Location:

591 Markham St. Mirvish Village, Toronto, ON

Cost: $28 incl tip

www.butlerspantry.ca

How fitting a name for a place that serves everything that could possibly exist in a Pantry!  (On a side note: A butler's pantry was commonly used for the storing, cleaning and counting of silver by the butler...).



Whatever the name, this cosy nook in the Annex  serves brunch until 4pm.



And forget the Butler, who's the chef?  His pantry must be huge!  There's such diversity to the 2 page menu, that we're too confused to know what to order.  There are a lot of indian inspired dishes which made us question who the chef was.  Apparently the owner is from Bangladesh and married to an Egyptian lady and they hired a chef who was working in a palace in Egypt!  He must have been well versed in international foods 'cause although the brunch side of the menu is simple...Eggs Bene, French Toast, Omlettes, Scrambled Eggs, Scones....it's the other side that amazes us: Bul go gi, Tandoori penne, Biryani, Seafood Quiche, Jambalaya, Khowsway (a Burmese dish) , Shepherd's Pie, Veggie curry pie, Moroccan Veg Tajine!  And the list goes on...with loooooads of vegetarian options included!  It's incredible...we wanted to order it all! 

We especially wanted to try the Zuchini pancake but learned they were out of it but our server also confided that she enjoys it paired with a beer as a greasy pub meal since it's very similar to potato pancakes (latkes).   Worked out well then 'cause I don't like latkes.

We finally decide on the chicken bastilla pie and the french toast.

Another thing to note is that the main dishes (except for a select few) are served with a fresh garden salad and Butler's famous dressing (pictured below).



Also, and as you know by now, a must for me is an Earl Grey tea, which arrives in a lovely ceramic teapot.  The loose-leaf bagged ORGANA tea is divine...almost candy-like in its sweetness.



It doesn't take long at all for our food to arrive! 

The Butler's French Toast at $7.25 (side of bacon - $1.25) is a steal!  Such a humongous portion ; it's ideal for sharing.  It comes with two thick slices of bread, a generous helping of fresh fruit and dallops of whipped cream.  The toast is not at all soggy even though the maple syrup has already been drizzled on top.  It's just the perfect consistancy.  A must for anyone who, like me, loves french toast. 



The Chicken Bastilla Pie is a popular order and we wanted to try their version of the famous Moroccan dish - which is pastry stuffed with chicken, omlette, cinnamon & almonds.  For $10.25, it's a hearty meal for one; which we split into two.  It was very tasty, albeit on the salty side.  Traditionally the cinnamon appears on the top of the pie along with powdered sugar...but in this case it was incorporated into the filling, which was nice but altogether a bit too "cinnamony". 



The salad it came with really balanced out the saltiness of the pie and the "Butler's Famous Dressing" was fantastic!

 

Looking more like a gravy than a dressing, it had a nice sharp taste to it and paired really nicely with the onions in the salad. 

The next time you're strolling around the Annex, keep the Butler's Pantry in mind.