Sophia's Original House of Pancakes

Another groggy Sunday morning for Libby and breakfast was sounding mighty good. So, it was time to try the new(only open 2 1/2 weeks) regional chain, Sophia's. Taking over the old location of a rather grimy, smokey Sunshine Cafe, Libby was pleasantly surprised to walk into a very clean, bright, fresh environment. Not only was the air clear, but the host was fast and furious...quickly getting me to a seat as a swarm of waitstaff brought water, silverware, menus, and coffee...thank you.

Fred and Ozzy joined a few minutes later and we began to take in the enormous menu. Not only the usual pancakes, egg combo's and omelets, but also blintzes, Belgian waffles, crepes, hash, and that southern staple, grits. It was quite a feat to settle on one entree a piece, but we finally did.

Ozzy, the Mickey Mouse chocolate chip pancakes. Something tells us Disney isn't getting their royalties, but Ozzy certainly didn't seem to mind! Libby, struggling deeply within between a carb breakfast or the hash, finally went with the hash breakfast...four eggs, hash, hash browns, and two flapjacks....come to mama. Fred decided to try a staple for any new breakfast place, the eggs benedict(although the eggs florentine was very tempting).

All in all, very good. All eggs cooked as ordered, hash browns nicely crisped, pancakes, fluffy, yet not with an annoying skin that makes them hard to cut. The coffee, an average cup of joe, but not watery or burned...fresh, hot, caffeine.

Libby found the hash, although nothing exciting, very delicious and simple. The eggs and hash browns really made for a complete experience. The pancakes, although very good for a plain flapjack, were unnecessary. Libby was working her way to a carb coma to ensure a good days sleep.

Fred, on the other hand, ordered his benchmark breakfast dish. If you want to call yourself a true breakfast place, then you must know your eggs benedict. Sophia is well acquainted and did not disappoint. As Fred has mentioned before, he loves a lemony hollandaise. This one, while bland, was still full of buttery goodness. He is happy that they didn't go with a cheese sauce rather than an actual hollandaise like so many others tend to do.

This is what we were referring to when lamenting Four Seasons. While Sophia's is not the end all be all of breakfast establishments, it sets the bar at "good eats"-a step above your average Denny's. It saddens us that a chain is one upping the mom-and-pop. But let's hope a little healthy competition will make them up their game. As far as FLO is concerned, another visit to Sophia's is in the near future to either partake of some other breakfast delights or sample the lunch menu...they are open 7 days a week from 7-3.

Wrap Up
Price-$-$$, Not dirt cheap, but very reasonable.
Atmosphere-**, Unfortunately the decor left a lot to be desired...commercial Grandma's house with no personality, but bright and clean.
Service-****, Fast and efficient. You can tell this place had good management...ran like a well-oiled machine already in it's first month!

Overall
Fred - B, While nothing special, I feel like I can count on a solid breakfast every time.
Libby - B+, As the resident carbo-holic parent, I am glad to say I will be back to sample the waffles, blintzes and crepes...Yay!
Ozzy - A, There was no talking once the food arrived from this sleepy-eyed boy.