Hope Breakfast Bar - Eagan — Restaurant in Eagan

I wanted to love this place so much! It has so much potential....

After arriving on time for our breakfast reservation for two, we were seated promptly. Then waited and waited and waited for someone to notice us. A hostess had dropped menus at our table, but nobody had greeted us, brought waters, or asked if we wanted coffee. We tried to make eye contact with servers rushing by, but we were invisible. I made my way to the hostess stand after about 7 minutes of sitting there wondering. The server then appeared.

Unlimited coffee is $6 which seemed steep, so I ordered an Americano. It was served hot, delivered quickly and was very enjoyable. The highlight of my meal.

My husband ordered the granola bowl and was extremely satisfied. I ordered the Hope Breakfast with eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast- pretty standard but usually delicious. Due to some dairy sensitivities, I confirmed that the hash browns were indeed dairy free and asked if the toast could be delivered without butter. The server agreed.

The Hope Breakfast was delivered with 1 of the 2 pieces of bacon nearly raw. The 2nd piece was perfect. The server agreed to exchange the raw piece for me which was done. The bacon, when cooked correctly, was so delicious. The eggs included chives- as someone who doesn't love chives, I had wished this was disclosed on the menu. I know the chef was likely aiming to add some color to the presentation, but the chives were incredibly strong. Hash browns were well seasoned. At first the toast seemed to have no butter but once I turned it over, there was butter on the underside. I asked the server whether she could ask the kitchen for a different slice- she confirmed and said that while she had entered the ticket for no butter that there was a mistake and she would bring me a new slice. The new slice was delivered barely toasted at all and mostly like a piece of bread- the server knew it was likely not acceptable, as I was asked if I wanted them to run in through again. Frustrating. If it's worth asking if it's going to be a problem, she should have just requested to have it re-toasted before delivering. I accepted it as is since I wanted to finish my meal.

The server seemed embarrassed by the mistakes from the kitchen and proactively requested to have the Hope Breakfast removed from our check. We were asked if the manager had stopped by. He hadn't- he came by as we were packing up and didn't really apologize for the issues but basically said he heard there were issues so removed the meal from our check and hoped we would return. No ownership for the issues, no promise to talk to the kitchen, nothing that would help me feel like it would be worth my time to return.

Definitely disappointed. I know this is a popular spot. It's possible we'll try it again, but it is definitely not high on my list given our experience and attempt at...

This place definitely is going through some major growing pains! I have been to their St. Paul location many times and always had good experiences. This new Eagan location was very disappointing and completely different than my past experiences.

Atmosphere: First the hostess pushed us to sit at the "bar" instead of sitting on the patio or at a normal table. We agreed but regret making this concession. The "bar" was actually a bar-height table that is positioned just outside the open-air kitchen. While dining you are forced to look directly into the kitchen and it is a very busy and loud atmosphere. Hard to have a conversation with someone sitting right next to you. The entire restaurant is very loud and could use some sound-deadening pads mounted on the ceiling to quiet it down. Sounds like you are in a club like some other reviews have mentioned.

Service: I understand that space is a limitation at this new location and I am guessing that is why the owners chose to have people sit at the bar right next to the kitchen. One consequence that comes with this layout decision is that patrons can see everything that happens in the kitchen and can keep close tabs on when things are not going right. For example, we noticed one of our plates sitting on the warming rack for a long time (10 minutes to be exact) before the second plate was put out and eventually brought to our table.

We witnessed people next to us cleaning their own table because the hostess directed them to sit at the bar before it was bussed and cleaned. Our waitress was overall inattentive and seemed to have more tables than she could handle. She did not check on us or offer refills until we were done eating. I had to get up and seek out a side of ketchup on my own. We waited an excessive time for a box for leftovers and to receive our bill.

Price/value: Paying for our bill was done on a handheld card reader. It was easy but I felt that the recommended tip percentages were very high, especially with how poor the service was. The lowest tip option is 20% then 25% then 30%.

Overall: I like the vision and culture of this restaurant group, I just think the Eagan location was rushed to open before it was ready. Brian and Sarah I hope you read this review and take some of my constructive criticism to action with your Eagan location. I think it will get to the same operating level as St. Paul but has a very...

At this point I'm happy enough to say we've finally used up our gift cards to use here, The Apostle and The Gnome. None of the 3 places live up to the supposed quality culinary experience they should be. Are they horrible? No. But mid (otherwise called, "mediocre") is the best that can be said. We stood in the cold entryway of HBB in Eagan for several minutes with no clear idea that a host was working the front. Once she did appear she was good. We sat for several minutes before our waiter appeared. Once he did appear he was great. We mentioned how cold it was inside to the surprise of the hostess. It was very chilly in there. Many still had their coats on and even a few winter caps were being worn. While the place is new, and modern looking, the acoustics are such that if you have any hearing issue you will probably have trouble hearing the people you are with. We noticed (as we did at the gnome) that service carts were left by the bar area and workers were using this area to prepare silverware, etc... Before we left, at least 3 workers were doing stocking, cleaning, etc... to prepare for closing while the restaurant would still be open for at least another hour. The food....Very average. The reliance on hash browns as the filler for most of the meals is very uninspired, boring and not appealing. I had the chili which was simply decent. Not much different than I could get in a can at the grocery store. I will give them props for good biscuits, though. I asked for honey. They ran out. How do you run out of a simple staple like that? There is a menu item called pork carnitas bowl. The woman next to me wanted that but they were out of carnitas. This location does not do tap beer but it is listed on the menu. It's simply not that special, trust me. The staff needs better training as in greeting guests much more quickly, and service tasks and carts should not be left in the dining area. The menu needs some updating for sure. I've visited the St. Paul location as well and had the same impression there. If we didn't have gift cards to use up we probably would not...