Young Cardinal Cafe and Co. — Restaurant in Winston-Salem

I ordered scrambled eggs, making sure to say I wanted them cooked through (not wet/runny). She explained that regular scrambled eggs came out done and runny would be “soft scrambled and did I want “hard scrambled.” I said if the regular were not wet or runny I would take the regular. The eggs came out soft, wet, and runny underneath. I asked to have them cooked a little more and that maybe I should have said “hard in the beginning” (thinking all they needed to do was either microwave them or flip them a little more times). Our server was super sweet and accommodating and said they don’t have a microwave. . Soon another guy brought out a plate with what looked like an omelette but burnt brown and said, “here.”

We were on a time crunch and so I decided to eat what I could underneath the burned outer layer. Our server asked if they brought out my new eggs and I said they did and it’s really burned but that I would try to eat around it and explained that all I needed was to microwave them or just flip the ones I had at first a little longer just to dry them. I stated it felt like the chef was upset with my request and so he burned them to prove a point. Just my observation. She said she was sure that was not the case but would I like to send them back and get another serving. I said no thank you and that I would just eat what I could of the actual egg in the burnt serving. I picked through that. My husband agreed that this was unacceptable and that maybe I should send it back, as “you were super nice about the first eggs.” He stated we were not coming back. It cost us $54 and I ate a little bit of burned egg, toast and a strip of bacon along with hash browns that were too spicy for my taste (not anyone’s fault). Adding photos. The second one of the burned eggs came out omelette style so not scrambled in the first place but this photo is after I picked through it. I would have sent those back but was a little scared of the reaction or what I would have gotten from there. That’s a bit silly in my part but overall this was unacceptable.

Again the server was very kind and accommodating.

Margaret H Sunday...

I had been wanting to try Young Cardinal for quite some time, but it always seemed so busy. During our most recent Winston trip, however, my wife and I decided to bite the bullet and endure whatever wait we had to. Fortunately, it wasn’t a long one: the quoted fifteen-to-twenty minutes ended up being more like twelve. We ended up with a patio table perfect for people-watching (and likely not as loud as inside the restaurant would have been).

Young Cardinal’s menu offers up pancakes, waffles, omelets, bowls, and benedicts (among other things) for breakfast as well as sandwiches and salads for lunch. The biscuits/benedicts/omelets offer a good deal of customizability, including vegetarian options. There is also an assortment of coffee drinks, including several spiked coffees.

After briefly contemplating the French toast of the day (a bread pudding inspired concoction with a cherry glaze – probably amazing but more dessert than brunch entrée), I opted for the hot honey chicken and pimento Benedict with hash browns as the side while my wife went with the Young Cardinal breakfast (eggs hard fried, bacon, grits, and a biscuit with a side of gravy) and a millionaire’s coffee (Irish cream, Kahlua, Frangelico, whipped cream). Given how busy Young Cardinal was, we were expecting a bit of a wait for our food, but thankfully, that proved not to be the case. Service here is remarkably efficient and pleasant as well.

The food was good though had I been more ravenously hungry and subjected to a longer wait for it, I might have been more critical. The Benedict was nicely plated with the eggs done just right. The chicken cutlets were a bit thin, but they delivered the expected flavors (spicy and sweet). My wife appreciated the hard cook on the eggs and enjoyed everything on the plate. Pricing was moderate: $17 apiece for our dishes.

I don’t know if the other Andrews Group establishments run as tight a ship as this, but with food and service as good as they are here, it isn’t hard to see why Young Cardinal always seems to...

So my boyfriend and I finally got up early enough on a Sunday to make it to Young Cardinal. We’ve been wanting to go for a while now. We have heard great things and always see such a long line out the door when we drive by downtown. I highly suggest getting there before 9:30 am. We were seated outside per our request, and our server was so great and attentive. We ordered the 2 specials to share: pork tenderloin benedict with bacon jam, and smoked salmon avocado toast with cucumbers, mango, goat cheese, and arugula. Let me tell you, the portions were huge and so delicious. The prices are a bit higher for some items on the menu, but others are incredibly reasonable. Our specials were on the higher end, but well worth it for the large portion sizes and the quality of ingredients. Our tab was under $40. Regardless of what you order, the food is beyond outstanding. The salmon on our toast was huge, and the craftsmanship that went behind the flavor pairings was absolutely amazing. It’s like pure art in your mouth. An entire culinary experience to savor. The pork tenderloins on the benedict were cooked to perfection; so tender. And don’t even get me started on that bacon jam… something I could literally eat on everything. Their eggs are made so well. Some restaurants don’t know how to make their eggs. You can definitely tell how good a breakfast/brunch place is by how well they make their eggs. The fried egg on the toast was perfect, and the poached eggs on the benedict were also perfectly prepared. Just the right amount of yolk. The type of toast they used for the avocado toast held up so well to all of the ingredients that were generously piled on. RUN, don’t walk, to Young Cardinal. Best brunch we’ve had from...