As the name suggests, this Vietnamese coffee and tea shop in Vintage Park features various dishes centered on pandan, including its dessert drinks. Try the Paradise for herbaceous sips of coconut water, filled with chunks of coconut, longan, basil seeds, pandan, jellies, and cassava tapioca, or the Pandan special, a flavorful and filling combination of white, red, and mung beans, plus pandan seed jellies, tapioca, and coconut milk. If in search of a more atypical dish, the pandan wings are served alongside a tamarind sauce with mango and cucumber and pair well with the fluffy pandan waffles.

Heights sandwich shop Vuji Cafe thoughtfully uses pandan to balance the sweet flavors in its dessert sandwich while keeping to its Asian roots. Chef Kevin Villanueva likens the ube pandan sando to an Asian-leaning s’mores sandwich — it features Texas toast layered with fluffy marshmallows, crisp Japanese wafers, fruit, and a creamy ube pandan filling. Pair with the pandan ginger cold brew for an extra dose of this green, sweet ingredient.

Owner Lukkaew Srasrisuwan has been infusing Kin Dee’s desserts with pandan since its opening four years ago. The airy and super moist three-layered pandan cake, a cult favorite made from a recipe Srasiruswan brought from her family’s gas station bakeries in Thailand, is covered in a light young coconut cream frosting with chunks of coconut for added texture. The mango sticky rice also offers a pandan punch with verdant coconut sticky rice.

This new hand roll hot spot in River Oaks Shopping Center places pandan at the center of some of its sweet-but-not-too-sweet treats, including its iced pandan mocktail, which makes for a refreshing sip during dinner. Finish the experience by ordering the pandan kakigori: Composed of ice manually shaved behind the counter and flavored with pandan, this icy treat features coconut jelly, a dollop of fluffy meringue, and a sprinkle of toasted coconut.

Housed in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, this local French restaurant infuses some of its summer menu drinks with pandan. Booze will not be missed in the Yellow Boots mocktail, which offers a refreshing mix of spiced pineapple tisane, coconut cordial, and pandan. Those looking for a buzzy yet caffeinated boost can opt for Le Jardinier’s carajillo — a simple concoction of Licor 43, pandan, and espresso.

This French bakery with Asian diasporic influences promises pastries of all kinds, and pandan is just one of its many options. Cupcakes, mousse cakes, and macarons with delightfully potent pandan flavor mean diners can choose how to experience it. The pandan choux, in particular, has a cult following — it comes in a variety of other flavors, as well, for diners to mix and match.

Aside from its various milk teas, the pandan bac siu is the most popular drink on the menu at this Bellaire coffee shop. Made with phin-dripped black coffee and condensed milk, this Vietnamese iced coffee drink is topped with a bright green foam made with whipping cream, whole milk, and pandan. For an added treat, diners can add boba or jelly for an extra charge.

Pandan is the star of many of the pastries at this Bellaire Asian bakery. Choose between pandan chiffon or sponge cakes, pandan cupcakes, pandan coconut buns, and so much more. All of the pastries are designed to enjoy to go.