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December 07, 2017

White Dog Cafe expands into neighboring brownstone

82 seats and another bar have been added

Food & Drink Restaurants
White Dog Cafe expansion Courtesy of White Dog Cafe/PhillyVoice

The White Dog Cafe University City unleashed its expansion into a neighboring brownstone, formerly a hair salon, adding 82 seats and an expansive bar.

The White Dog Cafe in University City, known for its dog-themed décor and mushroom soup, has expanded into a neighboring brownstone, which formerly housed a hair salon.

82 seats and another bar have been added to the restaurant, which opened in 1983. The expansion coincides with the upcoming 35th anniversary of White Dog in January 2018.


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The new space was designed by Kate Rohrer of Rohe Creative, who wanted to keep with White Dog's tradition of making each room in the restaurant whimsical and unique.

Courtesy of White Dog Cafe/PhillyVoice

White Dog Cafe is open daily for lunch, dinner and weekend brunch, with a vibrant weekday happy hour.

On the ground floor of the newly acquired brownstone is "The Parlor," where there's a bar, a 25-foot long banquette and, of course, plenty of artwork depicting dogs of all breeds and sizes.

At the back is a staircase, which leads to the lower level solarium.

"This area engulfs guests in floral fabrics, metal and rattan garden furniture,” explained Rohrer.

The new rooms are in addition to the "The Living Room," "The Porch" "The Oak Room" "The Den," "The Tea Room" and "The Wine Cellar" in the original trio of brownstones. 

All White Dog locations – there's one in Wayne and Haverford, P.A. – use bold color, lots of texture, antiques and architectural salvage. Each location is also farm-to-table, with the majority of ingredients coming from farms in a 50-mile radius from the restaurants.

The University City location is open daily for lunch, dinner and weekend brunch.


White Dog Cafe University City

Open daily
3420 Sansom St.
(215) 386-9224

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