After a wonderful morning sipping some delicious latte at Cafe 1 of a Kind, my adventure took me to the other end of Queens for some awesome brunch.
Cafe Triskell is located in Astoria on 36th ave, a few blocks off Broadway. If you are coming over during the weekend, get ready for some crazy traffic, especially on Broadway.
Parking: Not too horrible, I was able to find a good amount of parking here Saturday afternoon on 36th ave, if 36th ave is packed, try the side streets like 33th street.
Decor and Ambiance: First impression: walked in and was fascinated by the painting that's hung on the wall- you know the one with a giant flying pig with a Chinese rice bowl on its back. I don't know what to think of it but it makes me feel good and I giggled a bit! The restaurant is not very big (around 18 seats and 3 at the bar in front of the kitchen) BUT it is cozy homey and warm, perfect for the winter days!
To be quite honest, I don't think I would ever find and walk into this place if it wasn't for Yelp. The entrance is small, you'll probably walk by it and never realize that this place is a restaurant.
Our group of 6 came on a cold Saturday afternoon at around 1:30pm (yea, that's our brunch hour ha!), we were greeted by a very friendly server that told us that the wait will be around 15-20 mins but feel free to stay warm inside, so nice of her to do that since it was cold that day.
We waited for like 10 minutes and got seated, our waitress was super nice and gave us some good suggestions. In the end we pretty much ordered 1 of each item from their brunch menu (except the Chicken & Lamb Bisteya) and of course their signature French onion soup with aged gruyere & swiss cheese.
All food were tasty but our favorites are:
FRENCH ONION SOUP WITH AGED GRUYERE & SWISS CHEESE- There's a reason why this was voted best onion soup in NYC Daily News 2013, it was delicious especially on a cold cold day. The cheese was perfectly melted and the soup was flavorful yet NOT SALTY (which is rare because french onion soup tends to be extremely salty for some reason but not here), the onion of course were soft and mushy just the way I like it. Just be careful with your first few bites or else you'll end up with a burnt tongue just like me. What a perfect way to start the meal! MUST TRY!!
CROQUE MONSIEUR- Who knew ham egg and swiss could be so delicious and pretty to look at?? Ham and cheese sandwich topped with sunny side up egg, so simple yet delicious, I almost pass out watching that egg yolk slowly drip down only to be absorbed by that soft toast. I'm going to take a wild guess that the egg is farm fresh because you can taste the difference. Eating this is like taking a flavor and texture adventure- you get chewy ham and swiss and then a light crunch from the toast all follow by the milky, creamy egg and yolk... OMG JUST DELICIOUS!!! EAT IT WHILE ITS HOT!!! MUST TRY!!
SKEWERED BRIOCHE FRENCH TOAST- It is not a completed brunch without some french toast at the party. and the french toast definitely hit the spot here! I LOVE FRENCH TOAST MADE WITH BRIOCHE!! People use all different types of bread (challah, sourdough, Hawaiian Sweet Bread) but to me, my favorite has to be from brioche, love how brioche soak up all the eggy goodness like a sponge. Our french toast took a little time to prepare but in the end, when we sank our mouth into it, it was all worth it.. slight crunch on the outside and moist soft eggy inside... perfectly executed, what's not to love about it? Don't forget to add the berry compote- it's money! MUST TRY!!
Price: Good! Brunch items ranges from $10- $13 and include a choice of coffee, tea, or a soft drink. This is really a great deal consider the quality of food they serve!
Overall: LOVE CAFE TRISKELL- Their brunch menu is superb!! their prices is great and their service is excellent! totally a hidden gem in the Astoria. I will surely return to try their lunch and dinner menu. Try to get there either early or later on in the day for their brunch to avoid the crowd (brunch ends at 5pm Saturday & Sunday) and bring an empty stomach as well as CASH!! (CASH ONLY!!!) read more