Tasting notes from my breakfast table

The labour of love is finally producing fruit. I've been compiling notes on assorted breakfasts I've eaten in restaurants around Edmonton over the last few months. It's taken me a while to find a few reliably good breakfast spots around town, but I have now.  If you click on the link below, you'll get access to my excel spreadsheet with all my comments on the decor, service and food at a number of Edmonton breakfast spots. I'll bet you're surprised about which ones I like and which I don't.

I've included information about what we ordered and how many times we went. The fewer times we have visited, the more room there is for error. If we've only visited a place once, we recognize that some of the things we didn't like may have been due to a bad day or some other one-time thing, so bear that in mind.

I'll try to update the spreadsheet from time to time as we try new things and new places. When I do, I'll put a note about the update somewhere visible on my blog.

Happy breakfasting... Just in time for the weekend too!

Click here to

Download edmonton_brekkie_table.xls

Comments

[Raspberry Sour]

Wow, I'm so impressed- an Excel spreadsheet! I'm always trying to convince my co-workers to use it, but they just get angry when I tell them they could have done two weeks of work in under a day (they was countin' and addin' the last time I brought it up).

I also don't understand the hype about the High Level Diner, although I've been going there for years. But I'm careful not to expect much- I get there at 8 (stumbling distance from my front door makes for many points), and always order the breakfast special. It used to be only $3.95 for eggs, hashbrowns, coffee and toast, plus they'd sub my bacon with an entire fruit cup (instead of the standard meagre sliver of melon). I think it costs more now and the fruit is sparser, but they still manage to soft poach my eggs. But otherwise, run, run, run, most especially from the tabouleh.

I'm looking forward to reading your other reviews. Have you tried Cafe Mosaics (Whyte and 109) yet? Another highly overrated destination, but I'm curious what you'll think of it.

[Corey]

You're missing Denny's Slammy!
mmmmmm

[Lyn]

R.S.: how can anyone bollocks up tabouleh?
Corey: Ugh.
All: Spreadsheet pudate tonight with hopefully less spelling mistakes!

[Lyn]

argh. I meant 'update'.

[CC]

How about Upper Crust on 86 Ave and 109 St?

[Raspberry Sour]

Upper Crust is amazing! I worked there for a while, and I don't think I've ever been treated better by restaurant management. Or ever customers. Go, go, go. They also do an excellent daily salad special (featuring caramel almonds), and a semi-divine sticky-toffee pudding.

Lyn, in answer to your question, the High Level Diner's tabouleh remains one of the great mysteries of the world. Basically, it's bitter. Bitter, bitter, bitter, and I've never done the research to find out why. My guess is too much lemon juice reacting with one of the ingredients.

[Susan]

That spreadsheet is eerily like one I use. Any reason New York Bagel Cafe is not on your list? Perfect for dropping in before or after farmer's market down the block on Saturdays. Not for when you are in a hurry.

[TT]

Have you tried the Glenora Grill (off of 124 St and 100th Ave) or Tasty Toms (off of Whyte Ave, the East side)? Tasty Toms has their version of homemade ketchup that's warm and exotic tasting. Their omelettes are the greasiest around, though. The GG is yummy, not spectacular food, but pretty pretty decor.

[Don]

Yum.. breakfast.. one of my favourite meals.. even though I'm never up early enough for it.

Zuppa Cafe on 110STR and 99th - Good Kicking Horse coffee with whole wheat cinnamon bun french toast along with the usual fare. And breakfast goes til 3pm on Saturdays!

And a few golf courses:

Blackhawk Golf Course .. pretty good eggs bennie (they even ask you how you want your eggs.. runny, not so runny) and last they were made with procsuitto and came with homemade hashbrowns. Although it was a bit heavy on the olive oil.

Northern Bear golf course - really good french toast.. thinner slices cooked til they were crispy. Good with the tasty local farmer breakfast sausage.

Black Bull golf course by Pigeon Lake - breakfast buffet on Sundays. All you can eat bacon, sausage, pancakes, fruit, omelettes, and eggs benedicts! Quality .. so-so.. but you can the all you can eat bacon and sausage makes up for it.

[Lyn]

RS: tried to go to Upper Crust on Sunday but was closed!

Susan: Tried NY Bagel on Saturday and liked it so much we went back on Sunday after discovering that Upper Crust is not open on Sundays.

What kinda cafe aint open on Sundays?

[Aryn]

I'd be interested to know what you thought about the breakfasts at Café Mosaic on Whyte. If I remember correctly, the entire menu is vegetarian, and everything I have tried has been good. The most notable drawback I found was the insanely small space, which generally means trying to wait in their even-smaller vestibule for one of the six(?) tables.

[Tara Zieminek]

You should try Cafe de Ville or Barb & Ernie's. (I noticed neither of these was on the spreadsheet.) I've been on an Edmonton breakfast/brunch odessey lately and both were top notch. (I'd recommend the eggs benedict or pancakes at Barb & Ernies, or the Everything at Cafe de Ville). Having your own pastry chef definitely makes for a better (if more expensive) breakfast.

[N]

Who's the tall girl who works at Edmonton's New York Bagel Cafe

[Pam]

Can't recall if I already commented; you gonna update the brekky list? :)

[Sara]

This was just what I was looking for! Thank you so much for making this list, I couldn't think of anywhere to go for breakfast besides White Spot.
Way to go!