Several years ago, we caught our first glimpse of the 20- or 25-year plan for what would become the Amazing Brentwood. To us, it had always been “Brentwood Mall” or, more formally, “Brentwood Town Centre.” Shape Properties had a vision for what this part of North Burnaby could become. While we’re still waiting for the Cineplex VIP Cinemas and subsequent phases of development, the foodie scene has taken a big stride with the grand opening of OEB Breakfast Co. And it’s already booming in popularity.
New Location at the Amazing Brentwood
As you can probably surmise from its name, OEB Breakfast Co. is all about breakfast. Well, and brunch too. You’ll find plenty of poached eggs and the like on the menu. The closest thing to OEB Breakfast in this part of town is the Gray Olive Cafeteria on Hastings. You could argue that White Spot fits into this mold too, but it really doesn’t. White Spot is more traditional, whereas both OEB and Gray Olive try to do things a little differently.
It might not necessarily look the part from the outside, but OEB Breakfast Co. definitely leans toward the more upscale end of the spectrum. Most menu items hover around the $20 mark, featuring such ingredients as black truffle carpaccio, chicken blueberry bangers, Ahi tuna and Spanish Manchego cheese. There’s even a lobster and shrimp crepe for $22, to which you can add 1/4 ounce of organic Sturgeon caviar for another $26.
But, is it good?
We were foolish enough to order some takeout on Mother’s Day. Normally, they offer online ordering. Unfortunately, they disabled that for Mother’s Day. I also couldn’t get through on the phone. So, I showed up in-person around 8:15 am, greeted by a packed patio and some overwhelmed staff. I was then told that the first takeout pickup time available was 9:30 am. When I came back to pick up my order, I was told the kitchen was running late and it’d be another 5 minutes. In the end, I didn’t get my food until around 9:50 am.
This had better be worth it, right?
French Toast Trifle
Brioche, Meyer lemon curd, market berries, pistachios, torched pavlovas ($19)
As a general rule of thumb, I tend to gravitate toward the more savory end of the breakfast menu most of the time. That is, unless you entice me with an especially good crepe, pancake or French toast. Some people might say that Cora Breakfast and Lunch can be too sweet or too sour. Maybe, but I still like it, especially with some Crème anglaise. And so, that’s how I ended up with the French toast trifle at OEB Breakfast.
You get two thick slices of brioche, each suitably smothered in a healthy dose of Meyer lemon curd. Maybe “healthy” isn’t quite the right word. I certainly have a soft spot (pun intended) for lemon curd and this was certainly enjoyable. I would have liked if the “market berries” consisted of more than just blueberries and strawberries though.
Holy Crab Benny
Wild blue crab, fresh dill, Dijon mustard, medium poached eggs served on a butter croissant with brown butter hollandaise and duck fat fried herb potatoes. ($21)
Obviously, I’m not going to pay too much attention to “plating” with takeout. I’m certain this would “present” better if we had dined in person. So, let’s get that out of the way first. One thing I thought was interesting about their approach to the traditional eggs Benedict is that they swap the English muffin for a butter croissant. The perfectly poached egg nestles beautifully in the center space.
Speaking of the egg, it’s really good (as far as eggs go). The yolk runs thick with a dark, golden color. They say the Omega-3 enriched eggs come “from our own flax-fed free-run flock of hens” and it shows. The blue crab here was just okay, for my tastes, and I think I would preferred if it were chunkier. The duck fat potatoes are more like potato wedges you’d get with lunch than hash browns you’d get with breakfast. If you prefer, you can trade those potatoes for arugula or spinach upon request.
Confit de Canard Breakfast Poutine
Poached eggs, duck fat fried herb potatoes, asiago, sous-vide duck confit, cranberry jam, brown butter hollandaise ($20)
This is the part where I should have read the menu a little more closely. I really enjoy duck confit, as a rule, and this was a perfectly suitable example of that. Where I failed is that I picked the only breakfast poutine without Saint Cyrille curds. Also, “poutine” is a bit of a stretch, since they all come with hollandaise (except the tuna crudo, which gets cilantro crema).
Again, while this was perfectly decent, it was nowhere near as life-changing as the hype would lead you to believe. I still think the potato wedge shape is an odd choice for breakfast, even in the case of a breakfast poutine.
Does OEB Breakfast Burnaby Go Over Easy?
Would our experience with OEB Breakfast Co. in Burnaby be different had we decided to dine on their patio? Maybe. There’s certainly more of an atmosphere about eating at a restaurant. And we’d be able to enjoy the plating, the poached eggs would be fresher, and so on. As far as breakfast and brunch spots go, OEB Breakfast is good. It just doesn’t change the game to the level that our elevated expectations told us it would, especially for the price.
Now that it is open, though, perhaps I need to add a breakfast and brunch category to my Best of Burnaby Heights and Brentwood list. Several more eateries should be opening soon (we hope) at the Amazing Brentwood: La Taqueria, Small Victory Bakery, Hello Nori, Cazba, Chef Hung, Glorious Bao and Bella Gelateria, to name just a few.
OEB Breakfast Co. is located at 4525 Lougheed Highway, Unit 2306 in Brentwood Town Centre (“The Amazing Brentwood”). It’s on the Lougheed Highway side of the newest part of the mall, right on the corner with Alpha Avenue. OEB Breakfast Brentwood is open 7 am to 3 pm daily for takeout, delivery and patio service.
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