Cotton Exchange Cafe - Hillsboro

I can't emphasize enough how wonderful the atmosphere is. The walls are adorned with old photographs of Hillsboro Courthouse Square, featuring the Cotton Exchange in its heyday. The tables are beautifully decorated and covered in butcher paper. And let’s not forget the charming Mason jar glasses! I arrived 15 minutes past closing time, unaware of their hours, but they still welcomed me and allowed me to stay and eat, which was a refreshing change from other establishments where I’d typically receive a frosty reception if I showed up close to closing time. I will absolutely return, and I plan to bring friends with me since I want to share this experience with them. Update (April 5, 2019): The chicken fried steak is legendary! And the sausage was simply amazing! The baked potato was perfectly cooked and enormous as well. When you consume quality, unprocessed food, you find you can’t eat as much of it, and it keeps you satisfied all day long.

The Cotton Exchange Café is the best restaurant we've tried in Hillsboro. We enjoyed a variety of items from their menu, especially the Jalapeño Burger and Shannon's chicken salad. Breakfast is served all day, and their pancakes are gigantic! Everything is served farm-to-table fresh. The staff genuinely cares about the quality of the dishes they provide. The interior is charming and very clean. If you’re in the area, it’s definitely worth a visit! Owners Jason and Shannon Smith are present every day and run a small farm in China Spring, Texas, where they raise their products in a humane, grass-fed environment. You can taste the difference in their meat and eggs!

Delicious food, welcoming staff, and down-to-earth owners! It's definitely worth the hour-long drive to visit. We enjoyed fried cucumbers, a bacon cheeseburger, Greek salad, and buttermilk cake...everything was incredibly tasty! We will definitely be back!

Serious about serving their own organically grown, ranch grown beef, chicken, egg products in serious Downhome Central Texas fashion with slightly crispy crust hand made fried cakes and homemade ice cream. If I lie, tell Grandma to get the switch!

Stopped for a quick rest from the road and a small bite to eat. The staff was ridiculously friendly! The owner came out and talked with us for a while about the history of the building and gave us information about the town! Will be back.