Food Adventure #4 – SAVING GRACE (907 Dundas St. West)
A thing or person’s “saving grace” is its redeeming quality, that feature which compensates for its flaws and imperfections. As I set off for my brunch adventure this week, I hoped and prayed that Saving Grace would be my saving grace from the lackluster brunch experiences I have relayed to you thus far. In addition to the promise that its name imparted, I had heard rave reviews about this brunch establishment and my expectations were high. Alas, another brunch has resulted in shattered hopes and dreams. There was nothing particularly bad about Saving Grace,but I was left wondering what all the fuss is about. Here’s why.
Brunch Hours
Saving Grace opens at 9:00 on weekdays and 10:00 on weekends; the restaurant claims to close at 2:45 every day, which seems oddly specific.
Wait Time/Service
Saving Grace is a tiny restaurant that only seats thirty people. It does not take reservations, and on weekends it has a reputation for its long wait. Apparently, a line forms outside the door well before it opens, and it is so busy that the food takes upwards of an hour to arrive once you have ordered. Despite the fact that I wanted to give a true picture of the Saving Grace experience, I was not willing to put myself through that particular kind of hell. Instead, my brunch companion (BC) and I went at 10:30 on a Monday morning. At that time, the restaurant was about half-full, though it had filled up by the time we left.
We got a table immediately and the service, on the whole, was decent (though the server did take other tables’ orders before ours, despite the fact that we had arrived first). We only waited about five minutes for coffee and another ten to fifteen minutes for our food to arrive, so my expectations in this department were surpassed.
Atmosphere
The atmosphere at Saving Grace is pretty relaxed, and it has very simple décor (a kind of a shabby yet modern feel). The large front windows make the space feel bigger and very bright, regardless of the fact that it was rainy outside while we were there. However, the seating is not very comfortable, and the tables are a bit cramped together: my chair was jostled a number of times when the servers would attend to the table next to us. The restaurant also got its delivery of fruit while we were there, and I nearly had a box of papayas fall on my head (the delivery man caught it just in time). Considering this near-death experience, I felt I had to dock a point for the restaurant’s atmosphere.
While we were there, quiet trumpet music playing in the background; though pleasant, it was not enough to alleviate the feeling that we were eavesdropping on our neighbours (and them on us) because our tables were so close. Additionally, there is an upper level of the restaurant where there are a few seats that look out over the lower tables and in my paranoid mind, I felt like I was being watched while I ate.
Coffee
Though I was completely fine this week, my BC was extremely hung-over after spending the previous day going on winery tours in the Niagara region; as such, he was not capable of conversation before coffee arrived. Lucky for us, it was strong and was brought to us (and refilled) fairly quickly.
LLBO licensed
No alcohol here, friends. How both Aunties and Uncles and Saving Grace can be considered the best brunch places in Toronto when they don’t give a person the option to get day-drunk or stay drunk is beyond me (but maybe that says more about me than the Toronto brunch scene).
The Food
I am going to take this moment to point out what law school has done to me (and probably many of you): my eyesight is deteriorating at an obscenely rapid pace. All those hours reading and staring at the computer, and my eyes went from a +1.25 prescription to a +4 in a year and a half (and they’ve since gotten worse). This was highlighted by my visit to Saving Grace, where the rotating portion of the menu is displayed on a blackboard in the middle of the restaurant. I could not read it. Rather than having these items announced to me, I chose to go with something on the individual menu I was given: French toast served with caramelized bananas and maple syrup, and a side of bacon. My BC went with a traditional breakfast choice: over-easy eggs, rye toast, bacon, greens and a fried potato.
Though his bacon and eggs were average, my BC thought that the toast didn’t have enough butter, and the side potato was overcooked, dry, and bland. He did not eat his greens, but I had a few bites; despite the fact that I still think that a breakfast salad is a strange concept, I thought it was pretty good.
My French toast was, I suppose, the saving grace of the experience; we both thought it was delicious, and I have no complaints about it. However, considering all other aspects of the restaurant, I don’t know that I would go back and I definitely wouldn’t brave this place on the weekend.
Cost: As a nice surprise, Saving Grace was cheaper than I thought it would be: coffee, French toast, and a side of bacon cost $15.25 plus tax.
| SERVICE | 3/5 Dean Sossins |
| ATMOSPHERE | 3/5 Dean Sossins |
| FOOD | 3/5 Dean Sossins |
| OVERALL | 3/5 Dean Sossins |