Camacho Watcho

Last Saturday was the St. Paul Winter Carnival’s Securian Frozen 5K and Half Marathon. Given the -26 degree (with wind chill) temperature at the race start, the race organizers decided to cut the half marathon in half…I guess making it a quarter marathon? Anyway, you might be wondering why I speak of this, since I am not a runner. Definitely not a runner.

I mention this because my husband was one of the dedicated, Minnesotan runners who did brave the cold temps to run the race. He’s run it several times before and each year I do the same thing. I go to the race start with him then sit in Caribou to read a book or surf the internet until he’s done running. Does that make me a bad person? I mean, I actually get up early and am there to support him, right? I usually do watch him finish and take pictures, but this year…not a chance. I stayed in my warm, cozy spot until he came by to tell me it was all over.

This year, when the race was over, that was when the morning really got started. At that point, Kyle was in desperate need for calories and I was desperate for coffee and eggs. We considered several breakfast places and finally decided to try a nearby place where we had never been – Bon Vie. Located on Selby Avenue in St. Paul, Bon Vie is just as charming as you might expect from a business in this area. Although not a large dining area, it is well laid out to accommodate many diners. When we arrived there was standing room only, but a high top table near the window opened in just 10 or so short minutes. The wait gave us time to look around the place, taking in its Parisian bistro theme, complete with several prints of Paris decorating the walls.

Once we were seated, we explored the menu. Several standard menu items were present, such as eggs, bacon, and french toast, along with several specialties like eggs Benedict. The surprising menu items for me were the Mexican omelet and the Mexican Migas. Of course I immediately gravitated toward these items, while Kyle gravitated toward the french toast. Upon ordering, I asked the waitress about these seemingly out of place items on a French bistro menu, and although she lacked any good explanation besides “we used to have a Mexican cook”, she assured me that they were good. I took her word for it and ordered the migas.

Although we didn’t have to wait long for our food, I quickly drained my cup of coffee, so that when the food arrived I, of course, asked for a refill. Now, hold that coffee thought as I describe the food. The french toast was good, as were the sausage links that came with it. Kyle’s only comment was that he wanted more (he ate a snack when we got home, but probably attributed to his morning run).

My migas were really tasty and actually quite interesting. Traditional breakfast migas are fried tortilla strips (originated to use leftover tortillas) scrambled with eggs, tomatoes, onions, beans, cheese and chiles. While the eggs, tomatoes, etc. were all present in these migas (including chorizo, which I love), they were served instead on a bed of tortilla chips, giving them more of a breakfast nacho personality instead. Interesting concept…and it works.

Now, back to coffee situation…As I said, I finished my cup of coffee quickly and, as breakfast was served, I asked for a refill. Which I never received. After I finished my migas, I caught the waitress’s eye, and she mouthed ‘coffee?’ to me, which I nodded yes. I still did not receive any coffee, but the waitress did proceed to walk around and take orders at several other tables near me. About five minutes later, another waitress came around with coffee. She filled my cup, and as Kyle held his up for a refill, she turned her back and walked away. We did flag her down to get him a refill, but that was really odd.

Overall, I would say that Bon Vie is a quaint breakfast place with good food and flaky service. If you haven’t been, I’d say it’s worth a try even though I wouldn’t give it a high recommendation due to the service. There are just too many other great breakfast places nearby with endless and frequent coffee service.

Bon Vie
518 Selby Ave.
St. Paul, MN
651.287.0112

Tags: Food, restaurants, twin cities

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 29th, 2009 at 10:27 am and is filed under Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.