E.R. Bradley's, West Palm Beach, April 19, 2014

This isn't a full review because we were really at E.R. Bradley's for a wedding. It was suppose to be on the beach at dawn with brunch at Bradley's after, but a thunderstorm at 6 a.m. had the two brides scrambling, and the wedding ended up AT Bradley's.

Despite this big event, it was still an everyone-order-their-own-thing meal, so I guess this still counts as a review after all.

We stopped going to Bradley's a few years ago because though the location is fabulous -- at the end of Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach, with a huge covered porch overlooking the intracoastal and the island of Palm Beach -- the food is mediocre at best. But for our friends' big day, we were happy to give Bradley's a try again.

Before I get too far, let me say the waiter did well despite the busy, seat-changing, guest-mingling event, and he was charming. The music over the sound system was terrific. Don't know if it was their own selection or a satellite station, but definitely good tunes set a good mood for a fun Saturday morning. And of course, Bradley's view is the best in downtown West Palm Beach.

So if you work at Bradley's or love it for some reason, you can stop reading now.

For those who wan to really know: the food is still meh.

Daughter's chocolate chip waffle was a big thick waffle with too many chocolate chips just piled on top. Yes, my kid said there were TOO MANY chocolate chips. She thought it was a rather lazy way of doing a chocolate chip waffle. She ate about half.

Note again, that this was a wedding reception and there were toasts and speeches and new people to talk to and we kinda forgot about photos until pretty far into the meal. 

Here's what's left of my Eggs Benedict. It was good, well except for two major flaws.  The biscuit was toasted so hard that it took effort to cut. And also, deli thin-sliced ham is not appropriate on Eggs Benedict. When you have to look to see if they remembered the ham, it's a disappointing meal. The home fries were dull. 

We had a vegan at our table, who, like us, was there for our mutual friends, and concerned about a good meal second. She had quite a struggle with the waiter finding something, anything that the Bradley's kitchen could put together for her. They finally decided on oatmeal and blueberries. She said it was good... except that it was about four meals worth of food. This photo is after she'd been eating for awhile. She took more than 2/3s home with her.

Ou other table mate went with an omelette. She liked it and the potatoes, so not everyone was disappointed.

My husband had creamed chipped beef, which many folks know by another name whose initials are S.O.S. He and I vaguely recalled that he'd liked this before off the Sunday buffet. But when my husband leaves this much food on his plate, he clearly didn't like it. Looking back, maybe his good memory of the S.O.S. was relative to other food offered at an Easter Sunday buffet years ago.

Hey, the important thing is our friends had a lovely wedding. Bradley's was accommodating for allowing the ceremony at the last minute (which was a smart move on their part since there were 45 breakfast customers involved). So if you have to plan a back-up place for an outdoor wedding in weather-crazy Florida, I do recommend Bradley's.

We will remember the day fondly. Here's Sean and our daughter:

E. R. Bradley's
104 Clematis St 
West Palm FL 33401 
561 833-3520

Nana's, West Palm Beach, April 12, 2014

Sean and I went to Nana's on a nice slow Saturday morning. This was the location of a former Denny's that I remember eating breakfast after midnight after dancing late at a bar called Country Nights ... about 20 years ago. The new owners clearly gutted it and started fresh; you probably wouldn't know it was a Denny's if you didn't have that memory.

We were attracted by the name, because Sean's mom is called Nana by her grandkids. But this Nana's diner is named after the owner's daughter!

Well-dressed waiters -- in fact, probably too well dressed for breakfast. It was a little disconcerting. 

Big menu, lots of options. Here's a small part of the menu:

Here's my artsy shot of the classic diner table landscape:

Ok, enough artsy, how was the food? Well, it was fine. It wasn't awful... even though at first glance I slightly appalled at the vision of slices of American cheese on my omelet. I special requested cheese in my spinach omelet, and I am guessing they forgot and threw the cheese on at the end? It tasted fine. The biscuit was good... I think.

The thing is we we got distracted and haven't written up our review for three weeks.... and well, we really can't remember much about the meal. It was fine. Not memorable. The location is convenient, restaurant is large and clean and well lit, the wait staff was courteous and helpful. The food ... was there. 

Sean took a picture of his meal, which he will have to upload. I can't even remember what he had.

Best part of the meal was by far the smoothie. We had something something with blueberries. It was delish. And fun to share.

Go. You won't be sorry. But no need to go out of your way.

Nana's Diner

1230 N Military Trail

West Palm Beach, FL 33409

(561) 640-2922

Al Pan Pan, West Palm Beach, January 25

Again, late with another review, but this one has photos! I had stopped by this little Argentinian/Uruguayan cafe last year and picked up some pastries, which I enjoyed.

We visited this little bakery/restaurant again in hopes of letting our daughter practice her Spanish. The menu is in Spanish, with helpful, and sometimes amusing English translations. For example, did you know that the Spanish dish "macaroni and cheese" translates to "macaroni and cheese"?

Sadly the waitress didn't help out and only spoke English with us despite our mention of wanting to practice, though she spoke Spanish at other tables. Oh well.

The cafe is simple, about a dozen tables. Lots of big photos of Argentina, and a broken player piano in the back.

I had an egg, ham and cheese sandwich on a croissant. Ellie had bacon and cheese sandwich on a croissant, but they also threw on an egg which she hadn't wanted. She ate it anyway. Both of our sandwiches were messy, filling, but mostly unmemorable.

Sean had scrambled eggs, ham and "hash browns" which were really just tater tots.  I'll have to bug him to remember what he can about it.

The food wasn't anything spectacular for us to go back for and we will find another restaurant for practicing speaking Spanish. This place is always busy, so obviously some people like it. Never having been to South America, I can't say that this cafe makes me nostalgic for anything.

But, free wifi! And quite a beautiful display of pastries!

Al Pan Pan
1000 S Military Trl
West Palm Beach, FL 33415
561-963-4343 

Nick's Diner, West Palm Beach, October 6, 2013

Nick's again. Mmmm. We've both been thinking about their omelets since we were last there. Sean wanted to take his mom somewhere special, and while John G's is the expected place, and she'd love the Paris Bakery in downtown West Palm Beach, we knew she'd love the food here at Nick's.



Their menu says it all: If you can find a better diner, you should eat there!

So since we've been to Nick's before and raved about it, and we've been busy, it's taken us nearly a week to write this review. Short and sweet: we are glad we came back. Service was good, though my mother-in-law did have to wait a bit for a coffee refill. Restaurant is clean and spacious.

I had the exact same meal: ham, swiss and spinach omelet. It was deeelish. I was full until dinner. Biscuit (not pictured) was great too. 

My mother in law had the special omelet, which, darnit, I forgot what it was. But it obviuosly had tomatoes in it (which is why I didn't get it). You can see her biscuit here.

Sean had the meat lovers omelet PLUS a side of bacon. He has supernaturally good cholesterol so he can do this. He also didn't eat again until dinner though! He declared it fabulous and the biscuit terrific. Maybe he'll add his own flair to this review later. He had no opinion on the coffee this time, as he's drinking tea lately. He was disappointed to (re)find out that they do not do home fries. Which is kinda weird for a breakfast place. They do a decent shredded hash browns, and the omelets and biscuits about make up for the lack of home fries.

Our daughter as usual had lunch for breakfast. Here's her grilled cheese with bacon. She was too hungry to let me take a photo of the whole meal -- but you get the idea.

Again, really love this place. Definitely part of the regular rotation.

Hamburger Heaven, West Palm Beach, September 21, 2013

So we had to drop our daughter off for a beach cleanup on the island of Palm Beach. I thought this'll be a great time to try out some Palm Beach eatery. But when I looked up their menus online, I just could not get excited about spending $24 for a plate of eggs. Oh, I'm sure it'd be delicious, cooked by highly trained French chefs, with eggs from golden chickens. In fact, I worried, what if it is so good, it ruins me for all other breakfast places? Didn't want to take that risk.

Then I remembered the *former* Palm Beach diner, now located on this side of the lake, Hamburger Heaven. It's on Clematis, just down the way from World of Beer, the fountains, and Palm Beach Drama Works. I haven't eaten there since they moved into West Palm, and per their web site, they do serve breakfast. My husband had never eaten there, so it was a chance for me to surprise him again.



One warning about that website: It says Hamburger Heaven opens at 7:30 each morning. Well, when we arrived on Saturday morning, the sign out front said they open at 9:00 on Saturday and Sunday. Luckily we were not early birds, and we were their first customers at 9:01. The waitress explained that the every morning breakfast is only during season, so soon enough, we can all get this fabulous breakfast every day.



Oh, that "fabulous" was some foreshadowing. Because Hamburger Heaven's breakfast is exactly that. Both our meals were terrific.




Sean and I both had home fries, which were served extra crispy. I'd never had home fries prepared like these and I loved 'em. They were probably clogging my arteries, but oh what a way to go. Deelish. My cardiologist will not want me to go back.


I ordered an omelet with ham, swiss cheese and spinach. Usually the egg is just a carrier, and I focus on how much I like the stuffings. But this omelet had the fluffiest eggs I have seen since starting this breakfast adventure. Befitting the name of the restaurant, these eggs were like a cloud. The stuffing was good too.



Meanwhile, Sean had a fruit craving, and indulged in a tower of blueberry pancakes. They smelled divine on my side of the table. Look at all those blueberries inside.



Unbelievably we were the only customers the whole time we were there. What's wrong with you people? It might be named Hamburger Heaven, but they serve up a heavenly breakfast as well. There are several hamburger themed items on the breakfast menu, but we didn't try any of those. The prices were totally realistic and appropriate for those of us living on the mainland. I am sure a breakfast this good, the Palm Beachers are making the journey over the bridge to visit their old favorite haunt.

This place is totally going on the repeat list. To be honest, we are already planning our return visit. So remember how I said I didn't want to risk going to the fancy French Palm Beach eatery because what if I didn't want to go anywhere else? Um, well, Hamburger Heaven turns out to have been more of a risk.

Al Pan Pan, West Palm Beach, August 27, 2013

Quick take out review:
I've driven past this place for a decade. Finally dropped by this morning, inspired by our breakfast adventure.
Cute little place with friendly staff. Three cases of sugared, glossy, delightful pastries greet you -- haven for a sweet tooth like mine. Ten or so small tables. Free WiFi!
As I thought, this family-owned Argentinian restaurant and bakery caters very much to a Spanish speaking crowd. The menu is written in Spanish, with English translations. I love having my cultural norms flipped on me.
The churro was fresh and soft and perfectly sugared. My other pastry was filled with a dulche de leche cream. Delish and not overly sweet. I don't drink coffee and these pastries make me regret that.
I'm looking forward to coming here again for a more full experience and a virtual mini trip to South America. I'll bring my high schooler so she can practice her Spanish. It is fun to remind ourselves of the rich culture we have here in South Florida.
Location:
1000 S. Military Trail
West Palm Beach, FL
www.alpanpanbakery.com/

Deli Inn Diner, West Palm Beach, August 25, 2013

Deli Inn Diner is a neighborhood regular spot. The folks that love this place, love this place. We used to like the place enough that we were occasional customers., but never often enough to be real regulars. Deli Inn Diner is big on welcoming new guests, and we get asked every single time if we've been there before.

Go be a first timer. Enjoy the experience. Then become a regular if you like the fun waitresses or the location. The place is really friendly whether you are a "virgin" or not. Or just move on to another breakfast favorite because Deli Inn Diner is not going to blow you away with their food.

Great food or no, the place gets crowded! There is a line later in the morning on weekends. The place is a bit of an institution and it's fun. It has basic breakfast fare. But now that we've expanded our horizons and tried a few more breakfast places around town, we aren't big fans anymore.

Today, Sean had corned beef hash, poached eggs and home fries with coffee.

 I had two biscuits with sausage gravy, plus two eggs over medium and a glass of orange juice.

After the likes of John G's, you notice they don't put a lot of effort into their display. But Deli Inn Diner is a basic breakfast joint, not a fancy place across from the Ritz Carlton. The eggs were adequate, Sean declared the hash mediocre, the potatoes were bland, and the biscuits were a bit heavy. The biscuits are excellent when drowned in the really good sausage gravy.

The waitresses make this place. Expect some sass. They are a fun bunch, and many have worked there a long time. They do themes each day, and coordinate. Today was Harley Davidson day, so all the waitresses were wearing Harley shirts, earrings, bandanas, whatever. A few customers were on bikes, though none were Harleys. The theme we've enjoyed the most -- cause we're geeks I guess -- was the superhero day, when each waitress wears a super hero shirt, one had a small cape, and a few even had themed earrings.

Deli Inn Diner is famous for its huge muffins, which I ate once. It was kind of overwhelming, but you'll get one on your first visit. They also have an ongoing dice game -- where you pay a dollar, and roll 5 dice, hoping for a five of a kind. If you don't roll a 5 of a kind, your dollar is added to the pot. Whoever rolls that "yahtzee," wins the pot. Today it was over $800, and they added another dollar off of me!

The name has always confused me because it's not a deli, it's not an inn, but it is a diner. We often call it Deli Diner Inn.

Cash only. Don't bother with your credit cards.

Location:
1494 S Military Trail, 
West Palm Beach, FL
(561) 964-1116

Deli Inn Diner

Nick's 50's Diner, West Palm Beach, August 24, 2013

Nick's is a '50s-style diner with some foodie twists that will keep you coming back for more.

First, let's deal with the punctuation in the name, "Nick's 50's Diner". Grammar purists will point out that "50's" is wrong, but it's that common kind of wrong usage that will probably be grudgingly accepted in dictionaries, say, 50 years from now. See how I did that? Har-de-har.



Now let's talk about the decor. Nick's is retro-styled in a black-and-white, heavy on the chrome and neon and Formica style that Hollywood tells us all diners looked like in the '50s. You've seen this diner in that movie, you know, the one you can't think of the name, but it stars that girl, you know the one. And that dude. Yeah, that one.

Anyway, you can check out a photo at Nick's website: Nicks50diner.com.

The diner has been around for 25 years. So we have a '50s-style diner, 25 years in the biz, you might think that the menu would be old and stale as well. Such a line of thinking would be incorrect. Just look at the breakfast menu on the back page of the big menu ...

You can see offerings including "Hangover Deluxe," "Sloppy Tex Mex", and "Cuban Egg Sandwich" that I'm pretty sure weren't offered in diners back in the '50s. This is a very good thing.

My point is the familiar retro blandness of Nick's decor might lead people to underestimate its food. I think such people are in for a pleasant surprise.

I'd say that Nick's offers dishes to please any palate, from people who just want two eggs and a big cup of shut up, to people who want an omelette that would choke a goat and friendly staff to talk to you while you gobble it down.

With that in mind, on with the food ...

The Food

I had a "Shepherd's Pie Omelette," which was pretty much a slice of shepherd's pie wrapped in egg and covered with string fries. Yum-yum.

The biscuit that came with it was flaky, golden brown, and delicious. I also ordered bacon, because, hey, bacon! And it was done just right, not over- or undercooked.

Kevin had corned beef hash and scrambled eggs, which came with the most generous serving of corned beef hash I've seen in a long time. And Kevin ate the whole thing, pronouncing it mmm-mm good.

Note that Kevin got grits with his meal, too. Now there are two things about grits. You either love 'em or hate 'em. And restaurants either do grits right, or they don't. The grits at Nick's got Kevin's seal of approval.

The coffee was good and hot, just the way it should be.

Cindy here: I wasn't swayed by all the fancy options, and decided to keep it simple with a make it yourself omelette. My tastebuds said ham and swiss, my new healthy eating habits added spinach. And it was GREAT. It was pretty much three of my favorite foods with a little bit of egg binding it all together. Mmmm, mmmm. I have one easy way to explain how much I liked this omelette: Nick's gives an option of biscuit, which was flaky and perfect on the first bite.... but after trying it, I went right back to my omelette and ate until I was too full to eat my biscuit. Too full? To eat a biscuit?

I was telling my husband four hours later, that I rate a breakfast place not only on the immediate pleasure of the eating experience, but also on the length of time of feeling satisfied. And now here at lunch time, I am all, nah, I'll skip. then I remembered the biscuit which I brought home with me... that was my lunch. Mmmm, mmmm. It could've been better warm. I should've heated it a bit.



Pam had the most interesting breakfast creation. She ordered two eggs over medium, plus rye toast and hash browns. Then she put grape jelly on the toast, and put the eggs between the toast, and ate it like a sandwich. She swears it was good. Her egg yolks were wee bit runny, but definitely not watery as can sometimes happen with eggs over easy. I am totally ordering my eggs like this from now on... but I'll skip the jelly and rye.

Ellie, our daughter, is ambivalent to breakfast other than bacon. Nick's was totally willing to accommodate that, and made her a grilled cheese sandwich ... with bacon on it. She said it was scrumptious and "baconlicious." But she didn't eat her crusts because they were too crispy. She also ordered her customary hot chocolate which she described as very hot, but very good.



Turning it back over to Sean:

The Service

The wait staff was generous with the coffee refills, and checked back on us regularly. The food came quickly and we were out of there in half an hour. I didn't feel rushed; it's just that things went so smoothly.

Memorable note: You get all this and free wifi. Really, what's not to like?

Worth a Return Visit?

I want to go back and try the Sloppy Tex Mex. I can see it as a place where I might sit at the bar with endless coffee refills, stoking up on caffeine and surfing the web until I vibrate right off my seat.

Location

1900 Okechobee Blvd
West Palm Beach, FL
33409

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Paris Bakery and Café, West Palm Beach, August 3, 2013

Cindy suggested this because Paris Bakery and Café is rated #1 for breakfast places in West Palm Beach according to Trip Advisor.  There was plenty of parking (I used a metered spot on a side street). We set the bar high going in.

First Impressions

It’s a slice of Paris in the middle of West Palm Beach. The restaurant itself is clean and decorated in a Parisian theme. The staff is friendly.  You can sit outside, though my companions chose inside service. The restaurant was busy at 9 am on a Saturday, but not crowded.

The Food

The food was delicious. I had the Crêpe Country, which is a crêpe wrapped around scrambled eggs, chicken, avocado, red onion and spinach. That tastes as good as it sounds. It came with a side of home-fried potatoes.  The potatoes were also very tasty. Mine were a little soft, but my companions had no complaints.  The coffee was bold, dark, and delicious.

We also got sliced baguette bread on the side. The owner told us he made the bread fresh that morning, and it certainly tasted that way. Yum-yum. They asked us if we wanted more; I did, but thought it better for my waistline to ask them to hold off.

Cindy had the Crêpe HO! LA! LA! -- crêpe with 2 eggs any style, ham, Brie cheese, spinach, avacado and fried potatoes on the side. I had a bite and I think that’s what I’m having next time. The brie cheese makes it (though the avocado really was a treat).

As for our companions, Barbara had Crêpe Surprise -- crêpe with 2 eggs any style and mozzarella cheese. Jerry had a vegetarian crêpe dish. Everybody was very happy with their food.

The coffee cups were a source of amusement. Barbara didn't like the funky one finger opening to hoild the hot hot ceramic. The coffee was delish, so she kept making the effort. She was much happier with the glass mug with the bigger handle that she got later. The boys enjoyed showing off their finger strength lifting their mugs with gusto.

The Service

The service was excellent, attentive, and prompt. The serving lady’s charming French accent added to the experience. More than one serving person checked on us, and I believe two of them were the owners/managers.

One Memorable Note

The Paris Café is cramped.  My chair was constantly being brushed and bumped by service people going by, even though I pulled up tight to the table and even shifted my chair around the table. I put my arm down and felt my elbow slide along flesh, then realized it was the buttock of one of the servers who was standing thatclose to me. There are times when I don’t mind being surrounded by female buttocks pressing in around me, but breakfast isn’t one of them. Or maybe I’m a cranky pants.

Thinking about it, I probably had the worst seat in the house. But there isn’t much room anywhere inside. If personal space is an issue for you, be sure to sit outside.

Would we go back again? Oh, la, la! Of course we would. I can't wait to try some of their other dishes, which you can find here: http://www.parisbakerycafe.com/menu

Location:

212, S. Olive Avenue

West Palm Beach

FL 33401

tel : 561-820-9281

Howley's Restaurant, West Palm Beach, July 27 2013 and June 29, 2013

Love it. Been here for dinner and lunch several times. Great old diner that is an institution, but has been modernized and made hip. Fabulous murals in parking lot and on north side of restaurant. Indoor and outdoor seating, booths and tables.

Sean and I came here for breakfast and loved it.

On this Saturday, we took our friends Barbara and Jerry.

Sean and Jerry had the spinach, tomato, feta omlettes. They cleaned their plates.

Barbara tried the classic eggs and potatoes breakfast, plus biscuit and gravy... is that what's it called? It didn't work for her. Unusual flavor reminded her of curry which she's not fond of. Sean and Jerry tried it and said it was okay, but not a favorite.

I had a florentine benedict. Florentine benedict was great. I sometimes shy away from benedicts because they can be drowning in cloying sauce, but this was served with light hand and was yummy.

I also got sweet potato fries, which is usually a later meal type food, but they'll cook them up fresh for breakfast and they are great. We shared those.

Unusual eclectic art work for sale on the walls.

Memorable for the art work, and kitchiness, and tattooed waiters.

We had gone with our daughter on an earlier occasion, as we were just thinking about starting this project. I had a classic two eggs over easy with potatoes. Plus biscuit. Here's a pic when I was halfway through the meal. Yes, I'm a horrible person who eats her eggs with ketchup.  Don't judge me. The food was good, the eggs well cooked, the biscuit was meh.

The Howley's kitchen was totally cool with our daughter's request for a bacon and cheese quesadilla.. She loved it, and wanted more. Again, pic is halfway through the meal.... We will get better at this.

Sean's review of our first breakfast visit: Corned beef hash, poached eggs, biscuit, and sweet potato fries.

The corned beef hash was a bit dry, as is fashionable nowadays, and delicious.  The eggs were poached perfectly.  The biscuit was too dry, and crumbled when I tried to dip it in Cindy's egg yolk.  The sweet potato fries were excellent and came in a huge, heaping portion.

Nice waitress, very attentive.  Coffee was good and hot. Ellie's hot chocolate arrived very hot and no whipped cream on top.

Location:

4700 S Dixie Hwy
West Palm Beach, FL 33405

(561) 833-5691

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