Friday, June 1, 2007

BOOM BREAKFAST & CO.
(1036 St. Clair Ave. W.)

boombreakfast.com


THE A-TEAM: Chris & Tomas

RATINGS:
FOOD: 3+
PRICE: 2+
SERVICE: 4+
AMBIANCE: 3


ALL-DAY BREAKFAST: YES
COFFEE/ESPRESSO BAR: YES
COFFEE INCLUDED: YES (mon-fri, 6am-4pm, excl. holidays)
FREE REFILLS: YES
LICENSED: NO
HP SAUCE: YES
PATIO: NO
BOOTHS: YES
OPEN-KITCHEN: YES

Tomas and I got up this morning (by morning I mean afternoon), and decided to be spontaneous. Instead of referring to our Coming Soon list we decided to just hop in the ol' Benzo and take a tour of St. Clair West to see what Corso Italia had to offer. To our surprise, we came across BOOM, completely unaware that they had expanded north of College.

BOOM POWER BREAKFAST:
2 eggs
double-smoked bacon, ham or sausage
BOOM frites
roasted tomato
$5.99+tx.
Substitute:
peameal (1.99)


THE FOOD: The food was exactly what I have come to expect from this style of trendy, ultra-modern, predominently breakfast specific establishment (ie- The 'New' Frans). That isn't necessarily a bad thing however. The food was more than appetizing. The "BOOM frites" were spiced nicely, redeeming them from the fact that they were deep fried and the roasted tomato was a perfect compliment. The breakfast came with one slice of toast, however, immediately following it's arrival we were asked if we would like another complimentary slice, which totally makes sense. Keeping on the toast, it also came unbuttered with a side, another plus, being some (including myself and Tomas) don't see the need for toast to be buttered when you're dipping it in yolk in the first place. Verdict, the food was guilty of being pretty damn good.

THE PRICE: Another thing that I've come to expect from this type of place, but in this case, not a plus. The price wasn't unheard of, sitting at a cool $5.99 before tax, $7.99 with our peameal substitute, but I've definately seen better. Then again, I suppose they have to pay for their interior designers, large leather booths and espresso bars somehow.

THE SERVICE: The service could not have been better in my opinion. Our server, Kristy, was concerned, quick and cute to boot. On top of our complimentary toast and freshly ground pepper, we didn't have to ask for water, our refills were prompt and our service came with a smile. The manager (from what I could tell) lent me a pen for the duration of breaky, no questions asked. I payed at the cash and in all honesty, developed a bit of a thing for the barista, with whom work, CityPulse24 and life were discussed over the course of a single debit transaction. In whole, it was a pleasent experience and I would return for the service alone.

THE AMBIANCE: Very stylish and contemporary in my opinion, while Tomas thought it was tasteless. I won't disagree with him in some areas, specifically the eggs painted on one wall and the "RELAX", "DREAM", "ENJOY", "LOVE" above our booth. All together, however, the overall ambiance was quite nice. The booths were as comfortable as dining seating can be and the lighting was bright, but not excessive. The space was used very well and the 12' ceilings were...whatever the opposite of confining is.

BOOM, here comes the BOOM, ready or not, here comes the eggs and they're hot (lame P.O.D. reference, I know). But anyways, we like this place for what it is. I'm usually a stronger fan of the quaint, hole-in-the-wall, greasy spoon type joints, but it didn't take me long to warm up to BOOM. The food was good, the service was great and the price was manageable. Check it out for yourself.

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