BBC, Menlo Park
After our walk at Don Edwards Wildlife Refuge, we decided to drive into Menlo Park for breakfast. We’d heard that the Flea Street Cafe on Alameda De Las Pulgas served Sunday brunch but when we arrived at the restaurant we found it closed. On Sundays it only opens at 5.30 for dinner.
We ended up in downtown Menlo Park and dropped into Keplers Bookshop for a paper. Right outside is Cafe Barrone where breakfast was being served but it was crowded. Almost next door was the BBC - which stands for British Bankers Club. Originally it was the American Trust and Savings Bank. It was built in 1922. Later it became Menlo Park’s city hall, police department and jail and the public library was upstairs. It is on the corner of El Camino Real and Santa Cruz. The sign outside said brunch but there was nobody eating. I won’t say the place was empty. It is a sports bar and at least three televisions were showing different football games. The noisiest group were upstairs watching the Cleveland/Houston game.
We had our choice of tables and chose one in the window. No booths here but there are stools at the counter for bar drinkers. All the tables and chairs are wooden and have linen tablecloths and napkins so that was a plus.
The whole place was large but dark because it was primarily a bar I guess . It still retained the wood paneling from the former bank so there was a lot of dark wood around and gold railings. I could see one picture on the wall. It looked like an old fashioned oil painting as it was in a gold frame but I think it was just a print. The main decoration as such were the large screen televisions.
The menu is not extensive and features such items as fish and chips and quesadillas. No oatmeal of course. I choose a three egg bacon, avocado and cheese omlette with hash browns and toast ($9). Tom chose Eggs Benedict ($10).
Tom sat and read the Financial times. He said it made for depressing reading. The economic situation can only get worse. Let’s hope breakfast cheers us up.
As they were not busy, our food was very prompt. Both dishes came on really large plates. My omlette was stuffed with bits of bacon and at least half an avocado. The hash browns were not that at all. More like cubes of fried potatoes but they were cooked with red and green bell peppers and onions. Nice but a bit greasy. There was an attractive decoration of a few cubes of fresh fruit, comprising of melon, pineapple and grapes, and sprinkled with powdered sugar. There was just one slice of toast, but, to their credit, the toast had not been buttered and a pat of butter plus two containers of packaged preserves were also on the plate.
I did enjoy the omlette and ate it all up but left half the hash browns. Tom’s Eggs Benedict was OK but his English Muffin was under toasted and cold. The coffee was good.
The restrooms are upstairs and I had to pass the noisy football watchers. The restrooms were also a bit gloomy, especially the small lobby outside and the cubicles. I’m sure the place was once quite grand but it’s a bit run down now. There were three pictures on the wall and a huge gilt framed mirror. By the sink were some burgundy knick knacks - a soap dish without any soap, a small vase without any flowers, a perfume bottle without any scent and a tissue holder without any tissues. There was also a large artificial arrangement of flowers. At least an attempt had been made. The water was only lukewarm but the place smelt nice.
Would we come here again? Hmmm…. The food was OK, our table in the window was nice and bright but it was very noisy. Maybe we would give it a try again in the middle of summer when there are no football games.
December 03 2008 12:32 pm | Breakfast Log
