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| - ***REVIEW OF SUNDAY BUFFET BRUNCH***
$54 per person
I have been for dinner at Colette and loved it--truly great experience in food and service. Brunch however, is another story.
I visited Colette for Sunday brunch with a friend on one of the first real patio seasons of the summer. This was my first time brunching here and I believe it will be my last. The food was fine, but in my opinion, not worth the $54 per person buffet price.
Upon check-in, the staff at the hostess stand were friendly and welcoming. We called a few minutes before our reservation to advise that we were running late and they were pleasant and understanding on the phone.
Even though we were late, we had a bit on a wait as they were quite busy--no big deal. We weren't in a rush.
Once seated, out server promptly greeted our table. He asked if we had been there for brunch before. We said, "no" and so he described what was included. What he didn't tell us, was the location of the buffet, nor how to get to it.
The set-up for those of us on the patio is very poorly designed. There are planters bordering the patio with about 12" of space between them. There is no clear access point to/from the patio. So, to get to the buffet, one has to manoeuvre through the small gap. Anyone who is larger may have trouble.
Once you wiggle your way off the patio (I'm exaggerating here a bit), you must re-enter the restaurant, past the hostess stand and bump-and-"excuse me" your way through the line-up and collection of people waiting for tables or for the rest of their group to arrive. This is especially annoying when you're returning back to your table with a full plate.
The buffet itself is set-up along the bar and just adjacent to it. There is a "hot" (read: "warm") station with roast beef, waffles, fried chicken, pancakes and French toast, peach crumble, sausage and bacon. They also provide an array of toppings like fruit compote, Nutella, cream cheese (I think), peanut butter, etc.
The cold station included small sandwiches, arugula, quiche, mussels, smoked salmon, shrimp, meats and cheeses, grilled vegetables like peppers, eggplant and asparagus, steamed (served cold) vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower (with Moroccan flavour), pasta salad and couscous salad, Caprese (tomato slices with bocconcini) and cucumber salad.
The dessert items included, (a bland) tiramisu, chocolate trifle, citrus trifle with a meringue topping, brownies, tarts, mini cupcakes, cake pops, yogurt and granola and fruit.
My first impression if the buffet was negative--there was a dirty, sloppy plate near the end and in front of the stack of clean plates. It was right near where there were a few staff members standing and I never saw the plate moved though it appears to have been in clear view of the employees.
I would have expected the serving utensils to have been replaced more regularly as they were a little dirty from (understandably) constant use.
I didn't notice any savoury breads or crostini, etc. which I would have liked with my salmon and I'm sure it would have been good with the mussels.
Carving station service was polite. Table service was fine. Our server was pleasant and he and the support staff always made sure our plates were cleared and we had new, clean cutlery. It was odd that after our meal, and declining any more beverages, our bill never came. I had to ask for it about 45 minutes after we finished. Like I said, we weren't in a rush.
Brunch for 2, including two cocktails ($9 and $10 each) plus tax and 18% tip came to $166.
In my opinion, this brunch is severely overpriced but people don't seem to notice or care because the place was busy the entire time we were there. Nothing was "amazing." Everything was just OK. I would probably give the brunch a 2.5/5 stars, but I can't and just 2 seemed a little harsh.
My advice, skip brunch and come here for dinner. There are plenty of fantastic brunch places in the city. For $166 you could get a great brunch and an afternoon of beers elsewhere.
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