NO LONGER AYCE - Betty's (Western)

Update: 2019-Sept.-2 - We went to Betty's yesterday and found out that their brunch buffet is no more... a la carte only. In retrospect $19.99 was not that good of a price as Midtown Gastro House manages to offer roast beef and Eggs Benedict for $6 less, but still it was enjoyable nonetheless... ah well.

Betty's is located in the Toronto downtown core at 240 King Street East, at Sherbourne, transit-accessible on the streetcar line just east of King subway station. Betty's offers buffet brunch on Saturdays and Sundays for $19.99. Mishy and I both liked the interior very much; it is eclectic and rustic with many framed newspaper articles, posters, paintings and other memorabilia hung on the walls indicating it is an older place with much history.

Sausages were a bit fatter than normal and a bit stale, but the bacon was excellent, just crisp enough and not overdone, just about perfect. Brunch includes yogurts in single-serve containers (which were President's Choice so were of course excellent.) Finally, I've found another place with AYCE eggs Benedict (yes!) which I very much enjoyed as it had wonderfully smokey peameal without the usual peamealy flavour I'm not overly fond of. The Hollandaise sauce was unlike regular Hollandaise, but it still worked very well for me.

French toast was quite good and we both liked it, although it could have used more cinnamon. Hash browns were excellent with ham and nicely seasoned; they needed no vinegar or anything else. Orange juice was quite good and tasted freshly squeezed, though it was not as fresh or flavourful as as the Muddy Duck orange juice but I doubt anyone else's will be. Eggs Florentine were quite good. Home fries were oddly small crouton-sized cubes but were still good… I was surprised being so small that they weren't dried out. Baked beans were good but probably out of a can.

Do it yourself waffles were fun to make and Mishy said it was the best waffle she ever had; I agreed it was just about perfect. It does take about three minutes to cook the waffle but this is time well spent loading up one's plate with the other offerings so I didn't mind… there are even single-serve boxes of cereal but I try them. Green salad was good; many dressings and toppings options are available and the topping cheese was fresh and fragrant. As if all you can eat bacon and Bennies weren't enough, Betty's also has smoked salmon AKA lox at the salad area... and it was good too, and a carvery station with a tremendous ham which was delicious. Large bottomless coffee is included with the brunch.

We had a wonderful brunch at Betty's and I was quite happy with the selection. The $19.99 price is also a good value for the area where similar brunch buffets, many of which don't include eggs Benedict, are several dollars more. I would happily return.

Rating: 8.5/10