By Lily Bonadies
Orange and green tables sit expectantly outside the restaurant with flowers that drape over a little courtyard patio. I am here with my roommate. It overlooks a small, quiet side street in Burlington, Vermont. Seeing the bright tables and flowers all lined up outside got me excited. As I walk into the Friendly Toast the excitement immediately disappears out of me. It goes from a colorful modern look outside to a disturbing, overly cluttered explosion of 1950s retro décor with crowded glitter sparkle tables and chairs.
On our first visit, the hostess sat us right away. Our waiter enthusiastically described the menu. The menu of typical diner fare containing egg dishes, burgers, sandwiches, and salads. Prices for entrees cost $12 to $14 dollars. Feeling adventurous, I ordered the Red’s scramble described as a “scramble with pulled pork, bacon, onions, peppers, cheddar cheese and a drizzle of BBQ sauce.” It came with a side of home fries and toast. Also, I ordered a watermelon cocktail. My roommate ordered an egg and parmesan skillet.
The watermelon cocktail stimulated my taste buds not too sweet with a refreshing finish that did not have an alcohol aftertaste. Unfortunately, Red’s scramble does not match up to the watermelon cocktail. Rubber bands of pink chewy pork made my jaw hurt and the sweet BBQ sauce overwhelmed the nicely cooked eggs. The home fries came covered with a salty herb flavoring straight from a pre-made seasoning jar. The toast is more intimidating than friendly.
In contrast, my roommate`s dish came with perfectly cooked broccoli, onions, mushrooms and peppers laid on pillows of eggs and delicately sprinkled with parmesan.
The Saturday crowd on our second visit gave the restaurant some needed energy. Despite the crowd, our wait staff, once again, came through with friendly and efficient service, seating us after only a ten minute wait. I stayed conservative this time and ordered a classic. Our grilled cheese sandwiches arrived looking typical, with whole wheat bread and a generous amount of Vermont cheddar cheese.
The waiter, immediately replaced our dishes after noticing a few hairs on the side of the plate. Apologizing profusely, our new grilled cheese sandwiches came rather quickly placing doubt in our minds as to whether the food was simply shifted to new plates.
I tried to get over our hairy experience and took a bite of the grilled cheese. I was willing to push hygiene concerns to the side and give friendly toast the benefit of the doubt.
But nothing disappoints a diner more than a filthy bathroom. The bathroom was strewn about with used paper towels, toilet paper of the rolls, and muddy footprints.
The website contains rave reviews, but they were not consistent with my experiences. My roommate`s egg dish deserves credit as does the watermelon cocktail. However, the restaurant disguises its average quality food by over salting it. Plus, the complicated menu makes it hard to choose your entrée and the description of the entrees do not meet your expectations.
Burlington has many restaurants that serve nachos, burgers, and egg dishes. Friendly Toast does not try to make itself standout amongst the many college town restaurants.