Let's Talk Good Breakfasts

During our weekend in Calgary, Albert and I essentially skipped lunch opting instead for gargantuan breakfasts at Avenue Diner, which a waitress at Milestone's (closed at the time) recommended. This turned out to be an excellent breakfast spot.

On Sunday morning, there was a short wait to get in around 10. Interestingly, there were about a dozen firefighters eating at the counter. They must have known it was good. I took their presence as a good sign. On this morning we went with traditional, hearty breakfasts of two eggs, maple bison sausage, hash browns and toast. My poached eggs were perfectly cooked with delightful runny yolks in which I dipped some of the multi-grain toast. The rest of the toast was slathered with an in-house berry jam that was absolutely delicious. Hash browns were very good, well seasoned and of the pan fried variety. The bison sausage was also excellent as it was no overly greasy and quite tasty. Maybe that's not a very good description, but I'd eat it again. Albert ate the same thing with eggs over easy.

On Monday morning, our breakfast was quite late but I think breakfast is served well into the afternoon. I went with a super-sugary breakfast this time, the banana split waffle. No ice cream was involved but the four pieces of waffle were between the halves of a banana and covered in lots of whipped cream, chocolate sauce, strawberries, and some chopped walnuts. There's nothing like chocolate at breakfast and I really enjoyed the strawberries and banana. The waffles were good, so good I sort of wished there was less chocolate and whipped cream on them so I could taste the waffle for itself. I felt a little guilty about this breakfast though, too much sugar and not enough substance. Albert ordered the Avenue French Toast stuffed with brie and bacon and served with sauteed granny smith apples. This dish had been mentioned by the server who recommended the diner. It seemed not as generous as other breakfasts, although perhaps very rich, as it was only two halves of one stuffed thick slice of bread. I tried a bit and thought it was good. Albert however commented that it might have been a little over cooked to his taste. Overall, breakfast at the Avenue Diner was very good, even if the chairs were slightly uncomfortable. Service was good and we were recognized on our second visit.

Before Albert left Edmonton on Thursday morning, we had some breakfast the the Sugarbowl. I've mentioned it many times and I need only say that the half cinnamon bun and fruit salad did not disappoint. The bun was a delicious blend of textures--soft and crisp-- with caramelized bits once again.