When's the last time you sat down and ate breakfast?
If you said today, read on. Maybe we'll help you decide where to eat your next breakfast.
If you answered never, read on. We'll change your views on this oft-neglected meal. And if you answered anything else, read on. Why not?
We reviewed five different breakfast eateries this week: The Tavern, Italian Villa, Aunt Sarah's Pancake House, Waffle House and the International House of Pancakes.
Location is everything. Italian Villa is the closest to central Grounds. Situated on Emmet Street next to the Outdoor Recreation Center, it's within reachable walking distance for most students. Italian Villa is likely the only option for most students without vehicles.
The Tavern is further down Route 29, across from Barracks Road, identifiable as the building with the slogan, "where students, townpeople, and tourists come to meet" painted on its roof.
Still further down 29 is Aunt Sarah's Pancake House. Waffle House and IHOP are the furthest away from Grounds, a five-or-more mile trip for most students.
The Tavern has the shortest serving hours; they close at 3p.m. every day. Those who can't wake up in time for breakfast are in luck, however. Italian Villa is open until 2 a.m. on most nights. Aunt Sarah's is open until 10 p.m. on weekdays and until 3 a.m. on weekends. IHOP is open until midnight on weekdays and 24-hours on weekends, and Waffle House has the sole-distinction of being open 24-hours everyday.
Atmospheres varied greatly among each restaurant as well. The Tavern wins the best-aura award. All the servers were friendly, the food is prepared quickly on grills out in the open, and old Virginia sports posters on the walls will make anyone pine for times when our football team was a threat on the national scene.
The environment at Aunt Sarah's, Italian Villa and IHOP were very sterile. Aunt Sarah's does have a little country gift shop when you walk in, but most college students will probably fail to appreciate any down-home feel it attempts to convey.
Waffle House wins the coveted "I'm-drunk-and-hungry-it's-four-in-the-morning-and-I-don't-want-to-go-to-littlejohn's" award. Take your visiting grandparents elsewhere; in addition to being dirty, the wait staff is slow, surly and doesn't try to hide the fact that they dislike their jobs.
At each place, we reviewed the following standard-fare breakfast items: pancakes, waffles, French toast, omelets, hash browns and grits. The best pancakes are found at Aunt Sarah's. For ($3.99), you get three pancakes, each of which is good-sized, warm and fluffy. Serving the worst pancakes is IHOP ($4.49). Their only saving grace was the syrup, of which the choices are plentiful. We suggest you try the old-fashioned and blueberry syrups to successfully mask the pancake's taste.
If you really crave pancakes, cross Waffle House off your list -- you won't find them there. It does live up to its namesake, but only marginally. The waffle we got was limp and tasteless. Aunt Sarah's had the best waffle. We spent a little more on the strawberry waffle ($5.19) and were well rewarded. The waffle was large, topped with a bunch of strawberries and outlined with whipped cream. The only other waffle of note was the one we were served at the Tavern ($3.25), which may have just been a place mat. We couldn't tell.
Every French toast platter we received displeased us greatly. Although their presentations varied greatly, no restaurant could conjure up a good piece of French toast. It's tough to pick the worst entry in this field, but, under pressure, we choose the French toast at the Tavern ($3.50). The edges were overly crisp while the rest was limp and cool. The other restaurants tie for second to last. Waffle House was the only place to not carry French toast.
What the Tavern fails to accomplish with French toast, it surprisingly succeeds with its omelets ($3.50 with a variety of sides). We welcomed the pleasing taste and low price. The IHOP omelet ($6.99 with three pancakes), on the other hand, was awful. Stuffed with hash browns, this omelet is huge, proving to us that IHOP believes in quantity over quality. Once finished with it, we were unsure whether it was the bad taste or the amount that we ate that was most displeasing.
Hash browns were basically the same at most places, but Italian Villa squeaks by as the winner ($1.25). The hash browns were just the right temperature and cooked to perfection. Aunt Sarah's only serves hash browns in the morning, so we substituted that dish with some home-style fries, which was an acceptable alternative.
As for grits, everyone serves the same dish, all under $2. Not one serving stood out as particularly good or bad. It's in our opinion that any restaurant that can't prepare grits deserves to be shut down.
It's hard to outright recommend one breakfast place over another. There is no outright claimant to the title of best breakfast in Charlottesville. Breakfast is in the taste buds of the diner.
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