Best Brunch Places in Vancouver
From fresh facedteens scouring the city for waffles to seniors in diner booths sipping steamingcups of coffee, there is one trend that has bridged the generational gap inrecent years: brunch. But what exactly is it? A delightfully kitschy mashup ofwhat are arguably the two most important meals of the day, brunch exists on aspecial plane where one doesn’t have to choose between chicken and waffles.
As someone bornduring that weird, liminal period between Millennial and Gen Z, I’ve definitelyhopped on the brunch bandwagon, spending countless mornings and afternoons withmy friends feasting on anything from pulled pork sandwiches to pancakes thesize of the moon.
With myexperience hopping from place to place, I decided to compile a short list ofsome of the best brunch spots I’ve been to in Vancouver. Perfect for laterisers and foodies, these local gems will give you a good reason to broadenyour horizons beyond IHOP.
YOLKS
With twolocations on Hastings and Broadway, Yolks is a fairly well-known top tierbrunch spot in Vancouver.
Though its specialties are presumably egg-related (hence the name), I can only truly vouch for the pancakes ($12.50) because that’s what I ordered in my two visits. Both times, my friend and I waited around an hour to be seated; both times it was worth it.
Thepancakes—which, to be fair, do come with two small eggs poached to yourliking—are what dreams are made of. The small stack of three are crispy edgedyet fluffy on the inside, providing just enough sweetness to hit the spotwithout putting you in a sugar coma. In fact, they’re so well-cooked that theyalmost don’t even taste like pancakes; or at least not the ones that you getfrom the box. The unique texture also works well with the maple syrup, whichleaves a sharp tang on the tongue.
Reminiscent ofmini donuts eaten fresh off the fryer at local summer fairs, Yolks’ pancakesare the one to beat.
BRUNCHERIA
Berry Pancakes
A cafe turnedrestaurant located a short walk from New West Station, Bruncheria is perfectfor folks who don’t want to travel far for a good mid-morning meal.
With anextensive menu that offers fresh fruit and veggie options that actually lookappetizing, Bruncheria has a knack for making you feel like you’re eatinghealthy without compromising taste. Having tried their berry pancakes andpulled pork sandwich, I can say that Bruncheria is clearly capable ofdelivering on both the sweet and savoury fronts.
The pancakeswere topped with a colourful assortment of strawberries, raspberries,blueberries and whipped cream. This combination was again enough to satisfy mysweet tooth without being overwhelming. Interestingly, the pancakes reminded meof a lemon sponge cake that my mom makes—if you’ve ever tried her cake, you’dknow that this is nothing if not a good omen. They were small but thick, andcarried a natural, light sweetness even without the fruit. Prior to ordering, Iconfessed to our server that I wasn’t sure whether the pancakes would beenough; needless to say, I had nothing to worry about.
The pulled porksandwich was equally satisfying, with two eggs and meat nestled nicely on topof an oval shaped, crisp slice of bread. The only reason I would knock a staroff is because it could have used more of the delicious sauce, as some sectionsfelt drier and a little more bland than others.
RED WAGON
Croque Madame
Stashed beside aChurch’s Chicken on East Hastings, Red Wagon is certainly more obscure than theother two and frankly, a bit of a headache to get to through transit. But thebus ride and almost inevitable line that waits for you once you get there, isdefinitely worth it.
The SuperTrucker ($17) is an overload of everything, from the syrupy pulled porkpancakes to the pork belly, homefries, eggs and toast. Long story short: it wasenough for my parents to share and feel fairly full. My sister ordered thepulled pork pancakes ($15) and just a few stolen bites was enough to make mewish I ordered them.
On my firstvisit with friends, I miraculously managed to finish most of the Trucker (a$15, lighter version of the Super Trucker, with bacon instead of pork belly andno pulled pork) by myself. The eggs, bacon and toast were pretty standard; goodenough, but not anything out of what you would find at any other breakfastmenu. What stood out, however, were the pancakes. Buttered, warm and sweet witha crispy top and soft bottom, Red Wagon’s stack are second only to Yolks.
On my other twovisits, I tried both the Croque Monseiur ($14) and Madam ($15) respectively.The Croque Monsieur is grilled ham, swiss and béchamel on sourdough while theMadam has an additional egg on the top. I enjoyed both sandwiches for the mostpart, finding the bread satisfyingly soft with the melted cheese. There wasalso a good amount of ham, and, paired with your choice of salad or fries, thesandwich was quite filling. However, I do think that the béchamel came on alittle too strong at times, which is why I needed to steal some of my sister’ssweet pancakes.