Maven — Restaurant in Calgary

Kate and I are brekkie buddies. Once we found out we enjoyed the same types of breakfasts, we have never looked back. A while back I Googled best brunches/brekkies in town and while the list was extensive, there were still three to where we hadn't been. So today, we went to Maven. We went quite early at 9am. When I got there, there were still plenty of tables. But by the time we left around 10:30, there were quite a few people waiting outside. You can put your name on the waitlist through Yelp. It is a good idea unless you go early. They open up at 8am. Since we go for breakfast quite a bit, we have a standard and we check it through our go to breakfasts. Kate enjoys a regular breakfast and french toast while I am a bennies girl. Although, I do enjoy a regular breakfast myself. So it was no surprize, Kate chose the Ginger Saffron French Toast while I got the Candied Bacon bennie. WOW! When our brekkies arrived, the French toast was spectacular. Who wouldn't want to eat that? It was a piece of art. And HUGE!! I think it is half a loaf. LOL And it was as flavourful as it looked. There were so many flavours - maple, saffron, ginger and goodness! Plus the fruit! Plus the custard! Yummy!! Now the presentation of my bennie was much different. I feel there should have been more to dress it up to sorta finish off the plating. The bennie part looked absolutely delish but the potatoes looked like a sad afterthought. Perhaps having a bit more of a garnish would help. And it would fill the plate up more. A smaller plate would also help the visual appeal. However, the eggs were cooked to perfection and the hollandaise sauce was plate licking good. I enjoyed having the bennie on bread as I am not a huge fan of English muffins. But, (and I am shocked and amazed I am saying this) the bacon was too thick. (OMG! I said it!!). It was very, very tasty but too thick. I think it is a personal preference, though. I am sure lots of bacon lovers out there would love this. Kate had a tea and said how much she enjoys getting a good pot of tea instead of just a cup. The pot held enough for the entire meal. I had a mocha coffee. It was delightful with a good blend of coffee and chocolate. Sounds easy but the perfect blend is elusive. I really enjoyed this cup of coffee. But often what makes the meal is the server. We had a awesome server. She was attentive without being overbearing. Once she learned this was my birthday brunch, she informed us that Maven gives a plant to birthday people. She brought me this beautiful violet WITH instructions on how to care for it. How sweet!! Thank you!! We really enjoyed our breakfast at Maven's. We both agreed to come back as there were other menu items that are so tempting. Maybe we will come on Kate's...

I am not someone who usually leaves reviews, but our experience at Maven today was so unfortunate that I felt it needed to be shared so that others can avoid falling into this. We called ahead as soon as they opened to get in line for a table for 10 person birthday celebration. They informed us that we would be on the waitlist and should be good to go by noon. To be safe, we arrived at 11:45 am then waited till we received out message that our table was ready around 12 noon. We were prepared for a short wait, but what followed was a series of frustrating events.

Despite checking in early and waiting outside in the sun (we had dressed for the chilly weather, expecting to be seated), we were repeatedly told, "It'll just be a few more minutes." We tried not to be annoying by asking every 20 minutes for updates, but by 12:30 pm—45 minutes into our wait—we were told the table was being set up (by a staff member that seemed annoyed with us). Yet, 20 minutes later, we were informed by a different, very kind staff member, that people were still sitting at the table, even though they had supposedly paid 45 minutes earlier. Management was nowhere to be found to help, and no alternative solution was offered.

After an hour and 15 minutes of waiting outside (and an hour after being told our table was "ready"), we were finally seated abruptly. The staff seemed annoyed with us, but we tried to make light of the situation, jokingly mentioning that we should get free mimosas. Instead of an apology or any acknowledgment of the poor experience, we were told that being on the waitlist didn't guarantee a specific time—BUT I would like to point out we were not communicated that we were still on a waitlist and were told that our table was ready - this is not the same thing.

Throughout this ordeal, no manager came to address our concerns, leaving us to deal with the front-of-house staff, who clearly had no authority to handle the situation. While I wasn’t the birthday person and have done my best to recount this accurately, I didn’t want to upset her by making her relive it. The food was delicious, but definitely not worth waiting over an hour for, especially with such poor communication and management. We felt like a burden rather than valued guests. For a restaurant that automatically adds gratuity for large parties, they seem surprisingly unconcerned about customer satisfaction.

Overall, food was great, but I would not ever wait for it because even if they say it will be two minutes it could be an hour. If they had told us outright what was happening none of us would have been angry with them. I would not go here with a group larger than 2...

I met a friend here for brunch, and all I can say is WOW - What an incredible experience! The space was beautiful, the service was exceptional and the food was absolutely amazing.

As soon as you walk in the space, it is friendly and inviting, with a very relaxing, "Sunday afternoon" vibe. It is filled with plants, art, and beautiful finishings all around. There are two gorgeous plush pink chairs in the front waiting area greeting you as you walk in. For seating, there are many table and booth options throughout the restaurant. I also loved that they have an open kitchen, so you can watch the magic happen.

The menu has a wide variety of offerings, without being too overwhelming. There are so many interesting flavour options, and both sweet and savoury items. It was very hard to pick, as everything sounded (and looked!) so delicious. We both opted for eggs benedict - one with bacon, and one with spinach - as well as a coffee and a latte. The coffee was rich and deep in flavour, as was the latte.

As for the eggs benny.. wow! Perfectly cooked eggs, perfect hollandaise, delicious, buttery toast as a base and a nice thick cut of bacon. The spinach benny was creamy and flavourful as well! We both opted for a side salad, and it was indescribably good. It had SO much depth of flavour - citrusy and light and refreshing, with a perfect balance of mixed greens, fruit and seeds. The portions were just right.

The service was friendly and attentive, from the hostess table to the servers. It was absolutely buzzing inside - a bit loud with how busy it was, but still possible to have a conversation. It is somewhere your mom would love, and you could go with your girlfriends for a perfect brunch. As a plus, everything is very reasonably priced, especially for its prime location on 17 Avenue S.W.

After brunch, you can head to the back of the restaurant to shop for plants or cute gift items, and grab a little treat from the coffee counter.

Absolute 10/10 must try. I can't wait to go back, so I can try everything else...