Restaurant Review - The Friendly Toast

Do you remember that person who you used to go out with that everyone loved?  Everyone except you?

Oh, you liked them well enough.  They were perfectly nice.  All your friends and family absolutely adored them.  They loved them so much, they figured this person was for you.  And as hard as you tried…there was just something…missing.

That’s how I feel about the Friendly Toast.

Now granted, I have just gone for breakfast.  Maybe the rest of the menu works.

When you walk in, there is a very funky vibe.  For instance, there is a huge Barbie, cool things hanging on the walls, etc. And when you see the menu, you think there are going to be a lot of interesting flavor combinations.  My kind of place!

Well…it is…but it isn’t…exactly...

First, all of their pancakes, other than the pumpkin pancakes, can be made gluten free for $1.00 extra.  I think this is perfectly acceptable.  Being somewhat of a traditionalist when it comes to pancakes, I ordered the blueberry pancakes.  They were good, don’t get me wrong.  Nothing wrong with them.  But I have tasted better at other places, including the pancakes Cathy makes.  Perhaps the King Cakes that are made with bananas, chocolate chips, and peanut butter are great.  They may well be.  You should try them if you like that sort of thing for breakfast.  Just not for me.

When you get past the griddle type of things, you come to some very interesting breakfast combinations.  I tried the Mexican Mashed Meal.  This is a combination of spicy mashed potatoes, chorizo, fried eggs, with chipotle sauce.  This is the kind of meal that I always go for.  And it was good.  Again, nothing wrong with it.  It just wasn’t something that would make me go back again and again.  In fact, as I was eating it, I was thinking how good this would be as separate components, because as much as I was hoping they would go together, it just didn’t work for me.

I have also tried the eggs benedict, as they allowed me to substitute a Glutino  English muffin for their own.  Again, it was good.  But…

I should add that the service has always been good.

I really want to love this place.  And when I get bored going to my normal breakfast spots, I’m sure I will go back to try things like the Costa Rican, or their famous Sklarmageddon.  I am hoping one of those dishes will make me fall in love with them. 

But for now, I just think we should be friends.