I'm sure there are tons of restaurants that you've been to for dinner, but never thought to bother going there for brunch. In my opinion, if you can't make a killer Hollandaise, cook an egg properly, and heat your maple syrup to the same temperature as your waffles, you have no business making anyone dinner. Why do you think every season of MasterChef has a breakfast challenge? If you can't rock breakfast, you shouldn't exist. All that to say, next time you're feeling adventurous on a Sunday morning, try out somewhere you'd typically go for dinner and see how they measure up!
During one of our online searches for a Vancouver breakfast spot where we can eventually become regulars, Stephen said "This place has chicken and waffles! I want chicken and waffles!" Now Joe Fortes doesn't quite fit our criteria for a weekly breakfast go-to. The menu is a little pricier than I would wan't to spend every Sunday, the speed of service is definitely at a sit-down pace rather than diner-pace, and most of the menu choices are on the heavier side. However, it was a fantastic once-in-a-while place that I think is largely undiscovered by our demographic.
Nearly everyone else who was at the restaurant at the same time as us was old enough to be our parents. I'm not sure if it's because the decor appeals to their age-group or because there are hotels in close proximity. Either way, they were all baby-boomers with thick enough wallets to start with oysters on the half shell (yeah, at 11am, weird right?) and throw back a few mimosas.
The mimosas are hard to say no to. A waiter comes by every table with a bottle of bubbly and a jug of fresh orange juice and says "Mimosa?" before you are even offered a glass of ice water. We resisted, but all of the tables around us indulged. I found the menu to be waaaaaay too long. They could easily cut it down by 75% and save the kitchen the headache of one person ordering that super unpopular dish that the chef hates making and only put on the menu because the owner's nephew eats it when he's in town. Stephen of course ordered the chicken and waffles, and I ordered Joe's Signature Benedict.
The waiters were quick to offer us mimosas, but the rest of service was quite slow. Not quite "um, we ordered 30 minutes ago, where is our food?" slow, but what we ordered didn't justify the waiting we did. It took about 5 minutes to be served a glass of water, 10 more minutes for Stephen's coffee, and another 5 before they came back to take our orders. At least while we waited for our mains, we were served scones instead of bread. It was an appropriate swap-out for brunch. I believe they had white chocolate and cinnamon. About the same time we received our mains, the table beside us complained about the wait for their food since they ordered before we were even seated.
Enter the main attraction: two visually stunning brunch plates. Not only did they look amazing, the smell was intoxicating. Our food was expertly prepared and plated, and suddenly the wait was justified. Joe's Signature Benedict was hands-down the very best eggs Benedict I have ever had! Yes Rosa (my very best foodie friend back in YUL), even better than l'Avenue! For the first time, the waiter asked me how I wanted my eggs poached: soft, medium or well. I ordered soft, and when I ate them I appreciated the option because, as I've mentioned in other posts, I despise hard-cooked egg yolks. The truffle and sage Hollandaise sauce was so creamy and thick and delicious that I just wanted an entire glass of it. The wild mushrooms were meaty and perfectly sautéed, and though the prosciutto wasn't crisp as the menu described it, it was a great salty complement to the whole dish. I also got a generous helping of breakfast potato that were crispy, salty and yummy as well. And they were served with ketchup on the side, so they saved me the embarassment of asking a waiter in a nice restaurant for a side of Heinz. I'm not sure what else I can say about eggs Benedict. Just go order one. Do it. It's amazing.
The chicken and waffles was also pretty perfect. The ratio of waffle to chicken was spot on. A lot of restaurants where we've ordered chicken and waffles are generous with the waffles and stingy with the chicken. These were 2 big hunks of perfectly seasoned and deep fried, crispy chicken. Take a hand-full of Tostito chips, stack them up, and bite into the entire stack at once. That's the sound the chicken made when you bit into it. No joke, hella crispy. To my surprise it was also both juicy and completely cooked through. If you are reading this, chances are you aren't great at cooking chicken (I have't eaten your chicken, but I know you aren't cooking it right). There is a fine like between pink/undercooked and juicy/cooked, and it's rarely achieved. Kudos to Joe Fortes for that ridiculous chicken. The waffles were fluffy, not super dense, and just a tad sweet without the syrup. They had a crispy exterior, and tasted great on their own. AND the syrup was served warm. Why do a lot of places think it's a good idea to serve cold or room-temperature syrup with hot waffles? Faux pas! Sage was also present in this dish, this time deep fried. In Montreal, we had this massive, thriving sage plant, and never knew what to do with it. Lesson learned: breakfast/brunch is the place for sage. The plate also had a little sweet chili sauce on the plate. Chicken + waffle + syrup + chili sauce = Holy sh!t, where have you been all my life?
All that to say, I typically wouldn't have gone to a place like Joe Fortes for brunch, but I'm so happy that we gave it a chance. It was one of the best brunches I've ever had, and you really have to check it out for yourself!
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| White Chocolate Cinnamon Scones |
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| Chicken and Waffles! |
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| The Joe Forte's Benedict... The Best! |
THE STATS - Out of 10
Taste: 9 - It was very close to perfect tasting dishes, but Stephen says the coffee needed to be better for them to earn a 10. It's a crucial element of breakfast, so I won't disagree with him.
Creativity: 7.5 - I give them a 9 for creativity on the menu overall, but a 6 for creativity in the dishes we actually had since they were pretty traditional with minimal creative twists, so let's split it to a 7.5.
Service: 6 - Service was very friendly, especially the hostess when we arrived, but it was a little slow
Bang for your buck: 7 - It's hard to judge this one. I've had eggs Benedict and chicken and waffles for $12 each, and Joe Fortes prices were 50% higher. Factoring in the superior quality and in-house-made elements like fresh-made English muffins, the prices may be justified. Would I spend that much every Sunday? Nope.
Overall experience: 8.5 - It was a wonderful surprising experience.
Would I go back? Absolutely, and for both breakfast and dinner. Though we were set on what we were going to order before we arrived (courtesy of them having their entire menu online...love that), we started to doubt our choices when we saw some of the other dishes on the physical menu. We'd like to go back and try a few more.
Who would I recommend it to? Couples, small groups or even big groups. The space is big, and the tables are close enough that you can eves drop (you know you do it!), but far enough that you aren't annoyed by a loud table next to you. You could easy bring a family with young children here for brunch, but I probably wouldn't recommend it in the evening for dinner.
For what occasion? I wouldn't qualify this as a weekly brunch, or for a very important event. It is a great once-in-a-while place.
It was better than: Twisted Fork Bistro
It wasn't as good as: Cafe Medina
Expect: To be seated right away since there is tons of seating. It feels a little like Tiffany's in Montreal, but quality is definitely a cut above. Don't let the decor and wait staff uniforms intimidate you into thinking its hoity-toity. Expect to be there longer than other Vancouver breakfast joints, because the service is on the slower-side. At the same time, they aren't trying to rush you out so that someone else in line can be seated, which would be especially appreciated if you were going with a bigger group. Hipsters beware: expect everyone to be a baby-boomer or older.
Top 50 Worthy? Yeah, I'll give it to them. Their food was damn good. They could easily be in the Top 10 if they would cater to the young-professional demographic.
Creativity: 7.5 - I give them a 9 for creativity on the menu overall, but a 6 for creativity in the dishes we actually had since they were pretty traditional with minimal creative twists, so let's split it to a 7.5.
Service: 6 - Service was very friendly, especially the hostess when we arrived, but it was a little slow
Bang for your buck: 7 - It's hard to judge this one. I've had eggs Benedict and chicken and waffles for $12 each, and Joe Fortes prices were 50% higher. Factoring in the superior quality and in-house-made elements like fresh-made English muffins, the prices may be justified. Would I spend that much every Sunday? Nope.
Overall experience: 8.5 - It was a wonderful surprising experience.
Would I go back? Absolutely, and for both breakfast and dinner. Though we were set on what we were going to order before we arrived (courtesy of them having their entire menu online...love that), we started to doubt our choices when we saw some of the other dishes on the physical menu. We'd like to go back and try a few more.
Who would I recommend it to? Couples, small groups or even big groups. The space is big, and the tables are close enough that you can eves drop (you know you do it!), but far enough that you aren't annoyed by a loud table next to you. You could easy bring a family with young children here for brunch, but I probably wouldn't recommend it in the evening for dinner.
For what occasion? I wouldn't qualify this as a weekly brunch, or for a very important event. It is a great once-in-a-while place.
It was better than: Twisted Fork Bistro
It wasn't as good as: Cafe Medina
Expect: To be seated right away since there is tons of seating. It feels a little like Tiffany's in Montreal, but quality is definitely a cut above. Don't let the decor and wait staff uniforms intimidate you into thinking its hoity-toity. Expect to be there longer than other Vancouver breakfast joints, because the service is on the slower-side. At the same time, they aren't trying to rush you out so that someone else in line can be seated, which would be especially appreciated if you were going with a bigger group. Hipsters beware: expect everyone to be a baby-boomer or older.
Top 50 Worthy? Yeah, I'll give it to them. Their food was damn good. They could easily be in the Top 10 if they would cater to the young-professional demographic.
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