During my recent three-day holiday weekend I traveled with a friend to Philadelphia. On several occasions my friend mentioned Green Eggs Cafe (212 S. 13th Street), a breakfast and lunch restaurant in Philadelphia. He spoke about how delicious the food was, so naturally I was curious to check it out and see what the hype was about.
We arrived in Philadelphia around noon and went straight to Green Eggs. We walked up to the restaurant and there were about 15 people waiting outside. A few people were huddled around the two outdoor heating lamps and others were drinking the complementary coffee from the canister on the outdoor table. The hostess sitting outside told us there would be a 30-45 minute wait for a table of two. As we were standing outside waiting for our table, I noticed a steady stream of people leaving the restaurant and a steady stream of people walking up to put their name on the waiting list. If people are willing to wait outside in the cold for 30 minutes this must be a good sign that the restaurant is worth the wait.
After about 30 minutes our name was called and we were escorted inside the restaurant. The tables were arranged in three long rows with seven tables in each row and the kitchen was located in the rear of the restaurant. We were seated at a two-seat table in the middle row. We were greeted by a friendly waitress who gave us the menu and asked for our drink order. We watched as heaping plates of food came out left and right. The waffle, french toast and pancake portions were huge, so we decided to each order an entree and split a french toast.
The Creme Brulee French Toast was served in four half slices of challah bread. Topped with a vanilla bean custard and berry compote, fresh berries atop a creamy sweet sauce topped with fruit, powdered sugar and whipped cream. We didn’t need much syrup because the custard sauce was warm and sweet, it gave just the right amount of flavor to act as a syrup.
I ordered the “Kitchen Sink” which was eggs scrambled with sausage crumbles, potatoes, Gruyere cheese, peppers & onions,topped with a homemade biscuit and country style pork sausage gravy served in a cast-iron skillet. The eggs were light and fluffy and they were not stingy on the cheese. The potatoes and sausage gravy were seasoned well.
My friend ordered the Pork Bacon Creole Shrimp and Grits. This too was served in a skillet with two eggs your style, shrimp cooked in a spicy bacon-creole sauce, served on top of cheesy grits. The shrimp preparation really made the dish pop, this was my first time eating shrimp cooked in a bacon sauce and it was very good.
The portions were so large (that’s my kind of restaurant) I was only able to eat half of my skillet and I took the remaining french toast and skillet home in a takeout box. The staff were friendly and checked on us numerous times to make sure our food and service were perfect. The restaurant was fast and efficient. I can see why people were willing to wait outside for 30 minutes because the food and experience was great!
Have you ever visited Green Eggs Cafe? What was your favorite dish?