Chad's West Coast Bar & Grill

Needing to grab a few groceries from Costco, we decided to give Chad's a try. My mom had visited with her friends for a breakfast not too long ago and commented that it was reasonably good. She also had a $10 off $30 coupon to use, making it the perfect opportunity to dine at Chad's.

The restaurant was quiet for a sunny Sunday afternoon; there was less than 10 tables of people when we stepped in at noon. We were asked whether we would like breakfast or lunch menus, "Both please!" The elderly man that seated us joked about how before 12pm they called it breakfast while after 12 they called it brunch.

It took a while for my ambivalent family to decide what they wanted to eat. Mainly because the menu was limited. Especially the lunch menu. The breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus combined would be the size of The Coquitlam Grill's breakfast menu. While we considered each and every option, our waitress took our drink orders and brought them to us. My mom was going to ask about the coupon but the waitress kind of cut her off and went to retrieve our drinks instead. When she came back, she offered to help with our decision making, which was professional of her. She mentioned many items that were not listed on the menu, such as french onion soup, barely soup, cream of broccoli soup etc. It would be helpful if there was some sort of 'today's special' menu so that diners know all their options. My mom tried to ask about the coupon again because we had a digital photo of the newspaper ad and not a physical copy. Our waitress asked if she could bring the phone to Chad (the owner) and ask if he will still accept it. Even though we gave her permission to take my mom's phone away with her, it was rather unnecessary(?) Afterwards, two servers simultaneously stressed the point that that they would agree to "make an exception this time" but not "next time". It wasn't a huge deal, but it was a bit overwhelming to have two people speaking very loudly to us at the same time. 

Let's talk food now!

Vegetarian Eggs Benedict ($10)

I'm totally a breakfast person so I went with an order of Vegetarian Eggs Benedict. The plating is elegant and inviting. The eggs were poached medium, still runny on the inside~ The combination of  too much hollandaise sauce and watery tomatoes made the English muffin soggy and tough. Next time I will ask for the sauce on the side. It wasn't a terribly eggs benny but it didn't blow my mind either. The breakfast potatoes were amazing though! Okay, I know it's very likely they are previously frozen but they were super crunchy; I couldn't help but engulf them all. My mom kept stealing a bite every now and then too. After consuming the entire plate, I felt full for the next six hours. Ooph..

S-S-S-Smokin' Southwest Chucky Burger ($12.50)

My dad ordered the S-S-S-Smokin' Southwest Chucky. My mom thought the presentation was impressive, the skyscraper burger and the cute bamboo pick; the small details do matter! My dad said the patty was "plenty lean", his tactful way of saying the patty isn't fatty enough (haha, that rhymes!)

Breakfast Tacos ($10)

The brother decided on the Breakfast Tacos, three toasted tortillas filled with scrambled eggs and pulled pork. I'm glad the tortillas were warmed through, and not completely crunchy (as I prefer soft tortillas). I took a bite of the pulled pork and it was much to sweet for me to want anymore. Nevertheless, the growing boy ate it all.

Sandwich and Salad Lunch Special ($11)

Even though the menu states that the lunch combos are only served from Monday to Friday, they actually allow it every day of the week. So my mom gleefully chose half a Turkey Avocado Club and half a side of Mediterranean Quinoa Salad. Impressed by the quality and quantity of both dishes, she thoroughly enjoyed her meal. The turkey burger was generously packed with thick-cut turkey, avocado, crisp vegetables, and a slice of bacon. Her only complaint was that regular sandwich bread would have worked better than the kaiser bun. She loved the balsamic dressed quinoa salad; it had lots of fresh vegetables and a hefty portion of quinoa underneath. This combination makes for a very filling lunch. 

Our waitress came with our bill before we asked for it, indicating that it was brought not to rush us but purely because she would be off work soon. That's fine with us. Her service to us was relatively good throughout, but at times I felt like her pace was hurried for no reason. Perhaps it's her efficient 'get-it-done' personality. With the bill came a $10 coupon that could be used for any purchase, even under $30.

Chad's is open for breakfast everyday starting at 7am, and although there are only a handful of breakfast entrees, all of them are enticing. Especially with the $10 off any purchase, it is a really good deal. I will definitely consider coming back for breakfast, and potentially lunch, but not so much dinner as the menu doesn't provide many options and the prices are pretty high.

 

Love from Coconut Crumpet's Corner ♡

Full menus after the jump!

The Coquitlam Grill

My family has a few default restaurants in the tri-cities because there are only so many acceptable restaurants. When discussing where to go for a meal, we usually pick a cuisine like Chinese, Korean, Japanese, or Western, and then go from there. Coquitlam Grill is our to-go Western restaurant. It's family friendly and has solid food choices for reasonable prices. 

Although this restaurant has been around for a number of years already, we only started going two years ago. When the building was Knight & Day, apparently my family used to visit very often. I have absolutely no memory of that. Anywho, I don't have photos of everything we've tried but hopefully this will give you an idea of what to expect. 

Note: Very recently, they updated their menu. There are a few new items (or altered items) and most of the prices have gone up $1 or so.

Let's start this long post with breakfast, the most important meal of the day. And my personal favourite~

Breakfast: Fruit Pancakes, Veggie Omelet

Denny's: "Fourth of July" Breakfast

Bright and early on a Saturday morning, my family drove down south to take my aunt shopping at the Seattle Outlets. There are not very many restaurants open at 6am for breakfast; Denny's is open 24 hours. Coming here for breakfast is the first stop on my family's seasonal trip to the states, and this time was no exception.

Denny's Bellingham

We usually order from the 2-4-6-8 dollar menu; basic pancake and eggs  breakfast is only $4 and with toast and drinks is $6. However on this past visit, the new menu was patriotically themed for the upcoming Independence Day. Since the prices were not too expensive, we gave it a try.

Red, White, and Blue Pancakes & Apple Pie French Toast

Both breakfasts came with two eggs, shredded hashbrowns, and a choice of meat (bacon or sausage). Coffee is not included.

On the left is the pancakes my mom shared with my aunt and my dad shared with me. Pretty much all plates served at Denny's is can feed at least two people. The red came from strawberries, white from whipped cream and icing, and blue from the blueberries incorporated into the pancakes. They're all concentrated in the center of the pancake, which is not the most convenient when you want a bit of everything in each bite. Thankfully they didn't skimp out on giving you blueberries. For some reason, I thought the pancake base wasn't as fluffy as their plain pancakes. Besides that, these were acceptable and worth the $7 for the set.

My brother had the whole Apple Pie French Toast to himself. It was about the same price as the pancakes. The french toast is topped with cooked apples, strudel, and caramel sauce. Uhhh...can someone say carb (more specifically glucose) overload? I took one bite of this and thought it was way. to. sweet. And that's coming from a person who can eat three plates of dessert. Also, the sauce soaks into the bread and makes it soggy after a while. French toast without the crunchy outside is no good to me. As you can see, I didn't like this one. But of course, my brother cleared it anyways.

At the Bellingham location right next to Bellis Fair mall, the service is has been pretty good. But I can only speak for the waitresses that work in the morning hours at around 7am when it isn't too busy. Very patient, friendly, and cheerful, even during the early hours. Coffee is filled constantly, cream is brought even before we ask, and they come and check up on you every now and then. When I remember, I usually am able to find a 20% off coupon on the internet. But even without the coupon, the total cost is very low. The portions here are "truly American", as my aunt said. That allows us to feed 5 people for under $30, becausee we only needed to order 3 plates. This is why my family has adjusted our road trip schedule to have breakfast at Denny's instead of the Burger King next door. We pay $20 for 4 people either way. Might as well be at a sit down restaurant with real plates and cutlery instead of a deserted fast food establishment.

Being a health nut, I have a thing against chain restaurants. But I have to put that snobbishness of mine aside when I'm traveling in the states. Calorie counting and portion control is non-existent; my family burns it off with a 10 hours worth of shopping. Yes, my father and brother are extremely well trained when it comes to waiting for women to finish shopping. I know Denny's is a very popular breakfast spot for us Canadians traveling down the states. My family will continue making this our default breakfast stop during our road trips. 

Bellingham on Dwellable

Love from Coconut Crumpet's Corner ♡