Every time we head out to visit the extended family in Michigan, one of our traditions is to take a morning and go out to lunch with Carol’s father, which usually means a chance to explore a different breakfast place in the western suburbs (for example, this is why we visited Bode’s a few years ago. Over the last several visits, I had noticed that one place in Plymouth that opened in 2010 was routinely getting fairly busy, including occasional lines out the door, and I decided that on my next visit, we’d take Carol’s father there: the Omelette and Waffle Cafe.
The Omelette and Waffle Cafe is running a fairly efficient operation. While it’s a sit-down restaurant, they are notable for the fact that service is via counter ordering… you walk up to the counter, and once they’ve got a spot for a table your size to sit, you can then order and seat yourself. This is very efficient when seating is plentiful. It has a slight hiccup if a place is as busy as Omelette and Waffle Cafe, but it does remove the need for a maitre d’, and, actually, despite the line being out the door on our visit, they seemed to move people efficiently without a lot of drama.
As far as the menu goes, well, it is the “Omelette and Waffle Cafe”. That’s the basic menu: a wide selection of omelettes, a few waffles, and some related breakfast items like crepes and French toast. I opted to try out the omelette end of the menu, getting a rather nicely executed corned beef omelette with hash browns. Served up with large chunks of a pretty tasty corned beef and peppers in a nicely done, not overly-whipped omelette (I dislike places that either use too much milk or whip too much air into omelettes, and this was neither: a pleasantly firm but not rubbery omelette). A secondary attraction here was the hash browns: here they are done up Waffle-house style (shredded, parcooked potato bits grilled to a firm crunchy sear), and these were quite enjoyable for that style of hash browns, I could easily see combing back for those if I was in the mood.
Carol’s father opted for the banana nut French Toast, and that was quite a sight to behold, served up as a rather large wedge of French toast, each slice stuffed with bananas and served up with a generous amount of nuts and Nutella. More than a little bit of a calorie bomb, this was quite flavorful and decadent, but nicely executed as well.
And Carol herself opted for the straighforward Belgian waffle with strawberries. If there was a weak spot in the meal, this was it, having had many Belgian waffles, I really like ones that have a nice raised, yeasted batter or done up really crispy like a good Liege waffle, but this waffle wasn’t particularly remarkable, mostly being one of the “pancake batter in waffle form” ones. Not bad, but not really highlighting the crispiness that a good waffle should have.
Overall, Omelette and Waffle Cafe served up an enjoyable breakfast with a reasonable price and some efficient service. For me, the highlight was actually the hash browns, but I could see myself coming back on a future visit.
