Monday, March 17, 2008

Vella Cafe Smashers Review

Vella Cafe is a super awesome "blunch" joint under the Blue Line at the Western stop. They have as good a cup of coffee as you can taste anywhere (an Intelligentsia blend) and serve a nice mixture of light gourmet brunch style meals. Service is cafeteria style and fast enough for it. Word.

But the potatoes? They call their breakfast potatoes "smashers" here which is somehow linguistically connected enough that no explanation is necessary. Everyone just figures out that they must mean potatoes. These smashers are in big chunks, super tender, well seasoned, but with crispy enough skins, and not at all greasy. They look like this:

Now, I have no idea how they cook these, but it is obviously nothing too complicated. Which bugs me. Why is it so easy for restaurants to make completely dope breakfast potatoes so consistently? My home cooked ones are quality enough, but often too greasy, not seasoned just right, or otherwise just slightly off. Is it a big flat-top grill, is that it? Because if that's it I'll buy one for sure, someone just tell me.

Next time I go back I'll have to ask how they cook them, as well as if people really instinctively know that "smashers" are potatoes. I didn't even research that bit above at all, I just assumed my experience was universal. What? I'm blogging.

2 comments:

Jeff said...

Update on the definition of "smashers":
- Brits call good things "smashing" or a "smasher"
- a smasher could be something that breaks something up
- Smasher is a Marvel Comics superhero side character perhaps based on Ultra Boy.

Reading the dictionary can be surprisingly fun some times.

Anonymous said...

the end of this post should instead read, "i'm blogging. what!".
don't be shy about documenting last weekend's brunch (can't get down with 'blunch'), despite the chance the lula could catch on and get seriously pissed.