Seattle Eggs Benedict Crawl

[rockdoggydog]

Today Malarkey and I started looking for the best eggs benedict in town. This will be a long progressive crawl over many months as we couldn't possibly eat more than one bene at a time no matter how hard we try. Our first stop was the 35th St Bistro in Fremont.

First off, we need to find some less worthy eggs benedict. The 35th St Bistro eggs bene was amazing, and if we use it for a baseline we're going to be miserable. Sorry, Malarkey and I are space cases and forgot to take a camera, but trust us it was beautiful, this just means we have to go back. Darn! We ordered the eggs bene and in a fit of decadence got a side of frites to share. The hollandaise was light for hollandaise and had just the right tang of lemon, and was well made made. The eggs were poached incredibly well, walking the fine line of cooked enough to hold together and not have runny whites but with yolks that run and combine with the hollandaise to seep into the muffins. The ham looked from the menu to be a french country ham that matched well with everything and had a good flavor. All in all just a wonderful benedict.

The eggs benedict comes with some red potatoes that are pretty average, not bad at all just not a breakfast potato revelation and a frisee salad. The salad had a slightly sweet mustard vinaigrette that was a good foil for the hollandaise. Our frites had parm-reg grated over top and garlic and creme fraiche, absolutely wonderful, and continuing in the vein of being one of the best places for frites in town. The lunch menu is also available at brunch at some of the other breakfast selections looked great. We also heard a few other tables ordering the frites to go with their meals so we didn't feel like total pigs. So far with one place down and many to go 35th St Bistro sets a hard act to follow. On a scale of one to ten with ten being perfection this rates a 9.5 with a potential ten depending on our further adventures.

Anyone who would like to join us in the future should email or PM either Malarkey or I.

Rocky

Edited August 20, 2005 by rockdoggydog (log)

[kieran]

Where else is on your list to try?

I'm not a big eggs benedict afficianado, but I'm partial to the way they make it at Glo's -- I really like the way they do the hollandaise.

I really like these exhaustive searches for the best burgers/eggs/pizza whatever that people around these parts engage in. It makes for some tasty reading (to say nothing of eating)!

[malarkey]

next time we'll be equipped with the camera!!

But yes, Rocky is right. The eggs bene at 35th St Bistro rocked my world. Its the best eggs bene I've had in years, since the old Illiterati closed.

[ladybugseattle]

Tony Bourdain's comments on the subject of Eggs benny made them forever after unpalatable to me. I think that was near the beginning of Kitchen Confidential when he explains when and what he won't eat in a restaurant. My copy has been on an extended loan or I'd quote. Anyone got a copy at hand?

[jrt]

Tony Bourdain's comments on the subject of Eggs benny made them forever after unpalatable to me. I think that was near the beginning of Kitchen Confidential when he explains when and what he won't eat in a restaurant. My copy has been on an extended loan or I'd quote. Anyone got a copy at hand?

←

I was thinking the exact same thing; since we're already raining a bit on the parade, might as well give his quote:

''While we're on brunch, how about hollandaise sauce? Not for me. Bacteria love hollandaise. And hollandaise, that delicate emulsion of egg yolks and clarified butter, must be held at a temperature not too hot nor too cold, lest it break when spooned over your poached eggs. Unfortunately, this lukewarm holding temperature is also the favorite environment for bacteria to copulate and reproduce in. Nobody I know has ever made hollandaise to order. Most likely, the stuff on your eggs was made hours ago and held on station. Equally disturbing is the likelihood that the butter used in the hollandaise is melted table butter, heated, clarified, and strained to get out all the bread crumbs and cigarette butts. Butter is expensive, you know. Hollandaise is a veritable petri dish of biohazards. And how long has that Canadian bacon been aging in the walk-in anyway? Remember, brunch is served only once a week -- on the weekends. Buzzword here, "Brunch Menu." Translation? "Old, nasty odds and ends, and twelve dollars for two eggs with a free bloody Mary!"''

On the other hand, there is this... weird... website on the subject

All that being said, I myself still eat the stuff and like it a lot.

[malarkey]

We actually discussed this, because, believe it or not, we HAVE read Kitchen Confidential and we are STILL willing to do a Eggs Bene crawl. We wondered, are we risking gastro-intesinal melt down? Should we limit it to finer establishments, and go when they first open?

We pretty much decided that keeping to the last two might help us avoid disaster. But yes, we are STILL willing to do it, because goddamit, Eggs Benedict, washed down with champagne, is nirvana. And all that said, I've been eating Eggs Benedict out in finer establishments for YEARS without incident. knock on wood...

I do love to make it at home also. It is a great start to a Sunday morning...

[Daddy-A]

Considering Eggs Benny is the official dish of Vancouver, BC, I think a trip is in order. Research!

A.

[malarkey]

Considering Eggs Benny is the official dish of Vancouver, BC, I think a trip is in order.  Research!

A.

Ooohhhh we could EXTEND the Eggs Bene Crawl!! Hey, this could be Important with a capital "I". Record Breaking, Earth Shattering.

So Arne, WHERE is the best Eggs Bene in Vancouver?

[rockdoggydog]

Arne, if you make it down, I promise to hit as many eggs bene as you can handle as well anywhere else you want to go.

Rocky

[rockdoggydog]

Tony Bourdain's comments on the subject of Eggs benny made them forever after unpalatable to me. I think that was near the beginning of Kitchen Confidential when he explains when and what he won't eat in a restaurant. My copy has been on an extended loan or I'd quote. Anyone got a copy at hand?

←

I was thinking the exact same thing; since we're already raining a bit on the parade, might as well give his quote:

''While we're on brunch, how about hollandaise sauce? Not for me. Bacteria love hollandaise. And hollandaise, that delicate emulsion of egg yolks and clarified butter, must be held at a temperature not too hot nor too cold, lest it break when spooned over your poached eggs. Unfortunately, this lukewarm holding temperature is also the favorite environment for bacteria to copulate and reproduce in. Nobody I know has ever made hollandaise to order. Most likely, the stuff on your eggs was made hours ago and held on station. Equally disturbing is the likelihood that the butter used in the hollandaise is melted table butter, heated, clarified, and strained to get out all the bread crumbs and cigarette butts. Butter is expensive, you know. Hollandaise is a veritable petri dish of biohazards. And how long has that Canadian bacon been aging in the walk-in anyway? Remember, brunch is served only once a week -- on the weekends. Buzzword here, "Brunch Menu." Translation? "Old, nasty odds and ends, and twelve dollars for two eggs with a free bloody Mary!"''

On the other hand, there is this... weird... website on the subject

All that being said, I myself still eat the stuff and like it a lot.

←

Uhm, I'm also willing to visit a few greasy spoon type places and hole looking type places. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Besides, waht a little GI distress among friends?

Rocky

[Daddy-A]

So Arne, WHERE is the best Eggs Bene in Vancouver?

←

Personally, I like the benny at Sophie's in Kits. But ask over in our forum. I'm sure you'll get a plethora of answers.

Arne, if you make it down, I promise to hit as many eggs bene as you can handle as well anywhere else you want to go.

←

Rocky, I'm still recovering from my last visit to Seattle!

A.

[malarkey]

This morning, Rocky and I ventured to The Dish on Leary Way in order to sample their version of Eggs Benedict. We met at 8:30am <yawning emoticon> and started in on coffee and checked out the menu. They offer 4 types of Benedict, canadian bacon, sausage, bacon, or veggie (which includes tomatoes, mushrooms and spinach). I chose the veggie because I believe someone (maybe bon-vivant?) thought the veggie bene rocked, and Rocky chose the sausage.

Unfortunately, the waitress also told us that Chicken Fried Steak was their special of the day. Hmm. We ordered a side of it.

Needless to say our eyes were bigger than our stomach.

Verdict: The Eggs Bene at The Dish is worthy, and Rocky thinks it should be the benchmark. The hollendaise isn't as light and lemony as the one at 35th St Bistro, but it was nicely done and there was plenty of it. My veggie bene, I thought, had too many veggies, and the flavor of the 3 together just wasn't that special. I'll let Rocky comment on the sausage bene, but I think I remember him saying something about Jimmy Dean...

Also, the eggs could have been a bit runnier. I had one that ran a bit, but the other was fairly hard cooked. The potatoes here are pretty dang good. I liked them better than the ones at 35th St Bistro, but I prefer crunchy taters.

the CFS was.. OK. Not bad. Good gravy, but I've had better CFS, even in Seattle.

It's been awhile since I've been to the Dish. I forgot what a nice vibe this place has.

[tamiam]

The Dish

Free coffee outside while you wait to get in, and they make a pretty darned good corned beef hash. Mmmmmm.

[rockdoggydog]

Malarkey and I are being intrepid and casting aside any pretense at healthy diets all in the name of eggs benedict. More eggs bene today at The Dish in Frellard. I did indeed have the sausage bene, and yes the sausage tasted like Jimmy Dean, which I have no problems with, I like Jimmy Dean, as long as he sticks to breakfast products. The hollandaise was not bad, not as tangy nor light as 35th St Bistro but still good. The sausage on the other hand was a mistake on my part, it overpowered the rest of the bene so that it was like more like, SAUSAGE, and this bene thing. The potatoes were definitely excellent and above par, and the waitstaff cheerful, nice, and eager to please, even devising the side order of CFS for us. Huzzah to our waitress for doing so! The eggs were definitely cooked a little toohard, they weren't overcooked just overcooked for the purposes of having runny yolks.

I do think that this should be our benchmark though, it was a decent solid bene that rates a seven on my scale thus far, good but not great, but definitley more than merely edible. For those wondering how I'm scaling this, a ten is perfection, seven above average, five merely edible and not actually offensive in any way, anything below five has something actively wrong with it. Next stop tomorrow morning at Glo's at !0 AM. A possible stop this weekend on Sunday at Pomegranate.

Rocky

[rockdoggydog]

Another day another stop on the eggs bene trail, I swear we're going to slow down, my arteries demand it. This morning we went to Glo's on Capitol Hill. For everyone who has ever wanted to try Glo's and is turned off by the huge wait on weekends try a weekday. I ordered the regualr eggs bene and Malarkey had the eggs blackstone, every benedict at Glo's comes with grilled tomatoes in the stack. For me this added a dimension of sweetness that makes the lemon in the hollandaise really jump out. The eggs here had some runny yolk left in them, not a lot but some to come out and play with the sauce. The ham was overpowered by the sauce sometimes and the muffin could have been toasted more, nothing objectionable, just looking for what could have been. Good hash browns and good coffee, but possibly the ugliest garnish I have ever seen in a restuarant. The garnish consisted of some purple cabbage with a wedge of grapefruit with the skin peeled off but the pith still on, it made for an eye-jarring contrast. I'm just nit-picking with this one, but it really did catch the eye. Overall a good eggs bene with good service, I'm giving it a 7.25 on my scale.

Rocky

[malarkey]

I really liked the Eggs Bene at Glo's. I do find the addition of grilled tomato a bit curious, because it adds an dimension of flavor that I'm not sure 'belongs.' It's not that it doesn't work, but it moves the total flavor experience away from what one would expect from this dish. The tomato & hollendaise seem to compete for the dominating flavor position. I liked having bacon there instead of canadian bacon. The hollendaise is more lemony than any we'd had up to now. And I loved the hash browns, but I'm a sucker for hash browns.

And I'm with Rocky, I came away from this thinking "I can't look another egg in the face for a few days!" ...but, after awhile, I'm sure I'd be game to go again

One thing I've realized about going to these places mid-week: If one really, REALLY wants breakfast at one of these joints without the crowd, get yer a** outta bed early and git down there, it CAN be done before work. Both The Dish and Glo's are open at 7am.

Eggs Benedict:

Eggs Blackstone:

[kiliki]

Those are some good looking hash browns. Did they taste good, too? Could you tell if they precooked the potatoes, or if they started with raw potatoes (the preferred way)?

[rockdoggydog]

Those are some good looking hash browns. Did they taste good, too? Could you tell if they precooked the potatoes, or if they started with raw potatoes (the preferred way)?

←

They were good hashbrowns indeed. I like mine a little more buttery but these were just fine. Can't tell if the precooked or not, but if they did it wasn't a long time ago as they did not develop any of the graininess of clumped starches.

Rocky

[rockdoggydog]

Here's a picture of the 35th St Bistro eggs benedict.

Rocky

[skyflyer3]

We had the 35th Street Bistro eggs benedict last Sunday, and it was lovely. The hollandaise is very smooth, they subbed the country potatoes for frites, the fruit on the side was great, and even the muffin tasted good. But Glo's still ranks highest for me - the hollandaise was too light at 35th Street, and the ham overpowered the dish. At Glo's, the hollandaise is substantial enough in flavor that it really compliments all components of the benedict, and the hash browns are much better than the frites at 35th street, which were dry. I will say that I had one of the best desserts ever at 35th street - a trio of white peach and raspberry sorbetto and pistachio gelato that was so intensely flavored, it was divine.

Edited September 12, 2005 by skyflyer3 (log)

[phaelon56]

I think Bourdain's comments may have been written before the whole salmonella issue in raw and/or coddled eggs became a thing of concern. How many places have you been to (here in the US) in recent years that still do a table side prep of Caesar salad in the traditional manner? Very few if any. It's not just because table side prep is no longer fashionable but because coddled eggs are used. There are "safe" eggs available but they don't seem to have been widely adopted.

When I worked in the trade it was in a bistro - we had pre sealed packets of butter for the tables (tacky but hey - it was a casual and moderately priced bistro). We did in fact use fresh butter straight from the walk-in for our Hollandaise and Bearnaise. It w s typically made at 5 PM just before dinner service started and yes it did sit in a steam table until dinners stopped at 10 PM. But we never ever had a problem with it from any diner - didn't go "bad" and no one got sick. And believe me - this joint was no French Laundry when it came to kitchen cleanliness.

But I digress. Just wanted to weigh in with what may serve as a good reference point for mediocre Eggs Benedict in Seattle. I was in town last weekend and had a late breakfast on Saturday at the Broadway Grill. We opted for the breakfast buffet - probably a poor choice but we were both starved and quantity/flexibility in ordering seemed desirable.

Eggs Benedict are one of the items on the buffet. I'm suspect that the Hollandaise is a pre-made Sysco style product and the over result was less than great. But it was a darn sight better than the so-called scrambled eggs. I think ordering off the regular menu is a better bet at Broadway Grill but their buffet Eggs Benedict should set a nice baseline for a bad version of the dish.

[malarkey]

I think ordering off the regular menu is a better bet at Broadway Grill but their buffet Eggs Benedict should set a nice baseline for a bad version of the dish.

You up for it Rocky?!

[rockdoggydog]

I think ordering off the regular menu is a better bet at Broadway Grill but their buffet Eggs Benedict should set a nice baseline for a bad version of the dish.

You up for it Rocky?!

←

Let's do it!

Rocky

[kieran]

But I digress. Just wanted to weigh in with what may serve as a good reference point for mediocre Eggs Benedict in Seattle. I was in town last weekend and had a late breakfast on Saturday at the Broadway Grill. We opted for the breakfast buffet - probably a poor choice but we were both starved and quantity/flexibility in ordering seemed desirable.

Eggs Benedict are one of the items on the buffet. I'm suspect that the Hollandaise is a pre-made Sysco style product and the over result was less than great. But it was a darn sight better than the so-called scrambled eggs. I think ordering off the regular menu is a better bet at Broadway Grill but their buffet Eggs Benedict should set a nice baseline for a bad version of the dish.

←

Oh man, the Broadway Grill is to be avoided on all accounts. The food is horrible and I find the ambience very unpleasant. We used to play bar trivia there once a week, but stopped because we couldn't countenance eating there on such a regular basis. It wasn't just that the food tasted bad. We had serious reservations about the sanitation practices of their kitchen based on some of the unexpected organic matter multiple friends of ours found in their food.

[phaelon56]

Oh man, the Broadway Grill is to be avoided on all accounts....

We had serious reservations about the sanitation practices of their kitchen based on some of the unexpected organic matter multiple friends of ours found in their food.

←

I understand your concerns but I was on vacation and incoculating myself daily with copious amounts of espresso

But on the basis of my one meal there I'd go elsewhere next time.