Watching the long line for brunch every weekend i passed by, I’ve wanted to come check out this hot place for about 3 yrs. (Just too lazy to wait)

Last Sat was a rainy day, but surprisingly still packed, or maybe even more cos ppl all went inside. So if decided to come, either make sure u a not starving or to grab a hot drink in their coffee bar ^_

After Longer-Than-Usual wait (30 at least), I highly believe I deserve Better-Than-Usual food!

Actually it is BTU! The menu is huge and refreshing — from pancake, oatmeal to scramble eggs and sandwich, plus they constantly change their monthly specials.

My Greek Omelette was a nice try, a perfect balance between taste and ingredients. They use a lot of organic ingredients, and with $1 more u can substitute potatoes with fresh fruits. If you order pancake, u can go to their fruits bar for ALL U CAN EAT!

It’s never too late to try a great brunch spot, isn’t it~

I really love eating their Vanilla Yogurt pancakes here. The pancakes are moist and light with a hint of vanilla and you also get to go to the fruit bar (strawberries, whipped cream, syrup, butter, blueberries, pecans, peaches, and etc) as many times as you want to top off your pancakes.

I like the restaurant and its popularity is well-founded. The menu is varied and reasonably priced. The dishes are of a high qualtiy, but always seem just a tad bland.

The crowds and the layout combine to cause a bit of a tense atmosphere. The servers always seem to have something to do other than take care of us.

This is probably my favorite breakfast place in town (along with Coastal Kitchen). The place is always packed packed packed on weekends so be prepared to wait for your food. But it is worth it! They serve amazing delicious food and offer more than your standard breakfast items. The housemade oatmeal is delicious and any of their egg scrambles are delicious, especially the seafood ones. It’s a lively hopping place.

We went at about 9:30 am on a Saturday, and waited about 20 minutes for a table for two. Not too bad, but when were leaving the line was incredibly huge and looked more like an hour wait.

I liked the variety of dishes on the menu, and I really appreciate how they “sourced” the various ingredients. The toppings bar had a ton of beautiful fresh fruit and nuts for putting on your pancakes, oatmeal, or toast. The raspberries were crazy delicious.

There’s a parking lot next to the cafe, or there seemed to be plenty of street parking. I think I like the benedict at Wild Mountain better, but I will definitely come here again to try some french toast or maybe an omelette.

Lunch too – well, maybe that depends on taste, but as far as a great, local place that uses organic, wholesome, locally sourced ingredients, Portage Bay Cafe on South Lake Union is great. Their sandwiches and lunch dishes go beyond the “normal” and put you in a place you want to be as in you can’t make this stuff at home. The breakfast and brunch menu items are mostly on the great side. Always filling. Good stuff all the way around.

A must try. Deliciously organic, and no, not overly so where it dips into hippie territory. Their brunches are extremely good, you can’t go wrong. The only issue is the wait, but that’s simply because the place is that good. You may get impatient but don’t leave, all your feelings of impatience will disappear as soon as you take a bite.

I come here often because it’s the closest breakfast place to my house.

The challah French toast is to die for. I always get it. It is absolutely, amazingly delicious. I always get it with a side of crispy pepper bacon. A nice mix of sweet and salty.

However, most breakfast dishes come with a side of potatoes. I recommend you either substitute something else, or don’t eat them. They are disgusting. I can’t believe a place that makes such delicious challah French toast can be the same place that makes these potatoes. They always have that wet undercooked taste. I kept thinking it was bad luck, so I kept attempting to eat them each time I go, but I’ve given up. I just don’t touch them. They are really awful.

As for other dishes, I’ve tried some scrambles that weren’t so good, but my friend had a migas, which was quite tasty. The lunch menu dishes I’ve had have been somewhat bland and I wouldn’t recommend them.

As for the service, it varies. I’ve been here during slow times (yes, there are some! just don’t come for weekend brunch!) as well as during the famous hella-busy times, and this doesn’t seem to have an effect on how hurried the servers are. They always seem too hurried to take care of you, for some reason. There is one server in particular, who has been there for a while, who just seems really fake—this person does everything they are required to do and says it in a pleasant voice, yet they somehow seem to make you feel like you are taking up their precious time. I end up with this server about half the time I go to Portage Bay Cafe.

Though, another time, I got a different server who was very sweet and attentive, and when she discovered that we had come specifically because I wanted some strawberries on my challah French toast, but they had already put away the fruit toppings bar, she went and got a bowl of fresh sliced strawberries just for me! Made my day.

So like I said, service varies, but do expect to feel a bit rushed.

Also, I think the prices are reasonable though not cheap, but I often have to come here alone because my usual dining partner feels this place is waaaaay overpriced for what you get.

This is my goto breakfast place. Great variety with fresh, organic ingredients. Nice Northwestern style breakfast dishes and waffle bar, but everything on the menu sounds good. A little pricy, but worth it.