Bottomless Weekend Brunch @ ARC Restaurant

Remember when I ended off my post on ARC After Dark by stating I would return on my own coin?  Often, when I say that, I really do go back to the restaurant because I enjoyed the food and more importantly, I want my family to try it too (I don't usually do another post, rather I add to the original post or do one comprehensive post like the one at Seaside Provisions).  So I went ahead and asked my parents if they wanted to try it out and their reply was that they preferred to go for the Bottomless Weekend Brunch instead.  Therefore I booked it intending to pay $39.00 per person for my parents and my family (which would be 6 people in total).  Turns out that the good people at Fairmont decided to comp 3 of the meals anyways.  I did end up paying for 3 meals plus the gratuity.  Just getting the disclosure out of the way (oh and the picture of the front is a stock photo, they are fully engaged in Covid protocol).

So the deal here is that for $39.00 per person, one could order as much as they want from a selection of 17 items on the Bottomless Weekend Brunch menu.  Much like the dinner service, all the plates are smaller, so they can either be shared or at the very least gives people a chance to try several items.  Drinks are not included, but there is one on the menu being the BC Berry Basket Smoothie consisting of blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, banana and yogurt.  Since they used plain yogurt rather than vanilla, the smoothie was much less sweet and we could really taste the berries.  There was much more of a tanginess, that I personally enjoyed. 

Somewhat of a hybrid between a cinnamon bun and an apple crisp, the Ooey Gooey Skillet was comprised of a segmented croissant, apple slices, cinnamon and caramel.  It had all of the elements of a sticky bun with the addition of tangy apples in between.  Loved the crispy and buttery croissant pieces as they ate lighter than a typical cinnamon bun.  The apples helped balance the sweetness.

One the more simpler options on the menu was the Buttermilk Biscuit served with honey butter.  Now simple is one thing, but really, this was a supremely well-executed biscuit.  From the golden brown and crispy exterior to the warm and soft layers inside, the biscuit couldn't have been better.  Except it did become better with a generous pat of honey butter made with honey from their rooftop.

Consisting of mascarpone yogurt, granola, peach, coconut, puffed amaranth and garnished with raspberries, blackberries and blueberries, the Granola Parfait was your typical lighter choice on the menu.  Nothing complex here, however, I found the mascarpone yogurt to be the perfect texture with a creamy airiness that didn't bog down the entire parfait.  With granola and coconut, this could've been heavy, yet it was balanced in texture.

Another straight-forward offering was the Liege Waffle with caramelized apple and sauce anglaise.  Texturally, I thought the waffle was on point with a lightly crispy exterior with pops of crunchy sugary morsels.  It was soft while still offering up an appealing chewiness.  We found it good on its own with the sweet apples and creamy anglaise only adding even more layers of flavour and sweetness.

Okay, what is a brunch menu without Avocado Toast?   So here is the obligatory one with a soft poached free-range egg atop freshly mashed ripe avocado on grilled sourdough.  With properly executed components, there wasn't much to say about this other than maybe it needed a touch of salt (and in my case, hot sauce).  However, that was easily rectified with the supplied condiments.

The Jerk Fried Chicken atop a funnel cake with maple syrup was their unique take on chicken and waffles.  Tender and moist, the chicken itself was the beneficiary of spices that made it much more interesting than just plain fried chicken.  I could've taken it with more heat, but that wasn't a problem with the addition of hot sauce.  On the outside, the batter was light and crispy.  Underneath, the funnel cake was light and airy.

Now that was the savoury (except for the maple syrup) version of a Funnel Cake.  Of course they also had a sweet one consisting of the funnel cake topped with macerate strawberries.  I'm not sure if it was pure luck or their supplier, but the strawberries were attractively red and sweet (impressive for the time of year).  Of course, being macerated helped the sweetness of the berries.  It was served atop the same airy funnel cake.

Two types of eggs benny were available on the menu including Salmon Eggs Benedict and Traditional Eggs Benedict.  Both featured a toasted English muffin topped with a generous amount of protein (with a perfectly soft-poached free-range egg).  Silky and rich, the Hollandaise was buttery with a hint of acidity.  Since these were served one per plate, it was a good way to not fill up on one thing and move onto the next dish.

Smartly using the same delicious shortrib from the ARC After Dark menu, the Beef Shortrib Poutine featured tender morsels of meat bathed in a rich and meaty gravy.  It wasn't salty though, so that allowed for the legit cheese curds to be noticeable.  To complete the dish, it also sported house-cut fries which were fried crispy and golden brown.  Although this was a "small" size, it was still best shared rather than for one person.

Smothered in a rich mornay sauce and topped with a sunny side egg, the Croque Madame was another beautifully executed dish.  Although you can't see it in the picture, sandwiched in between 2 crunchy toasted slices of sourdough, there was ham and melted gruyere. I thought the sauce was the perfect consistency being smooth and silky with proper viscosity. Decadent and sinful, I also recommend that one shares this, but I won't judge because I almost ate the whole thing!

From 2 heavy items, we moved onto the Harvest Grain Bowl with farro, roasted roots, squash, herbs and poached egg.  To be honest, I normally wouldn't order this since I'm more into the last 3 dishes than a vegetarian option.  However, this is the beauty of the menu.  You can try it since it is included in your cost and it is a smaller portion.  No risk really.  Furthermore, it was pretty good firm textures and another perfectly poached egg.

Now, the plate of Breakfast Meats was much more up my alley consisting of thick cut bacon, Kasseler ham and pork or chicken sausage.  Again, this would be best shared since the amount of meat on the plate would be overly filling and you wouldn't be able to try anything else!  Loved the sausage as it was large and had a nice snap.  Inside, the meat was moist, well-seasoned and not overly fatty.

Another side item to share was the Crispy Fingerling Potatoes with caramelized onions.  Creamy and tender, the potato was texturally on point.  I would've preferred it to be even crispier on the outside, but that wasn't a big deal.  Loved how it wasn't overly greasy as I've some versions that can be dripping with oil.  Also, there was just enough seasoning and herbs without it being salty.

Last but not least, we had the Egg on Toast that could be either soft scrambled, fried or poached.  We chose soft scrambled and it was once again perfect.  Just look at it, there was skill on display with the silky buttery eggs on grilled sourdough.  The operative word is silky, not wet.  Overall, the execution and food quality were excellent.  This was all served in a beautiful dining space with lots of natural light and high ceilings.  Much like my experience at ARC After Dark, I felt the Covid protocols were on point and I felt safe.  In my mind, the Bottomless Weekend Brunch is a fun, tasty and stress-free way to enjoy a meal and to support local during these challenging times.

*3 out of the 6 meals were comped excluding gratuities*

The Good:

- Varied menu that features well-executed food

- Bottomless means you can try many things

- Spacious and safe dining space

The Bad:

- Possibly, it should include basic tea/coffee

- There is no children's pricing for the Bottomless Brunch, but they can order separately from the kid's menu