Get Your Brunch on at Caffe Phoenix
awesomely good coffee and biscotti
Aaaah, Caffe Phoenix. I haven’t eaten here in well over a year. It’s interesting with Caffe Phoenix — every person I talk to about it either says something like, “It used to be so good, but I don’t go there anymore,” or, “I love that place, it‘s great!” — it’s usually one or the other. Since I knew I was going for brunch on Sunday with out of town friends, I checked the Trip Advisor reviews. Out of 15 reviews, only 2 were really less than positive. And even those had minor, non-earth-shattering complaints. Plus, this is where my out-of-town friends wanted to go, so that trumps everything.
We all very much enjoyed our food, see pics below, and the coffee completely rocked. The only other restaurant coffee I’ve had as near as good in this town is that at Jester’s Java, on Castle Street. Our server was delightful, and there in a flash every time we needed coffee refills. Which we did, multiple times, because, did I mention how great the coffee is here? Oooh, and it comes with a sweet, delicious little biscotti, mmmmm.
We arrived at around 11:30 a.m., and as my Southern friends and readers will attest, you can’t get an alcoholic beverage in this town before noon on a Sunday. Curses!! But no worries, we told our kind server we’d like a round of mimosas at the stroke of noon, and she was on it. Precisely at 12:00 p.m. and one second, she appeared at our table with three of them, and they too were very good, just the right ratio of bubbly to o.j. Which is to say, ¾ of the glass filled with bubbly, then a splash of o.j. to bring the elixir to the top of the glass.
Eggs on English
Caffe Phoenix is a really lovely space to while away some time on a leisurely Sunday morning, all natural light spilling in from the large windows facing Front St., and gleaming hardwood floors. The building dates from 1899, and has the appropriate historical touches. There’s a sweet little horseshoe-shaped bar too, and I’ve heard this is a great place to dine if you’re on your own.
My only complaint, and it’s a minor one, is that the eggs on my croissant sandwich (scrambled eggs with apple-wood smoked bacon & sharp cheddar on a croissant) were just a touch rubbery, and didn’t really taste like eggs. But the flaky, buttery croissant the cooked-to-perfection bacon made up for it. One of my friends had the chorizo con huevos (scrambled eggs, chorizo, onions & chilies served with a warm flour tortilla, avocado and salsa fresca) — he loved — and the other had eggs on English (a pair of poached eggs with hollandaise and your choice of either sauteed spinach, miniature crab cakes, or sliced tomato with fresh basil) with the miniature crab cakes, and he also loved!
Croissant Sandwich -- there's bacon and eggs in there!
The service is divine, the space is lovely, and the food is good, and I don’t doubt even great, if you’re not having scrambled eggs. Or even if you are having scrambled eggs, perhaps on a different day. : ) Check out menu, location and hours, here.
Good review, Kimberly! We really enjoyed having brunch at this place. The only thing better than the food and service was the company! Next time we’re in town, we’re going to try the dinner menu, which looks divine. And a table for two on the mezzanine overlooking the restaurant would be really romantic!
Thanks, Jeremy! And I completely agree with you about the company. ; ) good times, good times.