100 Secrets – A secret no more

**UPDATE – CLOSED**

The 411

In a continued attempt to expand the geographical area of brunch reviews, I headed to the gay village in hopes of showcasing some good brunch places that people may not know about. There are some nice little restaurants in the gay village many of which are tucked away on side streets that don’t get as much attention as those in the plateau. 100 secrets is an original selection from a friend of mine who had done some serious brunch research and provided some much welcomed new locations for future reviews.(You can check out my brunch map for all locations)

At 1st glance

When you walk into 100 secrets you notice a tiny little place with a bar at the end and a disco ball hanging above. There is a nice brick wall on the north side with a couple of table and chairs placed creating a nice cozy atmosphere. It has various spots where you will see the words 100 secrets both on the outside and inside of the restaurant, making you curious as to what the story is behind the name.

Food

With Breakfast/Brunch options available every morning, you don’t have to wait until the weekend to get your hands on some tasty eats. The menu is fairly large and covers all the main morning staples. Most plates are in the $8-$12 range and come with complimentary coffee. There are over 12 omelette choices priced between $7.99 and $11.99 and for an extra $1.29, your meal can be done with egg whites for the health conscious ones out there. I should note that there is a $2.00 sharing fee, which actually applies to other dishes as well. There’s a pancake section with 7 choices from $7.99- $10.99 and a crepe section with 12 choices ($7.99-1$2.99); waffles and French toast have 6 options ($7.99- $10.99) and the French toast is Challah bread which makes for a great French toast. There’s an eggs Benedict section with 6 choices ($10.99-$12.99) and for an extra $0.99 you can sub the English muffin for a large bagel which is actually pretty cool since some people like a bagel in their eggs Benedicts. They also have a low fat yogurt section with 5 options ($7.29-$8.99).

The menu is a simple one-pager that covers most items priced between $10-$17. As well with each item you get free coffee and orange juice; the coffee is not that amazing but it also has free refills, which makes the situation a bit better. The orange juice comes in a carafe that is left on the table and between the two of us we got more than two glasses each. When you consider this, it is a pretty amazing deal since places will charge $4 for a glass. On the menu you will find some interesting items like fruit salad with mascarpone nuts and honey ($13); chicken and brie omelette ($15.50); French toast with 3 kinds of bread, including banana bread ($15.50) and even a dish with 2 eggs and French toast served with boar bacon ($17) (I should note this bacon is based on availability and was not available when we were there).

My friend ordered the poached egg casserole with spinach, gravelax, goat cheese, and Hollandaise sauce ($16.00). The sauce was very rich with the chunks of cheese. The taste was very pronounced and you could tell that the ingredients were fresh. The fruit that came with it was plentiful and varied with even star fruits being in the offering.

I ordered the French toast ($15.50) which was comprised of 3 large pieces of French toast, each being a different kind of bread; a normal load, a sweet bread, and a banana bread. The fruit offering was similar to my friends and was varied and fresh. The side potatoes were quite tasty, as well. The French toast banana bread was quite different since the banana bread is traditionally dense and heavy, but the way it was prepared you could tell it was still French toast and it did not loose the required eggy-ness to make it a good French toast.

As a side, each of our meals came with some toasted loaf bread pieces and 2 homemade jams, which were out of this world.

Service

Service was ok. We were basically the only people there and our waiter helped clarify some menu choices but the coffee refills were not that speedy. It was bit weird when we asked him why the place was called 100 secrets because his reply was: “I have no clue” and that he though it was a stupid name. No joke, he actually said that. I would have settled with his not knowing the history behind it but the stupid name comment makes the place and management look bad. I also was not crazy about the fact that the waiter did ask us to leave because he had a dentist appointment. He could have simply said they were closing but saying he had a dentist appointment makes the place seem very “mom and pop” in a bad way.

Vegetarian

Most dishes on the menu are vegetarian friendly with more than just omelette choices. You get some fruit yogourt dishes, salad, and other egg dishes. The menu has some healthy options as part of the general menu but not it’s own separate section. This is quite welcoming since it sends the message that healthy food should be part of a general offering and not tucked away on some of the back pages of a menu. As for vegans, the fact that menu dishes have egg or dairy in them will make it difficult.

Wrap up

The quality of food was impressive, the portion sizez were large and taste delivered in all aspects. I did like the fact that the coffee was included even though it was not all that tasty. A personal highlight is the fact they serve 18% cream which is absolutely amazing and the only thing to outdo that was the carafe of orange juice which was included. The service could have been improved in regards to the little things. ( i.e. no knowing why the restaurant is called 100 secrets and the whole need to go to dentist appointment thing). The price can be seen as expensive but considering the included coffee, orange juice and generous portions with quality ingredients, I think it is well worth it.

View Restaurant 100 Secrets in a larger map

Price	$$$	$15
Overall		4/5
Wheelchair Access	NO	0/3
Parking	Parking Meter	Easy
BUS	14, 15, 358	Get Directions
Metro	Beaudry	5 minutes

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