Where Are We In CLT? Canine Café Charlotte

Sit. Stay. Now, run.

This Tuesday, Feb. 23 was International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day. (But, you dog lovers probably already knew that.)

One of our favorite spots to gather provisions for the occasion is Canine Café Charlotte, a fixture in South End for 16 years.

Café Founder Barbara Burg began baking for dogs in 1995 when her pup, TJ, developed allergies to commercial treats. Two years later, she opened a natural pet treat bakery in Pineville.

“[My business partner and I] had to move to a larger store with retail so we could sell more all-natural treats and products made in the U.S. which is very important to us,” Burg said, which is the reason they opened their Charlotte store.

In 2004, the first Canine Café location opened at the intersection of Camden Road and South Tryon Street, where it had a larger bakery than Burg’s previous shop and a retail store. Six years later, Burg and her business partner and spouse, Meredith Thompson, needed even more space and moved their cafe and onsite bakery current location at the intersection of Remount Road and South Boulevard.

All treats are made from the same ingredients used in human bakeries and kitchens: flour, 100% natural peanut butter, bananas, cream cheese, pureed pumpkin, unsweetened apple sauce, cinnamon and more.

Homemade doggie treats include “pawty cakes” (a 4-inch round cake), cannolis, brownies, tarts, frozen and chilled doggie daiquiris and more. What’s the hottest treat flying out of the oven these days? Burg says the peanut butter cream cheese tart- pair it with a doggie daiquiri she recommends, for a special treat.