Challah Bread French Toast from Eleven City Diner

Item Purchased: Challah Bread French Toast from Eleven City Diner
Location Purchased: Eleven City Diner / 1112 S. Wabash / Chicago, IL
Price: $5.50 + tax

Review: Though the counter is a bit small for a man of my height (6'4"), I rather like the feeling of coming into this place in the morning, bellying up to the bar and eating breakfast over the morning paper. It was only my second time in the fantastic new Eleven City Diner and one of the waitresses already greeted me with a playful, "hey there, regular!"

I didn't have much time for a proper breakfast like the Tom Waits, but I needed something filling and sweet if I was going to be worth a nickel at work today. Being the New York Jewish inspired deli that Eleven is, they (naturally) have challah bread. Being owned by the energetic Brad Rubin, Elevin City takes it one step further and turns the challah bread into French bread. I think that makes this breakfast a Jewish-French cuisine.

Regardless of what region or people wish to lay claim to its origins, the Challah Bread French Toast is worth every penny. You get three slices of nearly two-inch thick bread, a light dusting of powdered sugar and a generous cup of maple syrup. Other toppings are available for a price, but I like to break things down to the fundamentals first, then build from there when trying new things. The fundamental truth of this breakfast is that you will leave sated, with a sweet and sticky taste in your mouth that will have you licking your lips all the way to work and stopping in for more when you pass again.

Again, the staff at the Eleven City diner was attentive and friendly. Even to each other, the waiters are more polite than I am used to in a restaurant. Part of this is the general newness of everything and everybody, but I have a feeling that the other factor is that the manic owner, Brad Rubin, has a way with people. Within a span of three minutes, I witnessed him take on varied demeanors ranging from receptive to the utmost limits of "do-as-I-say-now." The entire spectrum has its place, and it seems Brad knows how to balance it and earn the respect of customers and employees both. Anyone who has worked in the restaurant business knows that this is an important quality, rarely found in owners.

Rating: 4 / 5