Dining in Vancouver – Provence Marinaside

Great patio
Provence Marinaside has one of Vancouver’s great patios and while it was a decent April day on Good Friday it was still just a bit too chilly to sit outside when we met a friend for brunch. If you do have a chance to go on a warmer day you should definitely sit outside and enjoy the views of the seawall and the marina. But if it is warm and sunny be prepared to wait for an outside table. Provence Marinaside opens at 8am Monday to Friday and at 9am on Saturday and Sunday. We bike by often and on a nice day the line up could start as early as 10am.

Menu and Service
We have been to Provence before but it has been quite a while because our last experience was not a great one. So we did not have high expectations going in (see our blog from January 2010). This time however, our friend Marc knew many of the staff as well as our server and our service was good. (It is hard to say whether we would have received the same service if Marc did not know everyone, but one can hope). Brunch is served from 9am to 3pm on weekends and holidays. The brunch menu includes the usual fare but also a selection of fresh baked goods (made in house) as well as some ‘savoury’ lunch items including salads and pasta dishes.

Food
We all stuck to the breakfast items on the menu. I ordered the Crab And Shrimp Cakes Eggs Benedict, Jeff the Ham and Cheese Omelette and Marc the Croque Monsieur Eggs Benedict. All of the meals were served with pan-fried new potatoes and fruit. My crab cakes were very moist and had lots of shrimp and crab, not filler. The hollandaise was perfect. The food was very good  – no doubt – but also pricey (my crab and shrimp benny was $19).

We have had other very good brunches for less. The service and the food were both good this time around – just be aware that you do pay more for the view. It has been since last fall that we have been to Hurricane Grill next door, so we will give it a try soon and provide an update.