The Nook Diner - Tasty Brunch

Post-call is a blissful time. The reward for a nights' (likely) hard work and determination, I often feel the need to make use of my free time as liberally as possible, despite the obvious exhaustion and energy deprecation that occurred overnight. Especially so when a group of my fellow pediatric residents are on and who are willing and keen for the spoils of a post-call brunch. Trolling through Urbanspoon found a local favourite, The Nook Diner.

The Nook is located on Sherbrook Street within earshot of the Misericordia Hospital. The restaurant has an aged appearance that speaks of its history and the nostalgia of the entire street, as captured by the beautiful panorama wall art on the exterior of the restaurant. The insides are classic diner-esque: comfortable, clean, but aged. Friendly and helpful staff escort you to a table as you are impressed by the cacophony of noise roaring from the other diners.

The menu is tried and true classic diner food. A simple foldout menu speaks to the no fuss attitude of this restaurant by offering a bevy of breakfast and lunch items that should delight most. Soups, salads, sides, burgers, hot dogs and meat platters greet diners as one peruses through the menu, all as you would expect with nothing extraordinary. What is special, however, is their brunch items including eggs, breakfast burritos, a nice variety of eggs benedicts and a large concoction of classic and creative omelets.

I was craving the crunch of Onion Rings and the version here did not disappoint. The large rings are nicely fried in a thick batter to achieve a beautiful golden crispy brown hue. The interior housed a tender and soft onion that imparted a nice sweetness to the ring. Overall as you would expect and hit the spot for me.

Finding an Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce Omelet is surprising, especially when considering the dive-y nature of The Nook. The large omelet is fried nicely and chalk full with a bevy of asparagus spears, is topped with a generous topping of hollandaise and finished with a dash of paprika. The chefs here intentionally underseasoned the omelet to allow for the full flavour of the asparagus to seep through, and lo does it work! I quick liked the interchange between the creamy Hollandaise with the peppery paprika and the soft and sweet asparagus.

Another exciting dish, both my dining companions ordered the Mexi Benny with Mashed Avocado & Polenta. Moving away from the classic eggs benedict, the chefs here make the base out of light and creamy polenta. Rounding out the flavours is the further creaminess of the mashed avocado, sweetness from the perfectly cooked poached eggs, and pepperiness from paprika. For those wanting more taste, I recommend adding the supplied salsa to kick up the sweet and salty components. Overall this was a unique take on eggs benedict that allows the egg and avocado to shine without the usual starchiness one gets when using english muffins.

The Nook offers no nonsense breakfast, lunch and brunch options that should appeal to anyone looking for classic diner food. Despite that moniker, the do offer some unique and realized dishes that show the creativity and skill of its chefs. The perfect place for the start (or end) of ones day.