By Brittney Hensman (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: October 29, 2014
Common Place Café
33933 Gladys Avenue
Hours: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Price range: $6.50 to $9.95
One of my favourite meals of the day is breakfast, but finding a place where you don’t leave feeling like your order of Belgian waffles robbed your wallet can be hard.
A new breakfast joint, Common Place Café, opened up in Abbotsford a few weeks ago. The restaurant — located just off the side of the downtown core — is owned by MCC, but the restaurant is run through the same owners of Cookies Grill in Chilliwack. The facility has a modern diner vibe with flecks of the ‘70s, utilizing a colour scheme of orange, white, and brown.
The large tables and open windows provide a great study atmosphere and the servers were friendly, helpful, and on the ball.
The menu is varied in its selection and is significantly affordable. I observed the servers delivering food to the surrounding tables — buttermilk pancakes accompanied by a vat of hot strawberry sauce and whipped cream, stuffed French toast with vanilla cream cheese, classic Abbotsford-renowned farmer sausage in a skillet served over a bed of deep-fried hash browns. These were only a few of their menu options. Breakfast is served all day.
It was a little to my dismay that they didn’t have an espresso bar, so for the coffee lovers out there, you’ll be faced with standard percolated coffee — which, as in most breakfast places, isn’t strong, but it is smooth.
Their selection of baked goods includes muffins, scones, and cinnamon buns made fresh in their kitchen, though there isn’t the same bakery quality of Cobs or Tracy Cakes. It may have been grandma’s recipe, but tasted and looked a little like Cousin did the baking.
Common Place Café offers a midday menu as well, which consists some classic café dishes such as soup, salad, sandwiches, burgers, fries, and poutine — all look like tried-and-true recipes, both classic and delish.
All in all, Common Place Café is worth a try, and won’t break the bank.
