Cafe Maron - A Unique Breakfast in Spokane
While on vacation in Idaho, I was fortunate enough (insert sarcasm here) to interrupt it to go to Spokane for a deposition. I had originally planned on taking Amy with me for a romantic getaway in the middle. I once tried this when I had a week's worth of depositions in Sonoma, CA. With the Sonoma trip, something screwed it up at the last minute so I went on a romantic getaway by myself. Well, with the Spokane trip, same deal. Something happened and I got to go on a SECOND romantic getaway by myself.
First - Spokane is pretty. Very pretty. Being a college town that reminded me of Flagstaff, I was excited to sample its wares. I "Yelp"ed up some breakfast recommendations but wasn't persuaded by the reviews I was seeing. So, I happened to flip through the magazine they had at my hotel room. One section had a bunch of chefs being asked where they eat in Spokane. One of them said he ate at Cafe Maron because it was french, simple and delicious. I was sold.
The next morning, I got myself to Cafe Maron. It is in a more residential part of town. The cafe is in a garage. In fact, the east wall of the cafe was nowhere to be seen when I got there, because it was a garage door that was lifted up, turning the whole cafe to the outside. The only problem with that was I felt stupid then going through the door on the south side. I felt like I should have just walked in where the wall was supposed to be. This picture is taken from inside the restaurant, looking through the east "wall."
Ambiance - nice. It had a typical coffee house/small-time french restaurant feel. The waitress was friendly and waayyyyy pregnant. Not that there is anything wrong with that. It's just that she ended up giving the restaurant a "pregnant waitress at the local greasy spoon" vibe, not the "upperclass sophisticate server at a French restaurant" vibe. The clientele seemed bohemian. And playing in the background, was "I want your sex", by George Michael. Let's call it, overall, "eclectic."
Menu - Did I mention this was a french restaurant? I ordered chorizo and eggs. With pommes frittes, to give it some frenchness. It was, in spite of its being inappropriately included in a french restaurant menu, delicious. The eggs were creamy but not raw, which to me is the pinnacle of scrambled eggs. The fries were crispy, but not hard. The sausage was bold and flavorful. I loved it. Oh, and that bread-amazing. It was not store bought and they also brought a delicious thing of fruit preserves - no plastic cups with foil lids of Smuckers here.
Don't mistake my description of a restuarant with a bit of an identity crisis as criticism. I would happily return over and over to Cafe Maron. I would like even more to go with someone else.
First - Spokane is pretty. Very pretty. Being a college town that reminded me of Flagstaff, I was excited to sample its wares. I "Yelp"ed up some breakfast recommendations but wasn't persuaded by the reviews I was seeing. So, I happened to flip through the magazine they had at my hotel room. One section had a bunch of chefs being asked where they eat in Spokane. One of them said he ate at Cafe Maron because it was french, simple and delicious. I was sold.
The next morning, I got myself to Cafe Maron. It is in a more residential part of town. The cafe is in a garage. In fact, the east wall of the cafe was nowhere to be seen when I got there, because it was a garage door that was lifted up, turning the whole cafe to the outside. The only problem with that was I felt stupid then going through the door on the south side. I felt like I should have just walked in where the wall was supposed to be. This picture is taken from inside the restaurant, looking through the east "wall."
Menu - Did I mention this was a french restaurant? I ordered chorizo and eggs. With pommes frittes, to give it some frenchness. It was, in spite of its being inappropriately included in a french restaurant menu, delicious. The eggs were creamy but not raw, which to me is the pinnacle of scrambled eggs. The fries were crispy, but not hard. The sausage was bold and flavorful. I loved it. Oh, and that bread-amazing. It was not store bought and they also brought a delicious thing of fruit preserves - no plastic cups with foil lids of Smuckers here.
Don't mistake my description of a restuarant with a bit of an identity crisis as criticism. I would happily return over and over to Cafe Maron. I would like even more to go with someone else.
Comments