Ben and Florentine – New addition to the West Island

The 411

A recent addition to the West Island, Ben and Florentine is a restaurant with three locations and a half dozen on the way. The West Island is an interesting spot for Brunch because you have a large population and a relatively small amount of breakfast places in relation to that population. So, when Ben and Florentine opened up it added some variety and choice for lots of hungry West Islanders.

At 1st glance

When you walk into Ben and Florentines you notice a nice wide-open concept with ample seating as well as and wheelchair access. There is an abundance of staff and you can kind of see into the cooking area with a somewhat open concept. There are pictures of various dishes lining the walls. You can see that the various plates coming out of the kitchen are done to focus on aesthetics and this helps to make for really nice looking dishes with attention to detail with small additions like topping them with flowers.

Food

The menu is fairly large and offers lots of options to satisfy even the pickiest of eaters. You can chose from;

. There are also some early bird specials (before 8:30 Am) from $4.25- $6.25. I did have an issue with some of the dishes being a touch pricey; I mean there were some well priced options but some of the more expensive stuff doesn’t merit the price applied. For example, $13.95 for eggs Benedict is on the high end of downtown prices and you would not expect it from something in the outer areas of town. Although you can find some deals with plates being in the $5-$7 range which is pretty decent. So, I guess it requires you chose your option carefully if you are price conscious.

My friend ordered the cheesecake crepe ($11.95), which is a crepe stuffed with sweet cream cheese, field berries and coulis. The crepe was jammed packed with the cream cheese and was incredibly filling and quite tasty. In fact my friend was unable to finish the whole thing because the dish was so filling. As a bonus they topped the dish with a nice flower, it added some nice window dressing to the dish and yes it was edible

My other friend ordered the butchers choice omelette ($11.95), which is jammed with bacon, ham, sausage and cheddar. The dish came with a side of potatoes and complimentary coffee. The potatoes were quite tasty and nicely spiced. This has to be one of the meatiest omelettes I have ever tried because when I bit into, I could taste the meat whereas most other omelettes have the egg overpower the taste. If you are a meat eater and have always been curious as to what an omelette tastes like (because most big meat eater will not eat omelettes) then you should try this one out.

I ended up ordering the sweet tooth French toast ($10.95). I received a really nice looking French toast topped with strawberries and drizzled with chocolate on three slices of French toast. The dish was topped with a flower and the presentation was very impressive not to mention the taste was quite good as well. It was rather filling and in fact, it was one of the few times I could not finish my plate because I was so full by the end of it (keep in mind that this almost never happens).

Service

Service was mediocre as it took some time for refills and my friend waited a while for her water she asked for and had to ask again since it seemed like our waiter forgot. The dishes did come quickly when ordered but there weren’t too many people at that time so my wait for coffee was extra annoying since I could see tons of staff and lots of empty tables (and me without my coffee).

Vegetarian

Vegetarian options are actually quite plentiful as there are some options for health menu items. However, there is a lack of vegan options but no surprise since few places ever have any.

Wrap up

Overall the main highlights are good size portions, filling food, and tasty and well presented dishes. The negative would be that some items are unnecessarily pricey. It’s nice to see some new choice in the West Island and I hope that it shakes things up and makes other places look at their brunch options to get some tasty competition going on. I think it’s a great place to go with a group, and family the menu options are quite varied meaning there is something for everyone.

View Ben Et Florentine in a larger map

Price	$$	$10-$12
Overall		3.5/5
Wheelchair Access		1/3
Parking	Parking Lot	Easy
BUS	217	Get Directions
Metro	N/A	N/A

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