For my 100th review, I selected the restaurant that had been on my bookmark list the longest, The Farmhouse, and decided to give it a try and write a review. I don't even remember who originally recommended it to me or why I have had it on my list since 2009 but it had been a while since my husband and I had tried anywhere new for breakfast so we were both looking forward to the experience.
After reading the Yelp reviews of the long wait times, we did our best to get there early but it is a bit of a drive for us so I think it was actually close to 9am by the time we got our names on the list. I was dismayed by the number of people outside waiting in the hot sun but they went thru the names pretty quickly (helped along by the fact that more than one group had apparently given up and gone elsewhere) so we got seated in about 15 minutes. Not too bad for prime breakfast-eating time on a Saturday morning.
We both ordered coffee which we agreed was really good. I got a muffin to hold me over which was definitely homemade but had obviously been reheated in a microwave which is a pet peeve of mine (I don't want to burn the roof of my mouth on a muffin unless it is fresh from the oven). I really liked the fact that every omelet on their long list could also be ordered as a scramble. I got the one with the salsa since I like a spicy breakfast and they were nice enough to substitute a cup of fruit for the toast. My hubby got his favorite breakfast, steak and eggs. When our food came we both agreed that it was good but bland. My egg dish was tasty but not spicy in the least and his steak was prepared to his specifications but he said it tasted like it had no seasoning on it whatsoever. The potatoes were the same, cooked well but I had to drown them in ketchup since they were so devoid of flavor.
We both thought the service was great and liked the atmosphere of the place. The decor is very shabby chic. Our waitress was super friendly. She never neglected our coffee or water glasses but we also did not feel rushed. When she first brought out my plate without the fruit, she noticed the mistake before I even had to point it out and had it corrected within seconds. I do agree with other reviewers that the portion sizes are way too large - I ate less than half my food so I do think they could give you less and hopefully charge less and I'd be happier.
We ended up going to the farmer's market next door afterwards and so we had a very nice morning in downtown Gilbert. But overall, I would not really classify this as a destination restaurant. I think if it was closer to us we would definitely be back but it really just isn't worth the drive for such boring food. We both enjoyed the meal but you can basically get the same thing at the Good Egg down the street.