The Round-up:
- Food - 4 out of 5
- Service - 3.5 out of 5
- Decor - 4 out of 5
- Total - 11.5 out of 15
2124 Albert Street, Regina, SK
306-545-8811
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Dear Abbey:
It's about this time of year when the intended joy of Christmas starts to compete with the utter madness of Christmas.
The lineups at the grocery store are longer; the parking spots at the Cornwall Centre are fewer -- heck, the lineup just to get out of the parkade is enough to make you cringe. What's a guy to do?
Signed,
Crazy for Christmas
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Dear CC:
There are plenty of ways to deal with Christmas Craze. Some of them involve muttering swears underneath your breath. Others involve a simple retreat to a welcoming watering hole.
I suggest the latter.
Yours,
Abbey
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Today me and Big Willie opted for an easy Sunday morning and headed over to The Abbey on Albert Street. It was a brutally cold morning to brave the outdoors but the lure of breakfast without having to cook it was enough to get us out there.
I'd been to The Abbey a couple of times since it opened in December '08. My first visit, less than a week after the doors opened, was good but a little rough around the edges. And that's to be fully expected so early in the game.
My second visit, about two months later, left me with a bad taste in my mouth -- literally. A friend and I went for a Sunday-night supper before heading out to a show at the Brandt Centre. I had high hopes that the kitchen would have ironed out the wrinkles by that point but I left feeling happy with the atmosphere yet disappointed with the food, especially a very greasy pizza that was overcooked.
Since that time, I learned that The Abbey hired a new head chef. I was a bit reluctant to go back until a few friends and coworkers reported positive experiences recently.
Today, my third visit proved to be the lucky charm. Big Willie and I were seated quickly on the second-floor balcony overlooking the dining room. We took a few minutes to study the brunch menu and then placed our order.
I decided to keep things simple and ordered The Usual -- two eggs any style (I went with Sunny Side Up), bacon or sausage, hash browns, toast, and a few pieces of fruit. I figure if a kitchen can't get the most basic breakfast items right then there's little hope they'll succeed with anything else.
Big Willie chose The Eden Eggs Benedict (served with tomato and spinach on a homemade biscuit). We also opted to share The Abbey Salad, which came recommended by a friend.
All things said, our only complaint with the food was that it took too long to hit the table (close to half an hour). On the one hand, this wasn't an outrageous amount of time. On the other hand, you start to wonder what's going on after about 15 minutes at breakfast time. Both our waitress and the floor manager gave sincere apologies for the delay, so at least they were aware of the problem.
Otherwise, the food was delicious. I'm not normally a fan of Eggs Benedict but The Eden won me over. I think it was the fresh, crumbly homemade biscuit that did it. Big Willie was pretty pleased with his choice, too.
My eggs were cooked perfectly, not always the case when you order Sunny Side Up. And the best part of The Usual? The crispy sausage, just like we used to eat at home when I was a kid. I'm happy to report that The Abbey serves real sausage -- not the greasy breakfast kind that some people seem to love.
The Abbey Salad, strangely the most expensive item we ordered, was also pretty delish. A Roast Shallot Dressing came drizzled over mixed greens, grilled chicken, bacon, crumbled blue cheese, and a few slices of pear. This salad was a meal in itself and is also on the restaurant's lunch menu. I think it's safe to say I'll be back for it someday.
To make a nice meal even nicer, The Abbey plays host to live jazz music on Sundays from 11-2. Today's warm groove, combined with the awesome Viennese Dark Roast coffee, pretty much made us forget it was 30 degrees below zero, at least for awhile.
All in all, The Abbey is finally coming into its own as a restaurant. Despite the odd glitch here and there, it seems that things are almost nearing perfection.
If they keep this up they might just start to lure me away from La Bodega a bit more often.
Kudos to you, The Abbey.
http://www.theabbeyregina.com/