Salade de Fruits Cafe

Living in Vancouver, I'd heard that Salade de Fruits was a really great French bistro, but because of its location in Kitsilano, I'd never gotten a chance to visit. One Saturday morning we were in the area, so decided go there for brunch. Salade de Fruits is located at Vancouver's French Cultural Centre, right next to the centre's French library. With golden coloured walls and eccentric French decor, the place gave off a comfortable vibe.

When we arrived, it was really busy, with only one table left, right next to the entrance. It was not the best table, especially with the long, long, line ups that came after. Shane was constantly being jostled by people coming in and out, and people kept staring at both of us (and our food).

The restaurant has a great breakfast menu, with a variety of eggs bennys, omelettes, and more savoury breakfast dishes. Shane chose the classic benny with ham ($8.99). This came with merguez sausage, potatoes, and a bit of fruit. This was delicious. The eggs with poached to a near medium, with bright orange yolks; the hollandaise was creamy and rich, and the merguez sausage was really good, and an unexpected addition. Being a benny conniseur, I asked Sh how this ranked; he replied that it is one of the top benedicts in the city. Oh la la.

I had been craving seafood for a few weeks, so I got the moules et frites ($13.99). To be honest, I didn't expect much, but when it arrived, I was extremely impressed. It arrived in a huge black pot, with a generous quantity of mussels bathed in a creamy broth. I'd never thought I'd have a mussel experience that would rival that of Chambar, but here it was. The mussels were huge and plump, and exceedingly delicious. It was so delightful.

That was merely the first half of my meal! The second part to it was the frites. These were heaped on a large plate, and were crispy and well seasoned. I wish I could have eaten more of these, but the mussels really filled me up.

Being jostled and stared at aside, this was a truly memorable brunch. Everything we had was really good, and the prices were amazing (especially for the mussels!). I definitely look forward to coming back--at a way quieter time, of course!