Breakfast in Vancouver/Western Canada

[~cayenne~]

Glad you posted, the waffles sound great(as does the juice!).  Usually go by there later in the day, but haven't necessarily eaten yet.  Do you know if they discontinue serving the waffles at a certain time?

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Hmmm... well I hope I haven't spoken out of turn; I haven't been there in a while, but I've always had the waffles in the AM. I sure hope they still have them!!!

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No problem, you haven't. Great to read recommendations for E.V., and I'll have the juice anyway, if I'm too late for the waffles. Looking forward to reading more of your posts!

[fud]

Any restaurants out in Vancouver that serve ice cream on top of their pancakes? It's a great combo albiet certainly in no way remotely healthy

[Paul B]

I have to concur on the Tomahawk. Gotta love the funky decor, the old fashioned non-pretentious service, and the fact that they give you a choice of organic or 'normal' eggs. Love taking my family there.

[Daddy-A]

[host]

For the sake of simplifying future searches, I've merged a number of "Breakfast" threads into this one, uber-thread.

A.

[/host]

[11son]

Wow!

Thanks, everyone for all enthusiasm and the great responses… Please keep them coming!!!

I was really hoping to come up with something sort of along the lines of Pag’s or Gladys’ (looks like I got the name right). Basically something a little off-beat, great food, not too high end, but not too greasy spoon. There are a time and place for both of those kinds of breakfasts, but for me weekend mornings are about both really experiencing the meal and then kicking back for a bit afterwards.

I’ve been to Provence, and remember it being really good, but just ever so slightly pretentious, and kinda antiseptic feeling. I was a little surprised, too, Kurtis, that you didn’t mention Aurora in your first post. How does it compare for breakfast?

Thanks, fud, for the Main recommends. Slick’s (Slickety Jim’s) on main off broadway seems to me to have a slipped a few notches since they moved from Powell (thanks, DameD for correcting me on the street, ever so diplomatically). The food is good, and I’d still recommend checking it out if you haven’t been in before, and doubly so if you dig veggie sausage (theirs is quite nifty, and doesn’t taste at all like meat… and this from a committed carnivore).

I haven’t been to the Whip for breakfast, but have found it hit-and-miss for non-breaky visits. Is the breakfast better? What’s the Hatch like? They seem to have no Website. Are they all vegetarian?

Helen’s grill sounds good, and I’ll definitely check it out. Don’t know if my Tasty Companion is much of a big honkin’ breakfast person, but hopefully I can convince her.

I went to Paul’s on a weekend a while back. Funny, had no idea at the time that the guy was a Gladys’ alumnus. As I think back on it, the service was lousy. Just unforgivable. 35 minutes after we’d ordered, it turned out that one of our orders had been completely overlooked, to the point where they had to come back and ask us what it was again. All told it took AN HOUR from the time we placed out order til the food arrived. Once it got there, the various accompaniments (potatoes toast, fruit, whichever meat it was) were actually pretty good (great accompaniments were a trademark of Gladys’ ), but my omlette itself was vastly underwhelming. You just can’t get away with an average omlette if you call yourself an omlettery. Still Cayenne, I appreciate the recommendation. From a menu and approach standpoint, Paul’s is very close to what I am looking for.

Never had breakfast at Wazubee or Subeez, although I got food poisoning from the French fry dip one time in about 1995. That kinda put me off those places. Too bad, cause Benny (owner) is a really cool guy.

I’ll put Locus on my list too, if they’re good for breakfast. I had no idea. They’re dinners, in my experience have been patchy… ranging from very much excellent to really sub-par. When they hit, they really hit though.

Good tip on the Slylight. I lived of commercial for years and years, and I have no idea where the skylight is. Will definitely have to check that out. A good Ukranian sausage is a beautiful thing!

I’m in for a visit to fud’s neighbour’s place. And Ling’s. Sounds like a good iron chef episode to me.

Anyone try Barney’s on Granville ( I think that’s the place that DameD called “Benny’s”). I’ve heard some good things, and am thinking that might be a good next place to try.

Lastly, it seems like there’s a loyal Seb’s constituency in the house. I have to admit, in many ways it’s close to what I was looking for. The only problem was my omlette was uninspiring (I had the spinach, onions, and goat cheese one) and kinda balnd. Maybe I should go back and try something else there.

Anyway, you guys are awesome. Thanks for all of the great thoughts. I’ll post whatever I try next, and what it’s like…

-Eleven

[Zucchini Mama]

In my opinion Aurora's brunch (available Sundays only) is way ahead of Provence in terms of creativity, atmosphere, and flavour points. I only wish they were open Saturdays for brunch again, as I'd be there just about every week.

I do wish we had a rebar here. It's the first place I head when I get to Victoria.

Zuke

p.s. "flavour points" is my new expression created to match commerceSpeak "price points".

Edited October 27, 2005 by Zucchini Mama (log)

[Sonja]

I wasn't going to recommend Juicy Lucy's at 1420 Commercial cuz there's only one breafast item I've ever had there, but while we're on the subject of waffles...

Their waffles are whole-grain (yeah, I know), but extremely light, tender and not the least bit gritty. They're served with whipped butter, whipped cream, blackberries, strawberries and kiwis, and I definitely think they're worth a try.  It's not much of a restaurant, just a couple of tables inside and a couple more outside.

I order a carrot, apple and ginger juice to go with (I call it 'adam, eve and lilith').

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The waffles are great but the service is so bad that it is downright offensive. I do give them another chance now and then and they never cease to disappoint!

[chocomoo]

Anyone try Barney’s on Granville ( I think that’s the place that DameD called “Benny’s”). I’ve heard some good things, and am thinking that might be a good next place to try.

-Eleven

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THAT's the name of it!! Oh wait, I just did a search on Google & it's actually called Caffe Barney. I'm not a breakfast connoiseur, but I, for one, like Barney's. They only have a few kinds of omelettes though (3 to 5, maybe?). I like the smoked salmon omelette, but I don't like the blobs of cream cheese in it. I just don't like the combination of cold cream cheese with a hot omelette. The toast & breakfast potatoes are pretty good. They used to give you a little mountain of the potatoes, but I guess they figured most people couldn't finish them, so it's down to a more manageable portion now. I can't remember what else I've had, as I haven't been there in a while. Oh yes, the papaya & camembert omelette, which was disappointing. The papaya was a mixture of ripe & crunchy fruit which was unfortunately pretty tasteless. Apparently their benny's are pretty good, although I'm not a big benny fan. Their coffee is from Bean Around the World (no surprise there!).

[chrisstearns]

Has anyone had brunch at Abigail's Party yet?

(For those who hadn't heard, Abigail's purchased the brunch menu from Tangerine, whose breakfasts I always found to be good--certainly the best along the Yew St. corridor.)

[fud]

What’s the Hatch like? They seem to have no Website. Are they all vegetarian?

When I was there the lines were really the only thing that annoyed me. I mean I used to be ok with lines (ie Blue Fox) but I think I'm getting old and cranky and want to show up and just be able to get in The food I found was solid. Good eggs benny and I really liked their potatoes mmm. I don't know why but i find very few places that do potatoes right. Mostly they are rushed and therefore mushy.

Helen’s grill sounds good, and I’ll definitely check it out. Don’t know if my Tasty Companion is much of a big honkin’ breakfast person, but hopefully I can convince her.

I haven't been here but it reminds me of a "classic diner' which I am really excited about. One friend of mine stated that it was a good spot and the booths rock.

Never had breakfast at Wazubee or Subeez, although I got food poisoning from the French fry dip one time in about 1995. That kinda put me off those places. Too bad, cause Benny (owner) is a really cool guy.

I LOVE the fries at subeez/wazubeez. It is a shame you got poisoned Give em a try again I'm sure they will vindicate.

I’m in for a visit to fud’s neighbour’s place. And Ling’s. Sounds like a good iron chef episode to me.

If I'm competing with Ling I'll just raise my little white flag. If my neighbour is competing with Ling I'm happy I have front row seats.

Anyone try Barney’s on Granville ( I think that’s the place that DameD called “Benny’s”). I’ve heard some good things, and am thinking that might be a good next place to try.

Cafe Barney? It has a "secret" patio! How cool is that? I really liked the dinner I had there actually. I'm all about secret stuff I would love to buy a house with a hidden staircase behind a bookshelf.

[Daddy-A]

Helen’s grill sounds good, and I’ll definitely check it out. Don’t know if my Tasty Companion is much of a big honkin’ breakfast person, but hopefully I can convince her.

I haven't been here but it reminds me of a "classic diner' which I am really excited about. One friend of mine stated that it was a good spot and the booths rock.

The booths rock? What are we, 18?

Actually, they do kinda rock ... considering they have little juke boxes in them.

A.

[fud]

What are we, 18?

(my 17 year old sister thinks I'm immature - go figure)

Actually, they do kinda rock ... considering they have little juke boxes in them.

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My point exactly! A diner that has juke boxes on each booth can't be all that bad. I'm trying to find a hungarian/filipino breakfast diner out in the middle of an industrial area from my friend. I went there last year and the food was really good. The whole place was full of construction workers and foremen and the breakfast was hearty, tasty and cheap.

[11son]

I'm trying to find a hungarian/filipino breakfast diner out in the middle of an industrial area from my friend.  I went there last year and the food was really good.  The whole place was full of construction workers and foremen and the breakfast was hearty, tasty and cheap.

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A Hungarian/filipino breakfast diner?

If you ever hook that up, you MUST let me know. Sounds way out there enough to be worth it for the experience factor alone.

[Little Frog]

Since we were discussing waffles upthread...

The best waffle I had in Vancouver so far was at Picnic .

The portion was big enough to feed a small army and came with fresh fruit and whipped cream.

I forgot to ask for the whipped cream on the side, but the waffle remained reasonably crisp until the end, always a good thing in my book.

This morning I tried the Brussels waffle at Patisserie Lebeau but was not that impressed. It was on the dry side and the flavour was a tad too yeasty. Service was good, even though they were extremely busy, but unfortunately the space is just too constricted to feel comfortable. Next time I will try their Liege waffle (although I much prefer the Brussels ones) and it will be to go.

I must confess that I am not used to thinking of waffles as a breakfast food. My mother is, after all, from Brussels, so I was brought up with the typically Belgian idea that a waffle is best consumed between 4:00 and 9:00 PM, preferably during a stroll on the beach.

So it took me a couple of tries before I could try the Belgian waffle at Pane from Heaven on Cypress, which is served until noon.

Well, maybe the Universe was trying to tell me something. I should have listened.

Don't get me wrong, it tasted OK. But nothing like a waffle. Tasted like a pancake, had the texture of a pancake. Actually, had it been a pancake, it would have been great. But to call it a Belgian waffle verges on misleading... my ancestors are rolling in their graves somewhere between Brussels and the Ardennes Belges!

The waffle was overloaded with different garnishes, most of which were too sweet for my taste: no whipped cream but custard, maple syrup, strawberries, two fruit jellies and drizzled chocolate. The waffle sat on the fruit jellies (one red and one yellow), turning the initially attractive plate into an unappetizing mess after two bites. Needless to say, I will not order it again.

I think I am waffled out for a while now... time to switch to French toast!

Any recommendations?

Edited October 30, 2005 by Little Frog (log)

[fud]

A Hungarian/filipino breakfast diner?

If you ever hook that up, you MUST let me know. Sounds way out there enough to be worth it for the experience factor alone.

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Ok guys I got the lowdown but i need to make an apology. It is actually GERMAN Filipino! My deepest apology to those who were really excited about the Hungarian part!

The place is called:

Fraser Park Restaurant

(604) 433-7605

4663 Byrne Road

Burnaby, BC V5J 3H6, Canada

Google Map

And it features German breakfast with a Filipino flare. A lot of the meats and sausages are all home made. Like I said it's in the middle of this crazy industrial area but the food is really hearty.

Definately "off the beaten track".

[Memo]

And it features German breakfast with a Filipino flare.

Hopefully that means a lot of purple yam (ube) icing on the bratwurst!

Memo

[Mooshmouse]

Thought I'd post a link to the pictorial of Deborah's and my Aurora brunch in the appropriate thread and give credit where credit is due. Fantastic, Chef Jeff. I'll be back, that's for damn sure!

Edited November 1, 2005 by Mooshmouse (log)

[11son]

Thanks Moosh!

That stuff looks insnanely good. Gotta get there. Just gotta.

Now if fud could only post a similar pictorial fron the German/Philipino place, I'd be set.

I went to both the Hatch (kinda disappointing) and Tomahawk (really good) this weekend, thanks to kind recommends of you good folks. I'm a little behind on my reviews (mostly finished the Hatch one, haven't got too far with Tomahawk) but will post them soon.

-Eleven

[makanmakan]

after countless hours of reading about seb's on here, we finally made it there yesterday for brunch. we were greatly rewarded for our trek there. nice warm room. interesting offerings, good prices and our service was pretty good.

he had the bacon and apple omelette which was a really nice combination. i managed to snag a bite and i reall liked the subtle sweetness that the apple gave to the smokey saltiness of the bacon.

i had eggs over easy and turkey sausages. the eggs were perfectly done (pet peeve of mine when the yolks are hard), and the sausages were so so good. meaty, flavourful and juicy. the eggs were free range with bright orange yolks (yum!).

good coffees and my pineapple juice was freshly juiced with tiny chunks of fruit in it still.

both our plates came with a few pieces of fresh fruit, strawberry, watermelon and honeydew, and toast and homemade jam. i could live on their toast and jams, me thinks! we ended up leaving with a loaf of their french sour roasted garlic bread. made a really good grilled cheese sammie later on in the evening!

Edited November 13, 2005 by makanmakan (log)

[snacky_cat]

Heh heh, we were there too yesterday, like just about every other weekend. Mr Cat and I are sort of late eaters though, at least as far as breakfast is concerned, so we weren't around until around 11:45 or noon or so.

Mr Cat had ths scrambled eggs and turkey sausage, comme toujours, and I had the smoked salmon benny, just to deviate from my usual bacon/caramelized apple omelette. Delicious as always.

Handy Seb's tip: they are happy tp replace one side order with another (at least they are for us, who they recognize from our weekly-or-more visits). Mr Cat skips potatoes for extra fruit, and if I order something that doesn't have toast and jam (i.e benny), I skip one of the sides dishes and get toast instead.

And I always use my whole jam container on my toast. All of it. Every last molecule. Toast with a 1.5cm high layer of preserves tastes sooooo good.

[makanmakan]

heh, we were there around 1!

thanks for the tip on the sides. i hear ya about that jam. i wanted to lick the jam pot clean! we used up all our jam as well.

[fud]

Over the weekend we visited Hatch which was ok but not stellar. The awesome potatoes I had last time were not as crispy this time around but the food was solid and I liked the fried mash.

This morning I went to Melriches (yaletown) on my friends recommendation of "the best breakfast potatoes in town". She was right. The tators were seasoned and CRISPY! Really crispy like a lot of love was put into them. The inside was not mushy. Oh it was heaven.

[snacky_cat]

heh, we were there around 1!

thanks for the tip on the sides.  i hear ya about that jam.  i wanted to lick the jam pot clean!  we used up all our jam as well. 

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The jam is totally amazing. It seems they have a rotating cast of jam characters (which would make a thread unto itself a la kolachy flavour spotting), all of which are fantastic. The blueberry-peach and the marmalade are some of my favourites. You can buy 'em in the market area in the cooler and enjoy them at home on non-Seb's mornings.

This morning I went to Melriches (yaletown) on my friends recommendation of "the best breakfast potatoes in town". She was right. The tators were seasoned and CRISPY! Really crispy like a lot of love was put into them. The inside was not mushy. Oh it was heaven.

The Yaletown Melriche's is our other weekend breakfast spot; this week we were there on Friday. I can also be found there on any morning I decide to work at home, as I consider eating breakfast, having a coffee and reading the paper to be an integral part of the work day I guess I do that a lot, since whenever I go in they just ask if I'm having my usual. I get the breakfast sandwich on multigrain, which I have previously referred to as the ideal breakfast food - you can hold it one hand and turn the pages of the paper with the other hand. It's fluffy egg, ham, tomato, onion and red and green paper with kind of a light mustard dressing. Tastes even awesomer when dragged through a puddle of the hot sauce they give you on each table. I also highly recommend the apple cinammon pancakes and the maple muffins.

Agreed re: breakfast potatoes. Elsewhere in this forum (or maybe this thread, I can't rememebr), I got on my anti-potato soapbox or potato crate or whatever. Usually eating these malcontent little tubers makes me feel like a boa constrictor digesting a python, but Melriche's and Seb's both do them very well. Melriche's can vary a bit depending on who the chef is (they seem to have a rotating cast of characters; I can tell from the various permutations of breakfast sandwich I get) but are generally awesome. Seb's goes for more of the diced potato approach (vs. Melriche's halved baby potato) and gets the crispy right every time.

[makanmakan]

^^ me thinks there will be a stop at seb's tomorrow to stock up on some jam! thanks, miss cat

speaking of breakfast sandwiches and breakie things you can eat with one hand, i often get irate at the fact that most coffee joints have only sweet stuff to offer in the mornings. my usual 2 refuge are gutenbergs for their breakfast bagel and kookoo coffee on davie for their breakfast sandwich. gotta satisfy my salty tooth in the mornings

[francie]

Has anyone tried Ocean 6 Seventeen for brunch?