smoothies from this place a couple of times, and every subsequent visit has resulted in an increasingly positive perception towards it.
Before my first visit to Dog Lane Café, all I knew was that it was «that expensive place in Storrs Center with so-​so food.» With that bias in mind, my first visit to Dog Lane was spent scoffing at how expensive my meal was.
The thing is, though, Dog Lane Café has never failed at providing a delicious meal (or smoothie). And while their service is, without fail, infamously slow — the servers are not known for their Starbucks barista-​caliber speed — it is consistently friendly. The last time I was at Dog Lane, for example, I was finishing up my smoothie (in a plastic cup), and a server approached me, asking if he could throw away my cup for me and bring me a cup of water. I was pleasantly surprised by this gesture, not only because he didn’t owe it to me to do this, but also because offering such a service didn’t appear to him to be out of the ordinary.
I appreciate and respect Dog Lane Café for their efforts in creating a really nice local restaurant feel with quality food. If it wasn’t for the prices, slow service, and (frankly) lack of free WiFi, I would certainly give it a higher rating. Yet, given Dog Lane’s trajectory (and record) when it comes to impressing me, I wouldn’t be surprised if my rating for this place creeped up to 4 or 5 stars in the future.