Address: 608 Johnson St.
Phone: (250) 381-2872
Website: http://www.ladymarmalade.ca/
Price: ~$12-14
Notes: Lots of local options, long waits for food but tasty, unique menu items. Not open evenings.
Lady M was one of our absolute favourite brunch places for ages! We'd eat pretty regularly, loved the service and the food and the local-centricness and the funky ever-changing, anything but cookie-cutter art. Their simple breakfast is incredibly delicious, their bennies are pretty stunning and some of the sandwiches even I love! I noted their prices have risen in the past little while (I'm pretty certain anyhow), which is unfortunate, but it is more of a premium brunch experience with lots of local ingredients so you definitely are getting what you pay for but you do have to be prepared to pay for it.
I think we stopped going regularly because although we got great service 99% of the time, every time we tried to bring others to eat with us and share the good food we'd have really, really awful service. Like waiting ages for service while the waitress reads the paper and drinks her coffee behind the counter kind of terrible. Just weird inexplicable "I don't really care about customers" kind of things. Eventually we just moved on more from the discovery of new good stuff than anything else. However - our recent visits back have re-affirmed our love for the place and it is back on our roster for frequent brunching pleasure.
Service:
January 22, 2011
We were served by a most delightful sprite - I saw sprite as she was wee and had blue hair and face paint. Her service style was very laid back, but when you chatted you had her full attention and she was very smiley and intensely excited about everything. We got lots of refills on our coffees and waters and she shared our enjoyment of everything as much as we did. Super star service for the win!
June 10, 2011
The service today was very friendly! Got a whole bottle of water to myself, which is a smart change for them since that saves on grumpiness from a lack of refills. The kitchen is tiny, tiny, tiny so waiting for food is the norm (don't go here if you're Really Hungry or in a rush) but today it was a pretty quick turn around relatively speaking!
Food:
January 22, 2011
This was my partner-in-food-and-life's choice with a side of sausage for balance of carbs and protein. As you can see, lots of decadent toppings! Cinnamon, maple syrup, apples, fruite compote and a small scoop of sour cream. It was the perfect thing after a cold, windy, hung over walk to pick up our car after a bit too much bourbon at Clive's the evening before.
I am gutted my picture didn't turn out better because this is really a very beautiful, brightly coloured dish but I was so freaking hungry clearly I did not pay attention long enough to get things in focus and colour-balanced. Grrrrr.
This is one of the best dishes on any breakfast menu in Victoria! It is very reminiscent of an eggs benny, but without loads of hollandaise. There is a slice of wildfire bread underneath the eggs to soak up the yolks, and a little bit of spinach (the 'L') for some green and roasted tomatoes that are just bursting with acidity and zest. My potatoes on the side were a little bit dry today, but it was peak brunch time so I can't really complain too much, I've seen the size of their kitchen and how they manage to output that many meals without blinking is beyond me!
June 10, 2011
Sorry this picture isn't the best, I was so hungry I rushed things a bit.
This soup has all of my favourite things... rice, avocado, chipotle... it's pretty nomalicious! I am not a huge soup fan, but this is really more like a liquidy rice bowl than a soup-soup because there's so much stuff in it. The meatballs are a bit dense texture-wise, but the flavour of the tomato-chipotle base is so delicious I'm glad they give you tortillas because otherwise I'd be tempted to lick my bowl clean. It's nice that they add the cilantro on top, it would be easy to remove or request without for those without the cilantro=tasty gene.
