While these Wilmington-area spots might be slightly off the beaten path, they each offer the cozy charm of a true cafe, along with a unique menu.
 
Porches Cafe, located at the River Bluffs community in Castle Hayne, offers fresh, local and organic eating. A true farm-to-table café, all menu items are locally sourced, many picked fresh from the River Bluffs farm. River Bluffs is the first neighborhood in the area to use its own community farm to help support an on-site restaurant that is open to the public.
 
The lunch and dinner menus offer salads with house-made dressings ranging from $6.95 to $9.95, and a slew of signature hot sandwiches, served with sides of potato salad, cucumber and tomato salad or chips for $9.95 to $12.95. There are typically several daily specials, including soups and homemade desserts, such as chocolate peanut pie and almond joy cheesecake. Guests can also enjoy fresh smoothies or a drink from the bar on the front porch or back patio that overlooks the community pool.
 
Porches serves lunch Monday through Wednesday, and lunch and dinner Thursday through Sunday. Visit the restaurant's website for menus, hours and location information.
 
Another cafe located in the heart of a growing residential community, Magnolia Social Café is in the Marina Village at RiverLights. Like Porches, it services the surrounding community as well as the public, offering breakfast, lunch and a wide variety of homemade baked goods.
 
Breakfast includes staples such as waffles, French toast and egg sandwiches, each with a gourmet twist. The French toast is often made with homemade monkey bread, and egg sandwiches, such as the Port City, are topped with roasted portabella mushrooms, sautéed spinach and balsamic onion jam and served on a buttery brioche bun. Magnolia is also home to the wattle and waffle, with fried chicken and wild berry remoulade on a Belgian waffle bun, and social tots: tater tots topped with shaved Parmesan and cracked black pepper and served with Alabama barbecue sauce.
 
Guests can expect a blackboard full of specials with everything from sandwiches and salads to soups, quesadillas, flat bread pizzas and burgers. A line of espresso drinks is available, as well as smoothies, beer and wine. While the café offers ample seating and Wi-Fi inside, guests can also enjoy the swings and hammocks located on the grassy common across the street or along the RiverLights boardwalks overlooking the river.

Visit the eatery's Facebook page for daily specials and café hours.
 
The Felix Cafe, located at 2140 Burnett Blvd. near the Port of Wilmington, has gained a loyal following since opening at the end of 2015, yet remains a hidden gem at the back of Sunset Park. The brightly colored walls, corrugated tin ceiling and tropical artwork lend a beachy vibe to the 60-seat café and provide the proper ambiance for sitting down to a plate of the cafe's signature Hawaiian pineapple shrimp or a Jamaican jerk chicken wrap. Other menu standouts include the slider trio with three different sliders, the Monte cristo, and build your own mac-and-cheese.
 
The Felix offers a full bar and daily lunch specials for $7.50.
 
Owner Felix Scroppo has confirmed that The Felix is opening a second location at 5226 S. College Road in Monkey Junction, the former home of Georgio’s Italian Restaurant, and said details on the new location will be released shortly.
 
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