Hot Spot: Redmond's Spot Café brings a fresh | The Source Weekly - Bend, Oregon

Hot Spot: Redmond's Spot Café brings a fresh

When the food is this good, there's no time for photosJust when Bend seems ready to engulf Redmond in its culinary shadow, another eatery pops

When the food is this good, there's no time for photosJust when Bend seems ready to engulf Redmond in its culinary shadow, another eatery pops up to shed some needed gastronomic sunshine on the northern burb. In this case, it's a breakfast establishment the likes of which Redmond has yet to experience.

Although the building is old and has a look that suggests it may have once housed a similar eatery, the Spot Café is shiny and new. Located right downtown with a cool retro sign and a full glass front, it's reminiscent of the diners of old. The Spot is owned and operated by partners Scott Gennrich and Scott Byers. Both arrive with experience; Gennrich is a part owner of the Astro Lounge and Byers is a veteran of several local restaurants, including, Bluefish, 28, and Seasons at The Seventh Mountain Resort where he was the executive chef.

Rather than tackle a dinner menu, they opted for a more manageable route, focusing on breakfast and lunch. The interior is pleasant and clean, if a bit stark; it reminds me of Alpenglow 10 years ago. Piles of fresh-baked goods greet diners at the counter, while food servers bustle through the swinging kitchen door with steaming plates of food.


The menu could be called traditional breakfast fare - benedicts, pancakes, omelets, breakfast sandwiches - but most things have a bit more flair than your average run-of-the-mill morning meal. For example, there's basic French toast, but then there's also Darcy's French toast - thick slices of Texas toast and thin-sliced garlic grilled golden and served (if you ask) with real maple syrup. Sounds weird, but it's truly some of the best French toast that I've eaten since childhood. The Swiss and mushroom omelet is made with Gruyere and the Italian omelet has some spicy Italian sausage that will definitely wake up your sleepy taste buds.

They also offer a tofu scramble (I would bet the first in Redmond) and another odd-sounding but absolutely yummy dish - Organic Brown Rice. Nutty brown rice is cooked just until chewy then topped with a small amount of cream, maple syrup, brown sugar and pecans. This dish beats out oatmeal any day.

Also on the menu: corn meal johnnycakes, homemade biscuits and gravy and a $4 breakfast burrito. Most of the breakfasts come with a choice of real hash browns (yes, the shredded, crispy on the outside, soft in the middle kind of hash browns), home fries or a fresh fruit cup with vanilla honey yogurt. The Spot pours Strictly Organic coffee and offers Stash teas. Table settings include Coffee-Mate, but you can get the real stuff if you ask.

The one complaint I have is that the service is bit casual. When I came in, I waited while two servers finished their conversation before I was greeted. Once at my table, I was not told the specials (they were written on a chalk board, but it would have been nice to hear about them). My tea also went dry a number of times, as well as my dining partners' coffee. All that said, the service was friendly and accommodating. With a bit more attention to detail, it will hopefully improve.

I am such an ardent breakfast lover that I almost forgot to check out lunch. Once I did, I found it to be as satisfying as the "a.m." meal. I recommend the Cobb Salad, the Carnegie Reuben (served with "Russian" dressing as it should be), and the Tree Hugger (The Spot's take on a veggie burger), which is served with tasty fire-roasted salsa.

From the location to the prices to the damn-good food, Redmond has found itself a grand new daylight meal option.

The Spot Café

447 S. W. Sixth St., Redmond. 541-526-1826. 7am - 3pm, seven day/week

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