Hotel Sask and Memories - Saturday Breakfast Bizarre

Saturday, my girlfriend and I decided to go for breakfast against our better judgement. I say this because out of all the meals that we have explored; breakfast seems to be the one with the most perpetual problems. This Saturday was no exception.

Our first choice, mine, was to head to the Fireside Bistro which had been good for a while. The last time we went they had rearranged the lounge seating so we sat in the stuffy dining room instead, that was strike one. My meal was fantastic, but my girlfriend’s food was cold and greasy, so we decided to take a break from visiting there for a while. We decided to give it another try to see if it could redeem itself, but it was only twenty after 10 and it doesn’t open until 11.

My girlfriend suggested Hotel Sask as the food is apparently of a high quality, and the coffee in high end hotels is usually very good, (a broad, sweeping generalization, I admit) which is very important.

The hostess at the hotel dining room approached us cautiously. From a distance as though we were dangerous criminals she asked, “For two?”. We both replied yes, but since she was 20 feet from us with her arms safely tucked behind her, she asked again, “For two?”. Again we confirmed this, and she pivoted on her heals and began walking away. We took this as our cue to follow, and she walked towards a table through a circuitous route, perhaps trying to lose us more than lead us. She didn’t take a drink order or leave menus. Thinking about it now, I’m not sure if she spoke to us again.

We sat in mild disbelief for about 5 or 10 minutes. No one approached us, or looked in our direction. My girlfriend stopped a waitress with an armful of dirty dishes on the way passed us and asked if they offered ala carte breakfast as well as the buffet. She replied with a curt “yes” and walked off. We could see her making some coffee rounds, but like the hostess, she didn’t want to make eye contact with the wild animals in fear that we might pounce with a menu request. After a further 10 minutes we gathered our coats and left. No one tried to stop us, or ask if everything was okay.

Where to now? How about Memories, it was suggested. Again, the lure of a “higher end” nosh was too strong to dismiss, so we drove east on Victoria in the pursuit of the elusive ‘good Regina breakfast’.

The main restaurant was closed, it still wasn’t yet 11 (because what law abiding upstanding restaurant would be open before 11am for breakfast?!?) so we were ushered into the lounge.

Memories is like many Regina establishments, such as Golf’s, the Cottage, and the Diplomat. It has a horribly dated decor, not to be confused with a cool retro décor like the Novia Café. Perhaps some restaurant owners have not yet begun to realize that the clientele are changing. New people are starting to flood into the city, as well as a lot of people moving back with more complicated and discerning palates after a stint in more metropolitan cities.

There were only 2 tables set for dining in the lounge, neither conducive to a quite meal away from the bar, so we requested to sit somewhere else. The server was a little weird with us, as though he didn’t expect anyone to actually come in. Wood was everywhere, probably 80’s oak, and the chairs had wheels. A TV was on, and I could hear the commentary of the newscaster between song snippets. Actually, between both song snippets as it seemed like there were two sources of music; one from the overhead ceiling speakers and another radio broadcast emanating from somewhere near the till.

The service was quick, but the coffee tasted weird. I ordered a spinach and feta omelette. I’m surprised that a place with a reputation for good food only had a selection of white or brown toast, no multigrain, rye, or even sourdough. The ‘hash browns’ were salty and seemed like they had been sitting around for a while, when the food finally arrived. The omelette tasted very strange, strange enough in fact, that even though I was famished at this point, I didn’t even eat it. I’m sorry that I am unable to be more specific about the strange taste, as it was not an unusual spice added or a new kind of feta that was annoying my taste buds, it was more of an indefinable ‘I don’t like this, it smells weird, and tastes worse’ sort of a flavour. I had some of the stale ‘hash browns’ and brown toast to sate myself.

We were not asked how our food was, not even when he removed the plates and mine was barely touched. I got the impression that the server didn’t need to ask.

Part way through the meal what I took to be the owner came in. He asked about the money, turned music up, then turned it off. While my girlfriend went to wash her hands, I paid the bill and said I would meet her in the hallway. I needed to extricate myself from the heavy atmosphere of 30 years of beer stained oak. The owner locked the door leading outside, and was getting ready to lock the door to the restaurant when the server reminded him someone was still using the facilities. We had to exit the building via the hotel lobby.

Another bizarre Regina breakfast experience.

note:both restaurants are listed in the 'Fine Dining' section of the Yellow Pages