Victory Cafe

Like a paint by numbers meal, it looked good but was only the passable copy of an original.

Eggs Florentine, at $9.99 is not bad, but I've had far better for less. Cooked textbook with all the right textures looking neat and presentable, just like the picture on the box of a frozen meal, unfortunately, along with its dull pasty innards. The potatoes were crispy, looking nicely brown with sprinkles of colorful bell pepper, but were glorified tater tots with neither fun nor taste. The canned beans were as a pleasant a surprise as a tooth cavity. I wondered why the waitress mentioned that the eggs came with home fries and asked if that was ok, then specifically repeated it again 30 seconds after, when I placed my order. Yet no mention of the beans--which I would think people might more likely object to. The hollandaise sauce was, well it just wasn't hollandaise, despite appearances. Actually, it tasted like instant Knorr cream of potato soup.

It was just "ok". For the same price you could get something much better, especially with the plethora of choices in the Bloor Annex neighborhood alone. At least the Benny, costing the same, had thick, glistening slices of peameal bacon. Doesn't frozen spinach still cost a dollar a pound at the grocery store? But, I suppose a sunny day, sitting on the patio with super smiley service can compensate for a sub-par meal.

Victory Cafe Famous Pub & Eatery
address: 581 Markham St.
number: 416-516-5787
website: www.victorycafe.ca