Jul. 30, 2008 - Issue #667: Unrest Fest
The Blue Plate Diner
Feelin' Blue Plate
So, with a long, leisurely Sunday stretching out in front of me, I decided to seize the opportunity to treat my family to breakfast at the Blue Plate Diner. Although I’ve been to the quirky diner numerous times, it has always been past 7 pm, a bit too late for breakfast.
It was just after 9 am on a blustery Sunday morning when we blew in the door. One lone couple was sipping coffee by the window at the front of the big room. A hostess casually made her way from the back of the room to greet us, and we were seated at a table for four next to an exposed brick wall. Although the room is big and open with high ceilings and lots of tables, each with a personality of its own, small partitions with little windows and teal blue window frames made us feel like we had our own space.
The bright spring morning outside contrasted dramatically with the warm, muted effect of the interior: soft lighting came from the dropped metal lights above us and the glowing orange lights accenting the earthy mustard and copper walls. Wood tables and chairs dominated the room, though some of the tables seemed to have been transported straight from my grandma’s functional, no-frills, 1950s-style kitchen, complete with the shiny, slippery vinyl chairs. The room oozed with character.
A wall across from us, filled with bright paintings of a huge assortment of coffee cups, reminded me that I had not yet satisfied my daily caffeine craving, so we quickly consulted our bright yellow menus. Once our waitress was making her way back to the kitchen with our order for a latté ($3.50), a coffee ($2.50) and two hot chocolates ($3.50 each), we turned our attention to breakfast.
The menu fits nicely on one page and offers everything from pancakes to eggs benedict to granola to a tofu scramble. There are vegan and vegetarian options (including veggie sausage) and even a small kids’ section. The absence of any sort of cinnamon-y bun creations didn’t sit well with either of my kids, but one settled on the Fruit and Grilled Cornbread ($8.50) and the other on the Kids’ Pancake Breakfast ($6.50), minus the egg. My husband felt like the standard Big Breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast and potatoes ($9.50) and I ordered the Breakfast Burrito ($9.50), minus the potatoes. Our waitress kindly asked if I would like fruit instead and I readily agreed.
Our drinks came, and after the waitress had quickly scooted away I noticed that my one daughter’s hot chocolate was much smaller than the other’s (I later found out that our waitress had taken it upon herself to serve us one regular hot chocolate and one kids’ hot chocolate, something we would have ordered had we wanted it that way). My daughter was a bit annoyed but didn’t want to wait to have it fixed so promptly attacked the billowy whipped cream on the top.
I eagerly grabbed my latté but was disappointed with the lukewarm temperature. The larger hot chocolate also suffered from a lack of heat and we sent them back. The replacements were a much better temperature but unfortunately both drinks had an unpleasant bitter edge to them.
The girls had a chance to zip around the almost empty room and check out many of the eclectic, kitschy lamps adorning each table before breakfast arrived. Once it did, there was a flurry of syrup pouring, pancake cutting and jam spreading to be done before anyone had a chance to sneak a bite. First up was the huge kids’ pancake, so big it almost covered the whole plate. Not the thin “pancake breakfast” variety, it was thick and fluffy and declared utterly delicious. The accompanying bacon was cooked perfectly; not too crisp but not soft and rubbery either.
My burrito was a delectable combination of scrambled eggs, melted cheese, tangy salsa and the most incredible creamy guacamole ever, all stuffed in a warm, soft tortilla. A crisp exterior would have provided a nice contrast to the soft, creamy inside, but it was still tasty and comforting, just like a Sunday breakfast should be. The side dish of fruit was your typical mixture of cantaloupe, honeydew, grapes, orange, and pineapple. Not terribly different or exciting, but it was fresh.
Unfortunately, the other two meals didn’t fare quite as well. The Big Breakfast was okay, but the poached eggs were hard and the fried potatoes weren’t very hot. The bacon and toast were good, though, and my husband, who likes eggs any which way, ate them without complaint.
My daughter fared the worst with her Fruit and Grilled Cornbread. The fruit part of it was fine—a somewhat larger version of the small bowl that came with my burrito—but the “incredible maple-glazed cornbread” didn’t live up to its billing. The flavour was fine, but it was so dry that even copious amounts of butter and jam were unable to salvage it. I know recipes can vary from moist and dense to dry and crumbly, but this was dry even for dry cornbread.
Our bill came and I was surprised to find that I had been charged for the fruit the waitress suggested I substitute for the potatoes. Not a big deal, but it should have been mentioned up front, especially since it was her idea.
Breakfast at the Blue Plate Diner proved to be a mixed bag, but one worth getting up for. The amazing pancakes and guacamole are definitely worth a repeat visit, as is the comfortable, eclectic décor. A few minor glitches just prove that everyone, even quirky diners, can have good and bad days, but that just gives them a bit more personality. V
The Blue Plate Diner
Mon - Fri (11 am - 10 pm)
Sat, Sun (9 am - 10 pm)
10145 - 104 St, 780.429.0740
blueplatediner.ca
More info about Blue Plate Diner →
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