Bread and Ink Cafe

Huge compliments to the friendly, welcoming and funny host at breakfast this morning — the place was packed but he handled the waiting customers with aplomb. My ABC scramble and polenta were warm rather than hot — which I attribute to the busy hour. Coffee and biscuit were on point. The jam that comes with the biscuit is clearly homemade — yum. I appreciate that they give you your own carafe of coffee so you can refill your cup at your leisure. My son and his friend had pancakes — note that a short stack gets you two LARGE pancakes. This place is one of our go-to’s for breakfast.

Neighborhood favorite for over 30 years. Seemed formal at first, but my Wife and I noticed the relaxed, casual atmosphere. Many seats by the window for people watching. Breakfast was our choice at 11.30, (served till 3.00 pm). Quite an interesting selection. I wanted Huevos Rancheros, but I selected instead Chicken and Waffles. OUT OF THIS WORLD. The Wife had eggs, bacon, potaties and bread with jam. Endless coffee refills. $ 30 for two. Not too shabby.
The owner meanders around the dining area encouraging coffee refills and short conversations. Seems like a retiree hangout though. Weird for Hawthorne.
On a side note, what made my breakfast quite satisfying was in fact the maple syrup was not put on the waffles, and the country gravy was contained so as you can pour and dip on you’re own. Very crispy waffles.
Secure Wi –Fi

Chicken and waffles. No need to order anything else. It is divine. I have to say over the last year, the lemon parm sauce has gotten thinner which is a bummer. Salads are good if you want to be healthier and the happy house chicken curry is fab. Consistently a good place to take family from out of town with friendly service. Many of the wait staff has been there for years and feel familiar.

Great breakfast overall, even greater considering the value.
The bloody mary was extremely bloody and potent, and had an assortment of pickled vegetables and a fresh lemon wedge to add crunch, different tastes and a sure zing.
My beautiful and much better half termed the chicken and waffles among the best she’s ever had. That’s saying something for a southern belle.
My pancakes were definitely from scratch, and they had the right amount of cinnamon spark to make me smile.
Add good, strong, hot coffee and you have a winner in this tight but cozy breakfast spot. Like Arnold, «we’ll be back!».

My food was delicious; biscuits and gravy with hash browns. On the downside my waiter was an a$$hole. He seemed irritated from the very start. The coffee was the literal worst coffee I have had in Portland, maybe ever. I never ask for my food to be comped but I couldn’t even drink it so I asked him to remove the $ 3.50.

After an attempt to have breakfast at Jam on New Year’s Day, we ended up here instead and it was a wise choice. Avoiding the long wait list, we sat at the astonishingly available bar, on seriously comfortable stools. There was plenty of space for the many condiments breakfast requires and we had lots of elbow room. My friend was pleased with her selection of bagel and accouterments, salad and a consistent spinach mushroom omelet. I almost always go for a farmer type breakfast, eggs, bacon etc. With a choice on the potatoes, I went with the hash browns, rather than the polenta or roasted potatoes. They were cooked to perfection and a perfect amount, not overloading the plate or skimpy, either. The eggs were a perfect over very easy and the generous portion of bacon was crispy and tasty. The service was close to excellent, and the only real drawback was the fact it was so crowded, things were slower than I suspect they usually are. Can’t wait to go back and check out the waffle bar on a less busy day. Since I live in Seattle, this could be awhile but I definitely will return.

Went for brunch on a Sunday. The place was crowded, but we were seated right away. The coffee was decent, but nothing extraordinary. Our sausage and eggs came out first and again they were passable, but nothing special. The eggs were bland and the sausage was overspiced. Then our main dishes came out. I had French toast while my husband ordered crab cakes benedict. Both entrees were amazing. Perfectly prepared. Next time I’ll skip the coffee and order one of the specialty mimosas.

Another terrific Portland find. Nice staff and great choices on the menu. Bacon is A1 and the chicken was very tasty. We tried a few things but my wife was raving over the apple waffles.
A great treat and a must for any Friday breakfast.
Avoid weekend waits if you can. It will color your experience with the wrong impression of what this place can deliver.

Have a sweet tooth? Try one of the sweet
waffles. Want something hearty? Try an omelette, which comes as a generous portion with a side and bread. The house made strawberry jam is tasty and a nice touch as well. Want a quiet environment or no wait on a weekend? Try somewhere else. The environment is lively and crowded, and often a wait is expected. You will be quite friendly with neighbor tables. But service is decent, and the food is good and well-​priced. A nice neighborhood spot to try.

Food and service were both terrible. Lunch on a Saturday took 90 minutes and this was after we were seated.
After a long wait for our food, I was disappointed to find out how awful it was. The mac & cheese was overloaded with garlic. I love garlic, but this was just waaaaaaay too much. I tried adding salt and pepper just to be able to get a few bites in. I tried to save the leftovers at home with lots of milk and extra cheese, but it was still inedible. It went into the trash.
The wait staff moved with zero sense of urgency. Our table’s waitress was inattentive and rarely seen. Someone from our table had to get up and find her to retrieve the check and then again for a box. She was found near the kitchen putting on lipstick and chatting with the other servers. I wish this was an exaggeration — I assure you, it is not. This is how bad the service is at Bread and Ink.
Considering all the other restaurants nearby, don’t waste your time or your money here.

Let me start off by mentioning, I am Fried Chicken and Waffle connoisseur. Ive tried them every where that I’ve been that serves them. Bread and ink’s is one of the best I’ve tried! They were amazing! I went on a week day for lunch when they werent very busy. I feel this contributes to the quality of food. It gives chefs a little more time to give your food a little more love. The chicken was moist but crunchy, and the batter was packed with favor! The waffle was light and airy but crunchy and buttery as well. All of this amazingness was topped with warm maple syrup and sugar pearls.
I also love that they were playing Erykah Badu to boot! this made the ambiance truly exceptional for me. They only had 2 servers for the entire restaurant but still the service was good. High five to them! Would definitely recommend it!

Ordered the fried chicken however when it came it looked delicious but as I took a bite blood spurted and I came to find my meats were raw! The service was aweful as the server helped others and never us we sat there, staring at our bloody uncooked chicken and waiting to be served while everyone else was being helped. Once we told our server about it he didn’t seem to care and said that he would cut the bill in half so we payed for chicken we didn’t even get to eat. Once loved the place but never coming back.

I was looking forward to try their CHICKEN & WAFFLE for a while now. The chicken was dry – which I expected after I saw that it’s chicken breast. The sauce that they give you to dip the chicken is pretty good, but it doesn’t make sense as a whole in the dish. The sauce just helps get some flavor and juiciness to the chicken, but then when you take a bite of the waffle with syrup, it doesn’t add up. I would harmonize the dish by just having really good juicy chicken with no sauce. That way, when you bit the chicken, you can eat it with syrup and the waffle. If you just think about the Waffle, then it’s a great waffle. It had a crunch on the outside, it was fluffly inside. Sweet but not too sweet. The pearl sugar proved that they don’t mess around.
My wife had the biscuits and gravy and it was good; I had a little bit of it. The wait isn’t too bad, so I would go back to this place.
The place is nice; I would come back

When Jam on Hawthorne had an atrociously long wait, my friend and I made a reservation via Open Table for The Bread & Ink Café. Arriving within 5 min of our reservation, the hostess still told us that we’ve got a 15min wait behind walk-​in folks. Perplexed, I asked why we’re still waiting with a reservation, and no plausible reason was given. For such a busy Labor Day morning, the wait staff didn’t appear bustling to clear tables and seat people. Once seated, our waiter Will B. was so polite and friendly — making amends for his co-​workers lackluster ways.
We both ordered the Skillet Scramble — and loved it. The sausage had a little spicy kick to it and the roasted potatoes were well seasoned before scrambled into the skillet. My friend also had the homemade Cinnamon Roll, which was deliciously flakey — not doughy or over-​baked. Will did enthusiastically recommended the biscuit, and it didn’t disappoint. Scratch biscuit perfectly baked and accompanied with homemade strawberry preserves. The preserves were freshly made and discernibly tastier than jarred versions.
Have to agree with prior reviewers’ dismay over the $ 3.25 change for coffee BUT we had our own carafe to refill as often as we liked. That more than compensates for the higher price of coffee. Perhaps the restaurant knew that not all waitstaff would promptly refill our coffee cup, so it gives patrons through own carafe?
Worth the trip and even the longer than expected wait for this breakfast stop.

My sister and I ate here this morning and loved the place! It wasn’t terribly busy when we got there around 11 on a Wednesday morning. We were seated immediately and brought water and a carafe of coffee (yay!). We both ordered the chicken and waffles, which turned out to be a great choice. It was the best waffle I’ve ever had, including the sourdough ones my dad makes! Real maple syrup and crispy fried chicken fillets were icing on the cake.
We were both admiring how good some of the other food coming out of the kitchen looked, so we’ll probably be back soon! It will be hard not to order waffles again!

Enjoyed brunch at the B&I for Mother’s Day, and I was very pleased.
My mother requested the restaurant. As she is my mother, this meal was about her — even though my little one was in attendance.
We made reservations, which I’m very happy that we did — it was packed!
We were seated within minutes of arrival which was nice, considering the entrance and hostess table were not well planned for the amount of people wanting to check in/​get seated.
Our waiter was excellent, seemed to have been there for a long time. Right off the bat he asked if we’d like crayons and paper for my son. I love when waiters do this, because a happy tot is a great experience for all involved.
The selection of brunch is great. Lots of choices from vegetarian to full on cheesy covered deliciousness. My mother and I both ordered the Skillet Scramble found under the favorites. It was very yummy. Could have used more seasoning, but that’s just my preference and it’s not difficult to add my own salt. I ordered a savory waffle for my son from The Waffle Window, the ham and cheese. Of course my mother and I tasted this as well, because he’s 2 and would offer a good review no matter what he ate. I really enjoyed the waffle, I would caution that it’s quite rich with the Jarlsberg and Gruyère topped with maple syrup — but most definitely still delicious!
The B&I has changed quite a bit since my mother and I went when I was younger. Not in a bad way, it’s just different. It used to be more of a classy, special occasion spot and now has become more of a regular casual spot — again not necessarily a bad thing. I actually can’t wait to come back!

A hidden gem in the heart of the Hawthorne area.
Are you craving some good ol’ chicken and waffles? If so, then this is your place to go.
Great food and great service. How can one go wrong?
Also, If you’re a fan of Mimosas be sure to check out their Blackberry Basil Mimosa.
There can be a long wait on weekends, so I suggest you arrive early, but it’s definitely worth the wait.
Check them out, you won’t be disappointed. There’s something on the menu for everyone.

Bread and Ink has been one of my favorite brunch spots for a while now. Their egg dishes, like the ABC scramble or Spinach and Mushroom Omelet, are always hot and delicious.
Another stand out, though seemingly a small thing, is their ketchup. I’m pretty sure it’s homemade or at least a really good brand, I always order seconds and I usually don’t even like ketchup on my eggs!
Their side orders of bread and rolls are homemade as well I think, and always just the right texture.
I’ve always loved this place, a great spot for brunch in Portland.

Known for their chicken and waffles, but I ordered one of their specials — crab & asparagus omelet. I love crab and this omelet had chunks of fresh, sweet crab in it. The asparagus was crunchy too and not overcooked. It came with hashbrowns as well but I focused on the omelet :). My boyfriend got the chicken & waffles — chicken was ok, but I thought the waffles were soft/​crunch and sweet — sugary sweet. Note, I love sweet stuff.
We wanted to eat a the Waffle Window at first but it was cold and wet that day so we decided to try this place instead since it had indoor seating. Worth mentioning that the Waffle window has a small number of tables (~4) to seat their customers.

For yours truly, breakfast is always the meal worth waiting for. It’s the only time where fresh food is a must (#1) and the best way to start the day. Also, hash browns are always a wonderful thing. There is all this and more at Bread and Ink Café, one of the many breakfast havens in the city.
The interior is clean and inviting, with lots of natural light from the massive windows. It might not sport the same hipster-​y vibe that the rest of Hawthorne is known for, which I find to be a nice surprise. They are also home to the infamous Waffle Window (
), just outside along the wall. There is plenty of space for groups of all sizes and parking is street side.
On the food front, there is a lot to appreciate. There are options for all palates, with a quality that screams homemade (that homemade jam /​ketchup is wonderful). Some of the favorites include the ABC scramble, biscuits and gravy, and any of their delicious benedicts (especially the salmon). Lots of love goes into the food, even the awesome multigrain toast.
Though their breakfast gets lots of the love, one shouldn’t balk at the rest of their offerings. The happy hour has some solid variety, including a $ 7 burgers, arancini risotto balls, lemon pinenut meatballs and more. Combine that with a beverage from some of their IPA taps and cocktails, and it’s an afternoon delight. I admittedly have only come for dinner once but I must say the chinook salmon entrée was killer. (#2)
While service has been pretty adequate, I’ve had one snafu that I can’t seem to shake. I got charged ($ 1.50) for giving some of my breakfast to my dining companion who gave me a portion of his entrée. For a group of 4, we had 4 plates, two apps, and a drink each. I understand $ 1.50 is a petty charge in the end and perhaps enough people do it to warrant such a thing, but it caught us all by surprise. A bad surprise at that.
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(#1) Has anyone ever heard of old eggs and yesterday’s hashbrowns? Me neither.
(#2) Also, the shrimp and Tuscan kale spaghetti sound marvelous. Must try.