Homemade — Restaurant in Virginia

Fiance and I ate here while waiting for our vehicle to be serviced nearby.

First impressions upon entering was the place felt like it had just opened, despite being open for 7-8 months, if reviews are anything to go by. Place doesn't feel 'lived in'. It feels sterile, 'manicured', even and like it was decorated exclusively with decor from home goods, even down to a plaque with text akin to 'live, laugh, love'.

In hind sight, we should've just left as soon as we saw the menu. Grossly overpriced considering the portion sizes, ingredients and preparation.

Charging 5$ for watered down coffee feels like a crime. It was hot, not excessively so, but utterly devoid of body or flavor. Cheap tactic often used by restaurant owners to stretch their grounds as far as possible.

We paid 5$ for canned soda Which wouldn't be a big deal, if a 12 pack of canned sodas wasn't 7$ at the nearby grocery stories(excluding Giant). The markup here is astronomical, and feels more like I'm buying a drink from a bar instead of a place touting itself as a 'homemade breakfast' joint.

I paid 16$ for a tiny omelette. The food was delicious, though my fiance's scrambled eggs were overcooked and dry. 25$ per person for a simple breakfast is absolutely ludicrous.

But this is where I basically say that I am not the target demographic, if this resturaunt's proximity to the wealthier neighborhoods along rt 3 is anything to go off. Its for older, wealthier folks with no financial literacy to realize they're being basically robbed at gunpoint.

The service was exceptional. Our wait-staff were attentive, patient and kind. They were all well put together, and were actively keeping the place tidy while we ate.

They do offer delivery through the usual services, and the location is easy to get to, with generous parking.

They do offer outdoor seating, though we elected to eat indoors as the morning sun was a bit warm for our tastes.

Both the inside and outside dining areas were spotless, and extremely well maintained. As mentioned above, the atmosphere feels lifeless and uninspired. The book wall is cute, but I'm just imagining all that paper being ruined with grease over time.

If you're like me, and looking for good breakfast to feed the soul that isn't going to cost you your next utility bill, try Metro instead. Bit of a longer drive down Rt 3, toward downtown, but well worth it, in value, atmosphere and service. I cannot recommend this place, even if the food was generally tasty. Just not tasty enough to make me willing to drop a third of my grocery bill on it again.

But if you're wealthy and financially illiterate, enjoy paying for overpriced, watered down coffee, cans of soda they paid less than 60 cents a can for at most.

To the owners: Consider reducing the prices of your dishes, where possible, by 10-15%. I know its expensive to run a restaurant, and I can't imagine how high the rent is for that unit. But you'll have a far easier time making rent if your dishes are even slightly more affordable. An omelette with 3 whole slices of sausage in it shouldn't cost more than 10-11$ at most.

To the wait staff: You guys are doing great. Keep it up.

To other patrons: If I seem harsh, its because the economy sucks and while I want to support local businesses because that's how the economy sucks, its easier to do when its made more accessible...

Great environment, nice touch on the bookshelf, mixed environment, and relaxed. My wife and I ordered breakfast and we both enjoyed it very much. Honeslty, there was nothing to complain about. We'd go back. If you go, know it seems past 11am people begin to queue up. They close at 2:30pm, so plan accordingly if you want to enjoy a meal.

I wish this restaurant well. I hope they maintain their quality and service. This spot is a great compliment to Basilico next door. It nice to have them near without having to drive to Central Park area too.

About the bookshelf: great idea to turn the books around. I asked the server, 'why not show the book end so people can peruse the book titles?' and I was told in so many words it was so people could not judge the books by their covers. That made me laugh at the concept. It was on point. All I could say was that's as it should be, especially when it comes to people. Though the server admitted not knowing for certain this was the intent, it was the perfect response. 👌

May 24, 2024 Update. Changed rat8ng from 5 to 1. Today my wife and daughter visited the restaurant, and she told me they waited more than 10 minutes and were never approached by a server to even ask them if they'd like a glass of water.

It wasn't that the restaurant was super busy. In fact, another group of patrons came in after them, were seated, and within minutes were offered service.

My wife says the servers even looked their way and weren't acknowledged. They left. No one even bothered.

My wife and daughter are black. It's unfortunate to say this, because, despite having others patrons of different races in the establishment in the same moment, it appears race could've played a part as the patrons that came after were white.

Take a gander why our last visit could've been such a positive experience.

At either rate, we will no patronize this restaurant if it's like this. We'll take our business solely to Basilico. At least they know...

This Place Is Brand New, They Are Not A Chain Or Franchise, Its A Small Business, With Amazing Food, Well This Was My First Time Going, But What I Ate Was Words Cant Express, I Got The Eggs Benedict With Sausage Instead Of Canadian Bacon, & OMG Best Breakfast I Ever Had In My Entire Time On This Earth. The Potatos/Homefries Were So Fresh (Not Dry) Tasted like If I Had Just Made Them At Home Myself, The Eggs Sausage, Muffin, An Hollandaise Sauce Was Out Of This Wourld, The Eggs Were Perfectly Poached, That Hollandaise Sauce Was Better Than Any Ive Ever Tasted, You Got A Healthy Portion Of Everything, Was Very Filling, I was So Hungry When I Went In, Was Contemplating Ording 2 Meals But Was Full By The Time I Was Done With The Eggs Benedict, Add In A Glass Of Delicious Orange Juice And Bam, The Perfect Breakfast To Start The Day, I Cant Wait To Go Back And Try More, They Are Only Open For Breakfast & Lunch, 8am - 2:30pm So When You Can Find Time To Go, I Highly Recommend It. The Fact That They Are Not A Chain Or Franchise Makes Them Even Better, They Are. A Unique, Place & How Lucky We Are That Their Only Location Is Here With Us. Theres Not Enough Small Businesses/Family Owned Non Franchise Restaurants Around Anymore, Everything Is Becomeing A Repetetive Chain With The Same Boring Food That Gets Lost In Quality, The Best Way I Can Describe Homemade, Is Like Farm To Table, Even Though Its Only My First Meal There It Tasted Like Everything Was Picked Right From The Farm/Garden Outside An Cooked To Perfection, The Dish Needed Nothing Extra Added It Was Seasoned Perfectly. So Please Go Support Small Business, You Wont Be...