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Mon. 8:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Tue-Wed. 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Thu-Sat. 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 a.m.
Sun. 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
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I'm cautiously giving a review after one visit, but... that's 'cuz it was so good it brought tears to my eyes.
SERVICE: We went around 10pm on a Friday night, so it wasn't jammed with the brunch crowd, and our Hipster Waitress #1 was very attentive. Up until the end, when we couldn't find her, but when I found Hipster Waitress #2 at the bar she was very friendly and offered to cash us out until HW #1 showed up (who was still nice and helpful). No shit about our half-cash, half-three-credit card payment either. But, backing up...
FOOD: My friend and I each ordered a single pumpkin pancake (turns out the waitress wrote it down as one order of 2, a grand total of $7.50!), the cheese fries, and onion rings. I read a review about the pancakes, in which the author said that although she like pumpkin and Raisinettes, they don't go well together in these pancakes. As someone who also like both pumpkin and Raisinettes, I say - LIES!!!! These are the best pancakes! Granted, they may be a kind of nasty hangover food at 10am, but they are the perfect drunk food at 10pm. Also, since I paid $3.75 and it was big enough for breakfast the next morning, an excellent deal. The cheese fries were great, and the onion rings were... interesting. The batter was - well, I want to say great, but something (maybe mixing it with pancakes?) kept it from being enjoyable for me. It was thick and crispy, and a little sweet and spicy. Definitely an experience. Anyway, all the food was cooked very well and no complaints.
DECOR: Here's where the pomegranate molasses drinks and onion rings meet their digestive match - namely, the horrifying kitsch. I was doing okay with the food, but looking at the one-eyed Buster Brown boy and his rabid dog started making me queasy. Not helped by the adjacent bunion posters and a Mexican Mayor McCheese leering over my shoulder. *Almost* made better by the sparkly vinyl seats, which I must have as the couch in my living room. But next time I will try to find a less-scary corner of Kitschville in which to enjoy my deep-fried-everything.
I LOVE this place. Kuma's Burgers in Chicago is the only other kind of Disgustingly-Good-Schmorgasbord (The Slayer!) restaurant it compares to, and it's a helluva lot closer and less-deafening. I'm still not brave enough to try it at brunch, but for an apres-movie snack-slash-gorge it's top of my list.
"meh" is an accurate beginning.
I was one of the party of 13 in Erica T's review, and I can't really add or detract from that review, it is spot-on. I have been in the service industry for over twenty years, and I have been a waiter, a cocktail waiter, a bartender and a prep cook. Never had an excuse to treat people so poorly.
And no, they do not need a break. I detest people who are gratuitously mean to waitstaff and I ALWAYS give the benefit of the doubt. People have bad days, bad moments, bad tables, bad backs, etc. I'm sure our waitress has had better days. But if that is the case, she needs to learn how to talk to people, a vital facet of being in the service industry.
But we called ahead, we didn't insist on sitting together, we didn't make any demands, and we didn't expect to be served before anyone else. But she came to one table four times before she came to ours the first time. She brought drinks one or two at a time! And not even the fancy ice cream drinks, these were two-ingredient drinks. And my Jameson took at least ten minutes.
I've given worse service, lol, but I've never had anyone leave as unhappy as we left that place that night. If I just can't get it together, it's my job to enlist help to get my work done, whether it's the manager, another waiter, or even the table itself. There's nothing wrong with telling us that you're new or you've never waited on three whole tables before. We would have all been sympathetic and more forgiving, but being greeted with an "Ew" attitude and no effort is unacceptable.
I do not expect five-star service in a place like this, it's way too casual and fun, but damn. At least bring me what I ordered! And please don't roll your eyes at me when I order everything clearly and slowly, and I don't make you ask me how I want my burger, etc. "I want the avocado burger rare, no bun no fries no carbs. Yes, lettuce and tomato are fine, thanks. Extra pickles. Do you have Jameson? Good, Jameson neat. No, no ice... I would like a Diet Coke with my meal, but I would like my Jameson now." And because I knew that she had a bad start, I was deliberate in my delivery, I made sure to not sound condescending. I don't know her, maybe she's a stupendous waiter and just got dumped by a chick with red hair and she's already put off by me?
I never treat people badly before they earn it.
The food was fine, at any rate. I only had the burger, and it was good, but not good enough to make up for the poor attitude and long wait. The waitress was not making drinks, btw. Maybe that happens, but not tonight.
And to charge three separate tables with three separate checks as one party is unacceptable. To act as if having one check per table is somehow an imposition is mystifying - that is how tables generally go.
To that waitress - all you needed to do was to not think about us as one party, and get your chin off the floor. Most of the people at those tables have been where you are, and any of us would have dealt with us differently.
I for one would avoid it permanently unless I was with a small party and in no hurry, and only if I happened to be standing outside and there was nothing else within sight.
I have mixed feelings about the Toast. The service is usually all right, though sometimes the waits are long. The homefries and toast are good, the portions are often overwhelming. Breakfast food a short walk from work is insanely tempting. The decor seems to be going for the gold at the kitsch olympics, which is a nifty gimmick at first but gets old after a few visits. Certainly plenty of creative food: The selection of sandwiches, the cocktails named after Hitchcock movies, the King Cakes (excessive, but worth having once)...
My recommendation: Go with friends, go when you're not in a hurry, go when you want to pull out all the stops on your meal. Well worth trying.
Went there this past Saturday for breakfast and the food was good. I ordered the pumpkin pancake and my boyfriend got the french toast and a side of bacon. When you go make sure you specify how many pieces of french toast and pancakes you want. When we ordered we didn't and we got one pancake and one piece of french toast. The french toast was definitely not enough food for my bf. I felt terrible and kept offering to get something else but he passed. The bacon was really over cooked too...
Also. the service could have been a little better. I asked for a coffee when I first sat down and didn't get it until our food came out after reminding the waitress a couple times.
Overall a good place to check out.
The Friendly Toast is the type of establishment that warms your heart. It's family run and exudes a special kind of love. From the hand picked unique kitschy items decorating the walls to the food cooked up sometimes by owner Melissa Jasper herself, it's everything I could want in an independently run establishment. It seems that many folks reviewing the Toast are comparing them to slickly run chain restaurants. It's quirks are it's charm and it's short comings are opportunities for growth. In the end the food is fantastic, the ownership eager to please and the atmosphere is laid back and homey. If you visited them in the first few months I recommend giving them another try. If you haven't visited yet, they are hitting their stride and will no doubt impress.
Long live the Toast!
As one who is often out the night before, simply too sleepy to eat breakfast, and probably had to get up early to go sing for a Higher Being on a Sunday I have strong feelings about Brunch. Opined, passionate, hungry ones, even.
After a few visits to the 'Toast I have to say that it's pretty okay: it doesn't win on everything -- but who does with a menu that extensive?
(Psst. Sorella's.)
Our last visit produced a floppy Belgian waffle with a side of burnt-to-the-crisp bacon, a much more appetizing breakfast burrito and homefries, and pancakes with M&Ms. I think, out of the three of us, that the burrito was by far the best choice -- especially with its killer lime avocado sauce. The fluffy pancakes ran a close second place, too.
Even with the midday crowds our server was attentive and didn't hurry us out of there. We lingered for nearly three hours.
Bottom line: if you're going to the 'Toast for the kitsch and diner aesthetic, you'd better be prepared for diner-quality food. It's all right (and the toast did look pretty appetizing), but can be enjoyed for a lower price elsewhere.
I have to give this place 3 stars-- because sometimes you go and it's great and sometimes you go and it's horrible. The first 3-4 times, we went and the food was AMAZING but the service was BEYOND horrible... and i think we may have waited close to an hour for our meal those times. (we went right when they opened so we excused the poor service...then gave it another shot becuase the food is great, then another, then another.) I'm not quite sure why we kept going back, but it could be because the food is the best breakfast food around. The last few times the service and food delivery time was a lot better... so I'm not really sure if it's hit or miss.
The Ole Miss and the green eggs and ham are my favorites!
I was so disappointed. No wait, let me back up. I'll start with what I liked. I liked the food. I had the Kitchen Sink Quesadilla & Shrimp and it was good. My complaint is that the sauce was laid out prettily in circles on it... but there was nothing to dip. Everyone else in our party liked the large portions and their food as well. The drinks weren't outstanding, but they weren't bad either.
The clincher on why I only gave two stars was the service. There was simply no excuse for it. I've worked as a waitress before, and currently work in the service industry. The first words out of your mouth should be a greeting, not "So, uh, how many are in your party? Cuz there's a lot of you and it's really confusing." We walked in with a party of 13, with an additional two who had a small table saved. There was a large nearby booth opening up and I asked if we could fit and the hostess said yes and that we could seat ourselves (because they would otherwise be unable to accommodate us). We ended up with a third table that just so happened to be cleared as we made to sit down. We asked for separate table checks which seemed to be asking a lot and the server told us that it made her stressed between our party size and check request (their policy is no splitting checks on parties of over 6; PITA when more than one person is using a card). Well after that, we were flat out ignored. She visited the other tables in our party (less than 6 each at the tables) TWICE EACH before coming to ours to even take our drink order, where we had 6 people. And why is 6 the magic number? Oh that's the when an automatic 20% gratuity gets tacked on. So, thanks for ignoring us now that you know you've got your tip and we can't deny you for bad service.
Despite thinking I might just be better off going across the courtyard to Flattop's I stuck it out. My friend ordered a Jameson neat "now" (to which the waitress replied oh well not until I can get to the bar--excuse me??) but that she's like a coke when her burger with no bun arrived. What do you know, a burger with a bun arrived and no coke. When we did get alcoholic drinks, my drink had obviously been sitting awhile (most of the pop rocks melting onto the rim), and the waitress couldn't tell the difference between a gin & tonic and a speciality drink with lime in it (practically stuck her nose in it to smell despite the fact they're two different colors and garnished differently!) and just "auctioned off" the items rather than remembering who ordered what. She did not make the drinks (as noted in another review) as there was a dedicated bartender on duty.
So we get through our meal completely ignored save one "so, uh, how is everything?" and then finally, the bill drop when we attempted to talk to people we knew at other tables.
We calculated down to the penny exactly how much each of us owed her so we didn't give her any more tip that we absolutely had to. If it were up to me, she'd have gotten less than a 10% tip for her terrible service-- and I typically tip particularly well because I know how hard it is to waitress. It's no excuse for a shoddy, lackluster performance just because tip is automatically included. And speaking of tip included-- she charged at least one of the other tables that was associated with us the 20% gratuity despite their table/check only having 4 people.
So in all, the food was good but the service was terrible. And not in the I'm trying but I'm in the weeds terrible (totally forgivable and if anything, deserving of a higher tip), it was in the I'm going to bitch to my coworkers in plain sight and then whine at my customers kind of terrible. I see no reason to go back.
I've visited The Friendly Toast twice now, and been moderately impressed both times. The first time they were pretty packed (on a Friday, as I recall), and tonight they were completely empty. I suppose the World Series being on didn't help anything.
Due to the emptiness tonight, service was pretty quick, if a little inattentive. The music was up way higher than it needed to be, given the lack of customers.
I pretty much love the kitch-y ness of it all, but it could be done in a less gimmicky fashion.
So, the important part: the food.
I was surprisingly pleased with the spinach dip--light, not super oily, a little lime-y, perhaps. It almost tasted...healthy. Oh, and there was enough for 4+ people. I think we might have finished a third of it between the two of us.
My BLT with veggie bacon (facon) was exactly was I was hoping for, despite the lack of rye or sourdough bread. (The whole wheat is healthier anyway, right?)
The veggie burger is nothing to write home about. You have the option of one or two black bean patties--and getting two isn't what I'd recommend. It was a little like eating a burrito encased in bread, and I finished maybe half of it. The fries were unmemorable.
Finally, I got a chocolate shake. It came in the metal container, which I appreciated--no skimping there. However, despite arriving in record time, it was runny as hell. Didn't exactly seem of the hand-scooped variety. I've had better shakes at Carl's Jr.
That said, I'd go back--it's in a good location--but for the $, you could do better.
Over.
Hyped.
I've been here, I've waited with the rest of the suckers and I've paid the overly high costs as well and apparently I'm missing something. Yeah, it's kitschy and they serve booze and eggs but what does that matter when they can't seem to do either in a timely or remotely organized fashion?
The place is super cute and fun to look at but when there are eleventy billion people in there you can't really check out the walls all you can do is attempt to not be in the way. Fun! Menu is fairly expansive and has some interesting options but sadly nothing I've had here really stood out. The massive slices of toast I've had are pretty good, there's that. Oh, and the Bloody Mary, though gray, was delicious. Otherwise I wouldn't go out of my way for the food.
What I will say is that the Friendly Toast has inspired the other restaurants in the area to open their doors for brunching as well and for that I am eternally grateful. So, I'm glad to have them in the neighborhood if for nothing more than reminding people that breakfast food + alcohol = awesome.
Why did I think that somehow my experience would have been different from the other Yelp reviewers??
The service here is SO SO SO SLOWWWWWWWWWWWWWW.
And I don't even think it was my waitress' fault. She was clearly a very competent woman. But for some reason she took forever to service our table of four. The managers need to have more waiters and cooks on staff for a Saturday night! When you have EMPTY tables and people waiting to be seated for more than 3 minutes, something is wrong.
Otherwise the place wasn't bad. The decorations are adorable, and if you have boring friends or a quiet date you can keep yourself entertained by looking at all the old fifties stuff tacked on the walls.
I expected the food to be slightly above Denny's level, but it was surprisingly gourmet and executed with precision. Our quesadilla had intricate sauce patterns and cute little shrimp on top. And the portion sizes of the entree's were extreme! Like my "Guy's Scramble", composed of black beans, avocados, and eggs would have fed at least three people. Some items, like the Frappe's were just average and not worth the caloric hit.
So the reason this place gets two stars is because I've indeed experienced better. The Friendly Toast has novelty value, but I see no reason to go back to it again.
It's a cute place. The food was okay. I want to at least somewhat like it but I can't. We went here because someone in our group really really wanted American food. It was okay American food. Definitely not nearly as American as it should be in terms of prices and services and whatnot.
First, the service was rather slow. Like, exceptionally slow. Like, there were two tables in the place and it still took us over ten minutes to flag down our waiter to give him money. Ordering took even longer. That caused several of us to be late to various things afterwards.
The food was definitely not cheap. However it also doesn't taste like it should be that expensive. The menu options are really limited for a diner-type place. Like, really limited. They have sandwiches, burritos, burgers, breakfast and that's about it for entrees. Pretty sad.
Some of the food items are pretty unique, like the breakfast scramble I had. But it was overpriced, kinda bland and wasn't too scrambled so there were globs where I didn't even taste some of the ingredients.
It does serve booze. But I didn't have any since I had a long day and had to drive after dinner.
Meh.
Their toast was good though. Friendly, and good. But way too goddamn slow.
As we wait, and wait, and wait for our simple orders, I hum to myself, "Time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping, into the future," and think about all of the other things I could be doing. Knitting a scarf. Cleaning out the attic. Hiking up Mount Washington.
I have seldom experienced such long delivery times for a meal. I hope and expect it to be worthy of this torture but my falafel is bland and sawdust dry, the onion rings have absolutely no taste at all and the sweet potato fries are nothing special, yet they are the best part of the meal.
The people who work here on the days I have been sitting and waiting ever so patiently have been expressionless and downright UNfriendly.
It's a cute, colorful place and the menu is extensive. Let's hope they put some new energy and enthusiasm into the Friendly Toast experience. Next time I come, I'll bring a copy of War and Peace so I have something to read while I wait.
I was pretty excited to go for brunch at the friendly toast and I was not disappointed. I had a banana pancake that was amazing. There were banana's inside and it was so huge that I could only eat a little more than half. Tip and tax for my pancake and OJ came to about 8 dollars, which is not bad IMO. My friends had hot chocolate which looked amazing and really made me wish I'd ordered a mug.
My server was decent but extremely inattentive. We waited over 10 minutes to get the bill when it was obvious we were done eating. She only had three tables which were seated well(i.e. not all at once) but she couldn't keep up. & everyone is right about the crappy attitudes the employees have there. The host practically galloped over to our table and threw the silverware down before striding off; all before we even sat down.
I really enjoyed the kitschy feel inside and it made the wait a little more bearable. However, the wait was still pretty ridiculous. Also they seated 2 people out of a party of 8! I'm a hostess myself and one of the basic rules of hosting is that you don't seat until at least half or more of the party arrives. Plus, those 2 people wouldn't even order!
If I go back again I'll probably just sit at the bar. That way I won't have to interact with as many employees.
So I've been here a few times for brunch and I just need to know, where did they advertise for waitstaff because ALL of them seem to be from the same exact same hipster/indie mold. It's kind of weird and would maybe be a bit cooler if the service were actually better. I don't know if the staff is inexperienced or if they don't have enough people scheduled, but the waitstaff always seems flustered and well...scarce.
The food is decent. I really like some of their scrambles and there are a ton of things I would love to try, but I don't know if I can handle making another trip here. It just takes too long and if you don't come early enough on the weekends, you'll have to wait a while for a table making the whole experience drag out even longer.
I also have to add that I really detest their homefries. They seem bland and never quite cooked enough, but my boyfriend loves them, so it might just be me.
This was sadly just not my kind of place. I really wanted to like it, but I just couldn't. To start with the overabundance of kitsch decorating the place was too uniform and creepy (where and who buys all that shite?) I think you could get away with it in a small cafe, but in a cavernous space, it just didn't work.
Food was fine. It was a huge amount, so I had two meals for the price of one. But I also felt like there was a need to over-impress. I just wanted simple English breakfast tea and instead got this weird pot of twigs and spices that tasted awful. It was tough to find things on the menu that weren't just simple and straight up. And the wheat toast I had--although fluffy, thick, and homemade; had the texture of white bread.
Our waitress was perky and fast. Alas, its so busy here this is not the place to linger. We arrived late in the afternoon and were seated within 10 minutes, so I guess there's a sweet spot of times to get seated faster...
My friend and I went to Friendly Toast this morning. Since it was pouring outside we figured the wait wouldn't be too long. We waited longer than they claimed it would take, and then it was 10 minutes before we had a server. When she arrived we ordered (one pumpkin pancake and an omelet). It was 45 minutes before we got our food. I asked for the potato cheese bread but was pretty sure I got plain bread..still delicious but there was zero flavor. The pancake tasted amazing and the omelet was just as good. Service needs improvement though.
EDIT: I went back the next day with another friend because she wanted to try Friendly Toast. Oddly enough we waited longer (45 minutes) than the day before even though the waiting area was way less crowded than it was Saturday. Our server was very attentive and friendly, better than the first server I had. Again, really delicious food and well worth the wait! I'm bumping it up to 3 stars.
OK folks, let's boil this down to the essential thing that sets The Friendly Toast apart: they serve food until 1 a.m. on Fri & Sat nights. Where else does that happen in Cambridge or Boston?
So there we were, hungry in Cambridge on a Saturday night after watching our friends' band play in a smoke-choked basement (perhaps a case of second-hand munchies?). Food options: slim to none. Until my friend remembered that The Friendly Toast serves food until 1 a.m. on weekends. Bless their kitschy little hearts. I had an orange-vanilla milkshake that was a) enormous and b) delicious. My friend got a quesadilla filled with pepper, sweet potato and some other stuff that was quite tasty.
Hardly anyone else was in the restaurant so we had no problem securing a table. And we had no complaints about the service, but since we were practically the only customers I guess that's hardly surprising. The decor, whatever -- I've seen studied kitsch done too many times over the years (and done better) to be impressed with TFT's attempt at arch nostalgia. THE IMPORTANT THING is that when we arrived at 11:35 we were seated and handed menus, and then within a reasonable span of time the food that we ordered was delivered. And it was pretty darned good!
I'm going to have to agree with everyone else here when they say the service here is SLOW. There were only 4 tables seated in the restaurant, and our breakfast took 20+ minutes to come out. And, it wasn't until we were at least halfway through our meal that our waiter decided to come over to see how everything was. Other than that, everything was decent.
Huge portions, decent prices, good menu selection, HOT coffee. A-OK.
I made a toasty friend today. And it was damned good. Can anyone guess what item I am speaking of?
This place is quirky and all about its moving parts. Props to the waiters and waitresses who can stand being in there all day. I think I would go a little cukoo for cocoa puffs... freaky.
But you know, the food's pretty good. The toast is HUGE. And the prices are typical for Kendall Square. It's harder for kitschy fun diner style places to get away with such high prices versus, say, The Blue Room, or Hungry Mother. Get over there, but leave your kelly green sweater at home.
I wanted to like this place so much! So many people had recommended it and it's been getting a lot of buzz lately. We were going to try it last week but the wait was over an hour, so we passed and went to Masa in Boston, which was reallllly good.
Today we finally made it in. And I have to say, I was pretty disappointed. We didnt have any problems with the service being slow, our waitress was awesome, but I just wasnt a fan of the food. My eggs benedict were probably the worst Ive had. My boyfriend's huevos rancheros were definitely better, but the home fries were awful, and my water tasted kind of eggy. ? (I noticed this before our food had come out).
There are tons of better, cleaner places to have brunch for the same price if not less in Cambridge/Boston/Somerville. This is really just not worth the wait.
I might consider going back if some of my friends want to try it, and maybe try the pancakes, but I'd rather not.
The Friendly Toast. . . has friendly service! P A I N F U L L Y S L O W service but friendly none-the-less. The kicker regarding my trip here and its correlation to our service was that it was 10:30 pm, and there were only 1 - 2 other tables seated at the time. I'm not sure what was holding things up. . . but it gave me the time to take in the sights placed around the restaurant.
Enjoyed sitting on my Emerald City inspired chair made out of sparkled dark green material. Large menu with lots of unique items to choose from. Being a fan of breakfast out at any time of the day I decided to go with the "Basic Breakfast" that included 2 eggs, homefries (flavored with onions and spices, making them very spicy!), and homemade oatmeal toast. Nothing amazing, but it hit the spot!
What was most disappointing out of the meal was having to change a few choices due to a lack of the ingredients in the kitchen. Can I have an Amaretto Cocoa? Nope. . . out of the syrup. Can I have a bowl of chowder? Nope. . . all out. Can I have a Miller Lite? YES, but I'm going to forget to give it to you. That's how the situation played out at our group table.
Interesting space, mediocre service, decent food. At least the beer was taken off the bill for being delivered so late. Perhaps I'll give this place another try in the future. . . its hard to say no to breakfast food late at night!
This is likely one of many reviews (woohoo updates feature!) of this place, cause their menu is soooo huge I'll be going back for more.
We went on a Monday at around 1pm, so the place was pretty empty. It gets insanely packed on weekends so try to hit it up at night (breakfast all day!) or during the week; or, at least, prepare yourself for a massive wait and try not to let it affect your experience negatively. I probably wouldn't wait more than an hour for this place, but it's definitely worth going to.
Right, so the menu. Definitely something for everyone - I didn't even get past the breakfast menu! The pumpkin pancakes (with raisinets!!) were FANTASTIC, while the drunken french toast wasn't. PS - if you're wondering why one pancake seems to be so expensive, know that they're ENORMOUS (and fantastic). I literally took half of it home and had it the next day :) My boyfriend seemed to enjoy his eggs benedict, the breakfast staple by which he judges all breakfast joints. I've heard rave reviews from a friend about the Ole Miss - cheddar jalepeno bread, chipotle mashed sweet potatoes, sausage patty, scrambled eggs, mango sour cream, homefries. GAH I want to go back NOW. Their homefries are WICKED tasty.
A bit of a walk (5 min maybe?) from the Kendall T, it's a fun atmosphere with lots of kitsch, and really friendly wait-staff. Definitely worth checking out, and worth a return trip.
I adore the kitsch -- done often, but rarely as thoroughly or colorfully.
Went on a Wed pm after a movie at KSC, so it was about 10:30 - had ginormous mint brownie dessert explosion. Three of us worked on it, but it still won. It was HUGE. Giant amazing brownie, with chocolate ice cream, whipped cream, and cream de menthe on top. I was sad to leave remnants on the plate, but there was no way around it.
Friend had a burrito, other friend had a flavored cocoa. Service speed was fine.
Can't wait to go back.
My friends and I gathered at the bar. We were kept thoroughly entertained by walls lined with pulp fiction book covers and counter tops filled with mahjong tiles and fake product ads such as "Peter Pain" peanut butter and "Fish-Bone" Russian dressing while waiting for our food.
Led by information in the Boston Globe, I had to try the pumpkin pancake with chocolate-covered raisinets. It still sounds weird to say it, but WOW - so tasty! The amount of pumpkin and spice was just right, not overpowering at all. The raisinets were a nice addition. Perfect fountain cherry coke made the whole "diner" experience quite authentic.
Our friend had the chorizo burrito and said she really enjoyed the flavors and spiciness. Golden crisp fries and wicked crunchy Guinness-battered onion rings were passed about and enjoyed as well.
The very friendly waitress said that this location has been open for about 4 months - an offshoot of the Portsmouth restaurant which has been running for about 10 years. I'm glad they're accessible now and cannot wait for a return trip!
I really really wish I could give this place 4 stars but let's be honest, the service is so painfully slow and unnecessary, it really can't merit a "yay" rating. I love the kitsch, love the fact that you can have brunch and there's a full bar available, and their coffee even comes with soy milk, if you manage to flag a waiter down within the 40 years it takes to find a wait person.
I really enjoy their menu selection, though not so much the prices. I've gone here several times during busy and very non-busy hours, and the service is always the same. Last time I even had to go ask a hostess if there was a wait person available!
I sound like a snob, I know, but I mostly go out for brunch for the leisurely experience, not to be annoyed at having to wait for someone to notice my existence.
Let's start with I love brunch. I have been to the Portsmouth friendly toast a couple of times over the years. It's fun and it has good food. This location is OK.
We were going to be a party of eight on a Sunday at 11 am. I know they don't take reservations but I called and asked them to put my name on the waiting list over the phone and let me know how long the wait would be. The person said that they don't take "call aheads" I being a person who does not accept the word "no" said that it would behoove them as a business to put our name on the list and tell us when to show up instead of all eight of us crowding their waiting area for 40 minutes. The person agreed and put our name on the list.
We walked in just as they were calling out name which worked out great. The food was good. There being 8 of us out table tried a lot of the Brunch items and the food was good. The service was very slow and in my opinion the prices are a little steep.
The best part of my meal was my very spicy Bloody Mary but it was served without a celery stick or olive. I wouldn't have known this except later others people at my table ordered bloody mary's and theirs came with celery and olives. I pointed this out to the waitress who replied "Oh I must have brought it to you before it was done" She then brought me a celery stick and an olive on the side.
after reading so many posts of this new cambridge location, and my boyfriend's existing bias towards their new hampshire location, i was wary of coming here. however, i love diners, and in the end, my curiosity of diner breakfast food around the corner where i can roll out of bed and get fed won out.
to prevent encountering the common complaints of bad service, we arrived at 10am to the bustling location. because sitting at a table would be a 15 minute wait, we sat at the bar, which we usually prefer to anyway when dining. the bar was lined with old school mah jong tiles, and i couldn't stop reading the silly play on old school trademark ads. the problem with coming earlier on a sunday is no bloody marys or any other alcoholic beverage until 11am. ahh...puritan laws...it's for the best, in my case, as i had also brought along study materials.
what was interesting was the vibe. recall that we are sitting at the bar. it seemed more like a coffee house at the front of the restaurant, where people would order a coffee from the bar and find some random place to sit. the counter behind the bar was full of people sipping their coffee. there was a lounge as well. when we first arrived, we thought we could sit outside, as there were so many people hanging out there as well. when we left, the outside patio area was packed and overflowing with people waiting for their tables.
when we examined the menu, it turns out to be quite extensive. breakfast consists of two densely packed pages of pancakes, waffles, cereal and eggs. eggs with tofu, eggs with black beans and avocado done many different ways, eggs benedict, egg salmon benedict...you name it, they have it, except anything to satisfy my craving for corned beef hash. no matter -- i ordered the "sklarmageddon," a formidable omelette filled with sausage, bacon, ham and cheese. i should have added some greens to it...but that would defeat the purpose.
the food came out about 40 minutes later unceremoniously served on plastic plates heaped with food with their one-inch thick bread. the food was excellent and i would come back to its convenient location to try their other plates and smoothies, but the amount of time for the food to come out has me a little apprehensive as i have no patience for the slow.
I'm surprised this place has a relatively low overall rating. I understand that the wait can be long for weekend brunch and the service is not the best ever, but I think the selection of food makes up for it. I have been searching for a good breakfast place in the Boston area ever since moving here and most places have disappointed me. I like pancakes and french toast, but few places have anything unique on the menu. If I want plain, Bisquick quality pancakes, I'll make them myself. The Friendly Toast has a great selection of delicious concoctions, like pumpkin pancakes and gingerbread pancakes. I went with the King cakes, which are chocolate and banana filled pancakes with peanut butter smeared in between. They were AMAZING. My boyfriend had the Costa Rica egg dish and ate every last speck.
We went on a Sunday morning around 11:45 and were told the wait would be an hour. To our delight, we were seated in about 30-35 minutes. Though the service wasn't fast, it wasn't painfully slow. We were in and out in about an hour. I will be back, though more likely at an "off" time.
I have to say that I've been back several times now and the service remains painfully slow.
Also, they've stopped taking reservations no longer making this place good for groups.
Oh well.
I was very excited to hear that the Friendly Toast was opening in my city. I had been to the one in… Read more »
I used to go to the NH Friendly Toast, so I was excited that one was coming to MA. After going, my feelings on it are mixed. As some others have mentioned, service there is SO SLOW. Unbelievably so- I have no idea what in the world makes it drag so badly. But the service I had was friendly, so that's good. The food was delicious for the most part- definitely go with anything egg-based. I had the beans and rice and will not order them again. They were inexplicably sweet... so that by the time I had eaten about 1/4 of the plate I couldn't take the flavor anymore.
Overall, I probably won't go back anytime soon. The long lines and seriously slow service will be enough to keep me from trekking over to Kendall Sq. But it's a decent restaurant for once in a while.
I love the toast. Literally, the toast at the 'toast is amazing. I'd head there daily if I lived closer, that said, i'm pretty close. The place gets slammed, so if you're in a rush, consider some place else. If you have a hint of patience, and want to enjoy cheap, quality food, stop bye. I'll probably be there. Keep up the great work, FT
I went for breakfast just after 8 a.m.
I had the huevos rancheros which were tasty and unusual. The homemade bread was exceptional, as were the potatoes. It was more of a playful take on huevos rancheros than the norm: I was surprised that no beans were involved, and having the whole thing on toast was unexpected (but a treat, because of the bread). Also the salsa had a sweetness I associate with Marinara sauce but you get that in the Boston Area I've noticed (I'm from California). I also enjoyed the charming decor -- a cute place. Interesting mugs and cups.
I should say that after reading the reviews above I wasn't expecting much but as it happens I did not experience the slow service, bad attitude, or mediocre food reported in the prior reviews. Maybe the secret is to go when it is not busy, or maybe they've got their act together now?
Having seen The Friendly Toast on Phantom Gourmet and advertised like crazy around Kendall I was stoked to try it out. My roomies and I met up here for a late lunch on a Friday long past the noon rush. There were four of us and we didn't wait more than 5 minutes to be seated, which was probably the highlightof the experience.
I am a breakfast aficionado, but I was surprisingly drawn to the lunch sandwiches and chose the Mr. Haegar: cheddar cheese, tomato, pickles, dijon mustard, horseradish mayo on toasted oatmeal with sweet potato fries. The others at the table had: chocolate shake, Almond Joy pancakes, grilled cheese, egg & cheese and fountain sodas. My sandwich and fries were excellent, the homemade bread is really delicious and the fries were thin, sweet & crispy. I tried my friend's grilled cheese (nothing special) and the Almond Joy pancakes (disappointing). $6 for one pancake should get you one hella pancake, but the extras in this one were lacking and concentrated in the middle and it wasn't that large in general.
I think that the it probably depends on what you order, but overall its too expensive for what you get. As for atmosphere, it took probably close to 45minutes from the time we ordered until we got our food (and it wasn't crowded at all). Take heed of these reviews, if you have to be somewhere and do not have time to spare DO NOT eat here.
Full disclosure: the wait can be interminable, and the service is erratic at best, but I can't in good conscience let the food be overlooked. The Hansel & Gretel waffle is breakfast perfection. The King Cakes officially conquered me, but I'd get back in the ring with the King (and a huge glass of milk) any day. And it's no wonder that the establishment has toast in its name as their homemade bread is spiritually elevating.
I'm a huge fan of their creative sandwiches, onion rings and sweet potato fries as well. If you're on the lookout for a place that serves all types of food at all hours like I am (my husband and contant meal companion is anti-breakfast even at 9 a.m.) this surely fits the bill.
Go during an off-peak time and strap on the feedbag. If you want to be a hater, all the better for me. Move aside so I can have your table.
I was happy to finally find a diner in Boston (who knew?) and The Friendly Toast wasn't disappointing. I got the Almond Joy Pancakes which were HUGE. I would recommend just chocolate chip pancakes- the coconut baked into the batter made the pancakes crumbly, but they were still really good. I would also recommend the hot chocolate (butterscotch was amazing).
Cute diner with a fun atmosphere and a great menu. However, minus one star for insanely slow service. It took us an hour and forty five minutes just to get pancakes and hot chocolate.
Second visit here and I think A-OK sums it up. The food was good and we will definitely be back, but a bit of an attitudinal (is that a word?!) waiter and slow service tainted the experience somewhat.
We had a bit of a wait to even be noticed at the door, despite that the host was actually cleaning tables when we had clearly been standing for a good 5 minutes.
After we ordered our food, we got our drinks. I ordered a fountain diet coke and what I got was really really sweet and syrupy - not like diet at all. I know fountain drinks taste different, but I drink fountain all the time at work and elsewhere and i am a coke expert Anyway - i just asked the server if he was sure it was diet - I really hate regular as i feel it sticks to my teeth - and all i got was a really grumpy and antagonistic response, like I had just insulted him and had been unreasonable in my request! He then said he would bring me another if i wanted but he turned away to another table, giving me no chance to respond. 5 minutes later another comes, but it's a can, which he opens at the table with a flourish so I "believe he is not lying" !!! WHAT?!!!!! This was all done with no hint of a smile and made me feel really stupid and a pain in the ass for daring to ask him to do his job!!
Food came and was good - sweet potato fries were yummy and portions were plentiful. Hub's homemade wholewheat bread was gorgeous!
We had to wait for ages to catch the eye of our server for the check - I am convinced he was blantantly ignoring us as I am sure eye contact was made. It seemed like he was just deliberately trying not to engage with us.
To sum up- food was pretty solid, service pretty scrappy but I would go back for a good feast. A-OK for now!
On the last day of a 12 day vacation, we woke up on a Monday and said today is the day we try the Friendly Toast. We had tried to go a few weeks earlier on a Sunday but since the wait was over an hour we left there and had an amazing meal down the street at City Girl Cafe.
We walked right in on Monday and we were sat right away. It's a really cute place that I had high hopes for. We had coffee and pumpkin spice tea which were both undrinkable - the coffee was burned and the pumpkin spice tea tasted like nothing. For brunch we ordered the Green Eggs and Ham and the Sklarmageddon with a side of hash.
The food came out about 15 minutes later and it looked awesome. The Green Eggs and Ham were delicious but the boyfriend thought it had too many herbs in the herby sauce. I really liked it though. The Sklarmageddon was good, but finding random nuts in the middle of it just didn't work with the dish. The homefries are standard, nothing to write home about, and the hash? It didn't come. Well, it came after I couldn't flag down my hostess for at least 5 minutes and had to get up from the table to ask her where the hash was. She forgot to put the order in and said we would have it within 2 minutes. A good 7 minutes later, she plopped a plate down that resembled dog food. It wasn't good and we weren't charged.
So, I'm glad we tried it.. it was enough but just not awesome. That's too bad.
Went for breakfast. My friend and I shared an omelet and a slice of french toast on homemade cheddar jalapeno bread. The french toast was GREAT. I was skeptical when I saw how thick the slices were because so many places don't soak their bread enough and the egg doesn't go all the way through, but this was not the case here. It was perfectly soaked through and perfectly delicious. We got the same bread as toast with our herb omelet and it was good as just toast though. You can definitely taste the pepper bite more as toast than as french toast. After half a slice of french toast and most of the home fries (which were also very very good) I was full. My friend was also full and we barely touched the omelet. From what I has of it, though, the omelet was just okay and way overpriced for what it was.
In the future, I will stick to the toasts and skip the eggs.
The service was okay, slow and poor in the beginning but more attentive toward the end. Sadly, there was no service for the outdoor seating. If you wanted to eat outside you had to order takeout (as one couple was doing when we walked in).
The 50s kitschy decor is adorable.
Also, I don't know if it makes a difference, but we got there around 1015 or so on a Saturday morning, and, by the time we left at 11:15ish, it was PACKED.
Oh Friendly Toast, I *want* to like you, why do you make it so difficult?
I just returned from lunch. Oy Vey. Do NOT go here for lunch if you expect to get in and out in under an hour. My friend and I arrived at 1pm on a Friday and the place was about 1/2 empty inside and a few tables open outside so we asked to sit outside. It took close to 15mins for our server to even acknowledge us and another 5 before she actually came to the table to take our orders. In the next 45 minutes, we were offered the dinners of two other parties (we seriously considered acting like the second attempted delivery was right given our starving level). When the food FINALLY came it was quite tasty although I'm not going to say it was worth the excruciating wait.
When the check finally came, we were instructed to pay inside. Great. In we go with our exact change (cash) and had to wait ANOTHER 5 minutes just to hand it over to someone who was interested in taking our money. Never have I so seriously considered the Dine-and-Dash at that point.
This is my second attempt at the Toast. The first time was a couple of weeks after they opened and I wrote off the dreadful service to their newness. I'm seriously doubting there will be a "third time's the charm" attempt.
So sad.
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