Eggspectation Cafe and Restaurant (The Beach, JBR)

Even though breakfast is supposedly the most important meal of the day I find that I often don’t have time for a proper one. By the time I finish my morning routine of making and packing the kids’ school snacks and lunches, driving them to school, running errands and doing chores, it’s nearly lunch time.

If I’m lucky, I would’ve chugged a glass of milk and that would hold me until lunch time. If I’m really really lucky, I might come back from the school run and find the previous night’s leftovers in the fridge and eat that. Because who doesn’t like spicy Thai green curry for breakfast? Or leftover steak?

Speaking of steak.

On my first visit to Eggspectation – a breakfast cafe in The Beach complex at JBR – I ordered their steak and eggs. I like good steak (not cheap chewy cuts) and theirs was Angus. I asked for it medium rare. It came a little blue (very rare) but I didn’t mind. Some things I like more on the rare side. I ate it so fast, I have no pictures.

Last month, I was invited back to Eggspectation to try their new menu. I took the whole family. I wish it had opened when we lived in JBR for 6 years, I’d have been there practically every morning with the kids. But no, they waited ’til we moved out to open…

Scotch, the kids and I went on a lovely weekend morning in November and it was quite busy. We didn’t want to wait for an outside table with two hungry kids so we ended up with a booth indoors which was nearly completely full as there was a large group dining in the middle of the restaurant. The atmosphere was loud and bustling like a Chinese dim sum restaurant which is good with kids because no one can hear them scream at each other and I don’t have to shush them every other second.

I ordered the “California Dreaming”: Two perfectly poached eggs, smoked salmon, asparagus and sautéed spinach topped with our famous hollandaise sauce and surrounded by multigrain toast. Served with our Lyonnaise-style potatoes.

Those Lyonnaise-style potatoes were addictive. I usually don’t like fried potatoes (I don’t know why maybe the texture) but I thought I should taste at least one. Before I knew it, I had eaten nearly half the portion!

My one annoyance with the dish was that the eggs were resting on top of the potatoes, not the bread, so that when I cut into the eggs, the yolk spread all over the potatoes instead of the bread. But an easy matter to fix as I just lifted the Bennie onto the bread as I prefer my runny yolk on bread than on the potatoes I probably wouldn’t eat.

But that’s just me. Perhaps you’re a potato lover and don’t mind mopping up yolk goodness with potatoes.

Scotch ordered and enjoyed the “Chicken Benedict”: Two perfectly poached eggs on grilled chicken, Gruyère cheese and a toasted English muffin, topped with our famous hollandaise sauce. Served with our Lyonnaise-style potatoes.

The chicken meat by itself was a little dry but eaten with the eggs and sauce it was perfect.

From the kids’ menu, we ordered chocolate chip waffles and pancakes (with egg and sausage) for Wee Scotch and Li’L Ginger and they devoured it all.

Service could be a little more efficient but not bad (by Dubai standards).

A Canadien import to Dubai, Eggspectation does breakfast better than most American chains I have dined at. The menu is quite extensive (not just eggs and breakfast) so I plan to go back to try their salads, sandwiches, crepes, lobster mac and cheese, steak frites, burgers, and of course, the lobster benedict.

Disclosure: I enjoyed this complimentary dining experience as a guest of Eggspectation. All views and opinions are my own.

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Eggspectation: The Beach complex, Jumeirah Beach Residence, close to the Hilton side. Opening hours: daily 7am to 12 midnight.  Telephone: +971 04 430 7252.  Website | Facebook