Weekend Seventeen: Caffé Barney

This weekend, we decided to meet our friend Kyle for brunch at Caffé Barney on Granville. (They don't have a website, but they're at 2975 Granville, and the phone number is 604-731-6446.) We have been there before, and remembered their huevos rancheros that are served in a skillet... but I digress. Back to the matter at hand.

As per usual, I started with orange juice, and both Catie and Kyle had coffee. In contrast to last week, neither were served in bottles. Kyle ordered eggs benedict featuring avocado, Catie the huevos in a skillet, and I the breakfast burrito.

Kyle's benny had suspiciously large pieces of avocado - perhaps a whole one had been used in its production - and hollandaise sauce that "tasted really good." The huevos were indeed served hot in a small skillet, covered with melted cheese and salsa. They would have been better if they had been served with guacamole and sour cream, but the fresh salsa was delicious. The toast was also a bit strange. Perhaps a tortilla would have been a better accompaniment, she says. As for the breakfast burrito, I quite liked it, except for the pieces of potato inside. I had the same fresh salsa as Catie, and the beans inside the burrito were quite tasty. Our meal, including food, drinks, tax, and tip, came to just under $55.

There is a bit of a low point, though, and that was the service. To be fair, they were very busy, but being handed a menu at the door and told to "go to the last table on the left, at the back, you'll see it when you get there..." was off-putting. We had been offered coffee refills when our cups were full, but when they became empty, no server with a carafe would make eye contact with us. Kyle had to beg for more before they would refill Catie's mug! Would we go back? Probably, as the service has been good in the past, but be forewarned!

Was this the perfect brunch? Not really, but it was a tasty meal and a good place to visit with a good friend. And the little skillet is cute!