Something with that starts wth "M"

I remember as we approached that this single named spot, which begins with an M and had one of those best of articles touting its Toronto brunch status would be easy for me to recall if need be. As it has been a month since, and I wasn't paying attention to what street we were on, nor has it been successfully googled, let's hope someone knows what I'm talking about.

It doesn't quite seem to be Mitzi's or Maggie's. They do have challah french toast and a regular following of "campers" and on that snowy Sunday, we waited for a good while as were quite a few other groups. We were the only ones at first standing awkwardly by the bar in the middle of the joint, as it's cozy/cramped. It seemed like a good sign. However, there were at least 2 couples sitting there for a real table, and soon after a crowd of five squished in behind us. There are so many options around town, but that no one was surprised about the wait, and were happy to stay put, I took it as a good sign. So, the entrance brings you right to facing a small bar. On the left side, there's room for a few tables, not many. The decor can be described as eclectic for lack of a better word (as it isn't that unusual) but it is a place of mishmash chair styles, art and photography - kitschy but soothingly unobtrusive - and the tables were pretty short. The wait staff was friendly and relaxed, all very androgynous-ly hipster in their skinny jeans, black tees, and Tuesday Adams.

The menu was awesome! A plethora of all day brunch... each one equally tantalizing. They had like 10 types of bennies, lots of veg options. I was impressed as I spotted on other diner's plates exoticisms like dragon fruit and pommegranate seeds (although its last year's fruit trend and already yawn).

I think the boys got some sort of lumberjack hungry man plate loading aforementioned french toast, eggs to order, your usual meats - bacon, sausage, ham - and toast. It seemed as if everything included a side salad - very fresh mixed baby greens in a tasty vinegarette optimally dressed- as well as homefries (spicy or non). I ordered a bacon benny and thought it was supposed to be peameal, but got crispy side, which was just fine. It was perfect. I love it when everything on your plate tastes equally good and you can't choose which thing to eat last as it will be the lingering flavour in your mouth. Even the whimsical fruit garnishes, a cherry here, a slice of melon there were meaningful flourishes as they were freshly textured and sweet.

Coffee was abundant (so far every place I've been to has been really good with this). And the influx of people steady even until we left.

Help! I want to go back.

Bar One

Another Q.W. staple, as I enter and spot the large communal "bar" table, I get a flashback about a restaurant trend of years back where the gimmick of the spot is to sit beside strangers, interact and have a unique dining experience. Now I don't know if the concept thrived, but I am completely uninterested. If I'm out to dine with friends, it's to specifically be with them, or if I'm eating alone, the only company I need is the food and reading material I plan on tucking into. However, as we waited for more than ten minutes for a table (again, another blustery day when the need for warmth overcomes our grumbling bellies), I thought that the "bar one" in question was good for its newspaper accommodating space. Then, soon enough we were whisked off to a nice booth, and brought good fresh coffee.

The menu is not large. Yet again, I really want to take pieces from each offering to compile what I do want (have yet to find the perfect brunch menu combo offering), but as Lisa notes, they do not accept substitutions. This does not please her, even though she just wants an egg white veggie omelet and we don't think they'd mind since she's not being picky, she's a vegetarian.

In the end, Denise gets the set of eggs, meat, home fries, pancakes, and toast. It looks very hearty and we can't even help her finish it. The jam and ketchup on the side are homemade, but quite forgettable in their blandness. My egg in a hole although small and unadorned is actually just perfect. The brioche is crisp on the outside and fresh, giving into the perfectly soft egg center, the smoked salmon and spinach the perfect amount of salt highlight, and the drizzle of aioli which seemed just as inconsequential is actually hefty in richness and another nice note to ribbon the package together.

Lisa got her omelet and side of home fries and is not impressed nor disappointed. It's fine, but the filling of goat cheese and spinach is a bit lackluster. She prefers the omelet she had from Epicure or her regular haunt Sneaky Dees. Both L and D were not too impressed by the waitress who seemed preoccupied and failed to mention that the change to egg whites cost an extra $2. But, she was quick on the coffee refills and I hadn't noticed anything.

Brunch options are around $8 - $11, not including coffee, tax, or tip, and what is described on the menu is as it is - sides are extra.

Bar One

Address: 924 Queen Street West

Phone: 416-535-1655

Butler's Pantry

Although we easily sat ourselves down at this Queen W. location, the fact that it took the waitress at least 15 minutes to give us menus because she was dealing with a bad situation should have been the first clue.

I was hungry and in an amiable mood and since our coffees came swift and copiously after finally getting some attention, i was in good hopes at the unusual menu. Breakfast options were brief and cheap, but they had 3 benny options. The rest of the menus is a very eclectic: moussaka, pub pies, Indian curry, Burmese noodles, and then a smattering of sandwich options.

Once again, I opted for the benz, even though they came with a side of hashbrowns - which i saw at the next table; obviously deep-fried mccain pucks. so, badumbum... what i got was an overpriced egg mcmuffin meal. Poached eggs hard!

Jamie got the Burmese chicken noodles which looked bland and simple and not finished. The Jenster got a veggie ben with salad. The dressing was good - but tasted exactly like kraft sundried tomato, although at least the greens were mixed baby (love that it's de riguer and nary the iceberg everywhere else around the world).


Side story (the bad situation) - the table next to us - a customer made a point of saying that she was allergic to something and to make sure her order didn't include it. However, it came with said allergen, and was sent back while her companion got her order. When it came back, it was obvious that they'd just scraped off the offensive element. After a very polite complaint, they still didn't do anything; said party left highly disgruntled.

Hmmm... not going back there unless it's just for drinks or cheap abundant weak coffee.

The Butler's Pantry

Address: 484 Queen Street West

Phone: 416-504-3414

Epicure

Terribly hungry after a late night of drinking, we decided just to pop by somewhere close by on Queen W. It was cold, we were famished, but determined to find a good spot! There's nothing worse that not getting exactly what you want in such a situation.

As usual, I want some sort of benny, so we diligently perused menus first. Almost settled on Portabello, but it just didn't quite have the atmosphere.

Finally, Epicure because they had Lisa's omelet, and 3 types of bens for me. There was an extensive lunch menu as well, which was tempting, but too many options so I stuck to breakfast.

Lisa has strict diet restrictions, but she was able to find an egg white omelet to her liking and was very satisfied with her light and fluffy concoction of veggies and cheese. Jenny and I had respectively, the tomato ben, and the smoked salmon. Although I'd been eating tons of smoked salmon, I was swayed by the menu description of their special house-smoked offering. With breks, you get the option of house or caesar salad, or homefries, and can have a split of both - which is what we opted for.

The only good thing on my plate ended up being the potatoes. They weren't crispy, rather just cooked and sauteed with spices, but yummy. The eggs were awful. Obviously poached with too much vinegar so that the extra tang from the hollandaise made one wonder if something had gone off - which is exactly what Jenny thought of hers. The salmon was smoked, but was cooked, and tasted as if the reason they do a house smoked is because they have to do something with the week's leftovers. The flavour was insipid, the texture ruined, and the smoke flavour was more of an off-putting char, complimented by the slightly burnt english muffin, and sadly, the sour eggs were the only thing edible - I was hungover hungry after all.

The service was ok, and the place of warm woods - think hard bench booths, but maybe their pastas and burgers are better.

I would not risk breakfast there again as there are too many other options all over Toronto.

Breakfast options are under $10, not including coffee or tax/tip.

Epicure

Address: 502 Queen Street West

Phone: 416-504-8942