Francis

NE Alberta has another new restaurant. Francis has been open for a few months, but I hadn't been there until my wife's friend, who doesn't live to far from us, recommended it. And so we went, a couple of weeks ago. But, I failed to write about it. That weekend was just too busy.

To make up for it, we went again this past Saturday, and we invited Rusty and his family to come along. So, babies in tow, we headed off to Francis.

It's breakfast, with a twist. Everything served is just a little odd, but deliciously odd. For my breakfast, I chose the sourdough pancakes and a side of pan fried oysters. The oysters came with an orange relish. I was prepared not to like it, but I found that the addition of fruit to the oysters was really very good.

The pancakes were outstanding...truly a sourdough. I had mine with the berry syrup. I also got a bite of my wife's french toast. Nice and crispy on the outside. She also ordered a chicken sausage patty. I found it rather bland...but that was the only downside to the experience. We all shared a fruit platter to begin. Rusty and his wife seemed to enjoy their meal as well.

The one thing is that the menu is very side-dish-oriented. The pancakes came with just a side of fruit.

The restaurant has plenty of seating on the inside and a very large patio. The waitstaff was excellent and was very attentive to the fact we had small children. They were careful to place items away from the grasp of those small curious hands.

I plan to go back...a lot. It's just as good as Alemeda Cafe for breakfast, but different. The cost was on the high side, but the food was very good.