THE DISH: Delicious breakfast to kick-start your day

The bacon-avocado omelette served with home fries and extra avocado from Cafe Deli's breakfast menu. PHOTO| MARION MAINA

What you need to know:

  • Flipping through the breakfast menu, I caught site of the bacon-avocado omelette that came with home fries and toast.
  • One look at the picture on the menu and I knew that my search had come to an end.
  • I glanced up from the menu to find a friendly waiter already moving towards my table.

Have you met those people who always seem to be on a diet?

From wheat-free week, to no-carbs-after-3pm, and let’s not forget dinner smoothies for detox. Well, I have not only met them, I am one of them.

One thing we all look forward to as the diet gang is cheat meal day. Have you noticed how we always insist on having a steaming cup of hot water and lemons to sip on right after clearing an entire plate of cheat meal?

We staunchly believe that hot lemon water or green tea after a cheat meal helps the body to “beat” the fats and calorie-overload we just consumed. That may not be exactly how it works but it gives the diet gang peace of mind to believe this.

Anyway, I was making my way to work last Sunday around 11am and realised that I hadn’t gotten my weekly cheat meal. The weekend had literally whizzed by.

I strolled towards Cafe Deli on Moi Avenue all the while enjoying the warm sunshine and deserted streets. Walking in town on Sunday is such bliss.

Although I have been at the restaurant several times before, it was the first time I was going there alone, which made me take note of things I had not seen before.

I made my way to the table as my eyes roamed and took in the cool ambience appreciatively.

Cool ambience at Cafe Deli enriches the eating experience. PHOTO| MARION MAINA

I noticed the warm lighting emanating from decorative bulbs on the gypsum ceiling as well as the perfect blend of the wall colours and brown leather seats.

I was nursing a terrible cold so I fought the urge to order for a yoghurt smoothie or even a shake. I have delicious memories of trying out Café Deli’s freaky shakes moments after they were unveiled earlier this year.

I would have shied off from all the sugar, especially in the Oreo freaky shake, but I am a foodie with intense FOMO (fear of missing out). The shake was more intense than my FOMO.

The sugar rush was on overdrive and I almost had sweet dreams, quite literally, later that night. I set aside the drinks menu now that cold drinks were not an option and picked the food menu.

NO DELAYS

Flipping through the breakfast menu, I caught sight of the bacon-avocado omelette that came with home fries and toast. One look at the picture on the menu and I knew that my search for this week's treat had come to an end.

A friendly waiter was already moving towards my table even before I had finished closing the menu. I skipped the toast while placing my order because the plan was to have a cheat meal, not a complete derail of my diet commitment.

I almost set the timer when the waiter quipped that my meal would be ready in eight minutes but I decided not to be petty given I had just come from church.

I cannot say for sure that it was exactly eight minutes later, but it did not take long for the meal to arrive.

As it was being laid on the table, I caught a whiff of melted butter which made me smile. Food aroma is guaranteed to make me smile.

A subtle steam wafted from the plate assuring me that the food was hot. My smile broadened. The potato wedges were nicely cooked, crispy on the edges and covered in sautéed onions.

I really enjoyed them, despite my reservations for potatoes because of their tendency to settle around my mid-section and crush my body goals every single time.

The home fries were well done and crispy on the edges. PHOTO| MARION MAINA

The omelette had bits of bacon and avocado in it and was quite sizeable. I patted it a bit with a serviette and to my utmost relief, there was not much oil residue on it. A non-greasy omelette is oh-so-perfect!

The best part of the meal though was the sliced avocado on top of the omelette. It was chilled, ripe and creamy. They had thoughtfully chilled it because cooking or heating an avocado changes its taste dramatically and not, in my view, in a good way.

However, I was nervous about how the cooked avocado in the omelette would taste. I once tried out a microwave recipe that involved cooking avocado and it did not turn out well at all.

I had to trash the entire avocado almost tearfully. Well, if we are being completely honest and vulnerable, I did shed a tear or two.

Thankfully, my first bite into the omelette cast all my fears aside.

The omelette has bits of bacon and avocado. It is not greasy but is quite filling. PHOTO| MARION MAINA

The omelette was heavy on eggs and bacon and the avocado was reduced to merely aesthetics of giving it some colour. I bet that was why they had extra slices of avocado placed on top of the omelette to make up for the subtle pieces inside the omelette. Isn’t that just brilliant?

Staying true to my zebra stripes or leopard spots, whichever you fancy, I ensured I had a cup of hot water with slices of lemons on standby.

A steaming cup of lemon water to "beat" fats. PHOTO | MARION MAINA

I doubt this tiny cup of hot water and lemons did much “beating” of the yummy potatoes but it was worth a try. Once again, Cafe Deli gave me a great cheat-meal day experience.