Phoenix Street

Whoever was cooking the eggs on Sunday, June 19^th, should be demoted back to busser or washer. I had no problem at all with the long wait this father’s day. We were in from out of town for a holiday weekend over nighter and it sounded like Phoenix was the best game in town for breakfast and brunch. We showed up around 10:30 or so and they took our phone number and said they’d text us when the table was ready. Shortly after we checked in, I received an app suggesting we download «The List App» to see where we were in the waiting line which was kind of cool but it didn’t seem to work so well. One minute there were about 20 people and 8 tables ahead of us and the next minute, we were getting a text saying our table was ready. So, we walked down the block (we were window shopping) and gladly sat down in the middle of the room. On our way in, I asked a family coming out if it was worth the wait. The man of the household made a screw face and said, «the poached eggs were way over cooked and we waited for about an hour.» He and I both agreed that that poached eggs is a litmus test of sorts for a restaurant and how well your eggs are poached are often a sign of how everything else will go during the meal. I was a little concerned but figured it was a fluke because this place prides itself on it’s eggs benedict. To the table we went! Coffee, water and juice arrived pretty quickly. Our server (didn’t get her name, sorry) was great. She was obviously a seasoned vet of working a high paced, high turnover room and it showed. She glided across the room effortlessly, and in a single motion, pulled out silverware and straws and disappeared only to show up what seemed like immediately after with a pot of hot coffee. The coffee was hot but it was weak, really weak. I refer to this kind of Joe as sweat sock juice. No body, little flavor and not nearly enough octane, which is what I was looking for this morning. Then the wait began. We waited, and waited and then, our great server came by with a bunch of condiments in anticipation of our meal arriving. This made the waiting even more unbearable because we thought our food was coming but again, we waited and waited… Our charming waitress came by multiple times apologizing for the kitchen which after the third of fourth time became painful to listen too and frankly I was feeling really bad for her because this was out of her control. Finally, about 45 minutes or longer after placing our order, our breakfast comes out. Two of us had crab cake eggs benedict and one of use had pancakes. The pancakes were excellent, light and fluffy, dotted with embedded blueberries. The eggs benedict looked picture perfect, so, I took a picture! The sauce was tasty, the hash browns were well cooked and seasoned and then I cut in to my egg. This eggs were more like hard boiled eggs than poached. They didn’t even come close to resembling a poached egg. Uggghhh… why didn’t I listen to the man who said they destroyed his poached eggs?! I’ll tell you why I didn’t listen to him, it’s because I really wanted eggs benedict and being that this place was so busy and after reading all of the hype, I figured they couldn’t screw mine up too! Well, they did. I was really hungry so I ate it all but my great breakfast experience was basically thrown out the window at this point. Our great server came by to ask how things were and we showed her that both of our eggs benedict were totally over cooked and wrecked. She looked really upset and said «again?! I told them in the kitchen to quit screwing these things up! She then offered us another round of eggs but after waiting for 45 minutes or more for the first plate, this was an offer, I had to refuse. We tipped our server well and thanked her but it’s a real shame that a breakfast restaurant can’t poach an egg. What’s even more incredulous is that it was a known problem with that line cook that morning according to our server and they continued to serve these terribly handled eggs. We only go to South Haven a couple of times a year but I can promise you, the next time I’m there, we won’t be going to Phoenix. If you’re looking for poached eggs, I’d suggest you go elsewhere.

Amidst all the glares and up/​down looks you receive from walking around downtown South Haven, this café rises above and delivers a stellar dining experience. The menu is vegetarian and gluten free friendly, with gluten free bread available for all their sandwiches! Friendly service and surprisingly delicious food abound. We had the BLT and spinach burger, which were both exceptional.
Having a difficult day? Dine here to see your South Haven experience rise from the ashes and be reborn like the Phoenix this establishment is named for.

No gags or gimmicks just good wholesome food. I love, love, loved my veggie sandwich: a hearty mix of grated carrots, tomatoes, cucumber and sunflower seeds. Per the menu, vegetables are locally sourced at an organic farm which we happened to pass on the way out of town. Friendly service and great prices.

Our first time stopping here and it was excellent. We stopped for lunch and I had pancakes which were fluffy and flavorful and my husband had a chipotle chicken wrap that he enjoyed. I especially appreciate that they source their food from organic farms. We’ll definitely be back when we’re in the area.

My final meal of my three day visit to South Haven over Mothers Day weekend. Great vibe — great music — wonderful staff — decent breakfast! I had made mention that it was my birthday, so three of the four wait staff came and sang a little birthday ditty to me (their first!) That was unexpected and cute! I had trouble deciding what to order, after reading the menu on-​line, then after getting the actual menu in my hand, I kept changing my mind. However, my lovely wait person assisted me in concocting a breakfast sampler that fit my desires, and it was totally yummy! OH!!! AND, they have THE best coffee! If I hadn’t been driving home to Fort Wayne, Indiana that day, I would have sat there longer and had more cups of coffee! When I return to South Haven, I’ll most definitely go back to Phoenix Street Café.

Good lunch.
My husband and I enjoyed a peaceful quiet lunch. My husband enjoyed the daily special turkey wrap and I the grilled cheese.
Staff was quiet and pleasant which was nice for a rainy afternoon by the river.
Pricing was about average around $ 20 not including tip.
For a simple lunch by the river this place is a fine choice

We could not love Phoenix Street more! The always friendly staff greets you warmly even when customers are crowding the door. You register with your phone and receive a message when your table is ready. Works for us!
Our summer home is in South Haven, Phoenix Streei is the most requested breakfast spot by family and friends. It never disappoints. They are easily able to accommodate picky toddlers and a family member with a peanut allergy. Oatmeal pancakes, crab Benedict, various versions of hash, and perfectly cooked eggs are some of my breakfast favorites.
Unlike Tom M., we have never «timed our waitress», we relax, enjoy a beverage and good conversation at our favorite South Haven location!

First time in South Haven and first time eating here. We would definitely come back. The staff were super nice and the food was delicious as well. No wait at all and the food came out relatively fast too. This probably just depends on the time of year as the winter is less busy.
I had a burger with blue cheese, sautéed mushrooms and onions, and fries. OMG! So good!
My friend had the crab cake sandwich and so loved every bite.
Looking forward to visiting South Haven again and this spot.

Food is great.
Don’t sit by the door in the winter… its FREEZING every time the door opens! .
The atmosphere is grand.
The wait time is incredibly slow between ordering and eating. That needs improvement. So go enjoy food! Just don’t be in a hurry.

First, the good: While Phoenix Street has a pretty typical breakfast menu the serving size on the three entrees my party ordered were more than generous. My wife raved about the pancakes and because our waitress ‘broke’ the yolks on two of my over-​easy eggs, she apologized and brought out perfectly cooked replacements at the same time. Big points there.
However, the wait time between placing our order and the delivery was really long. My guess is they were either short-​handed in the kitchen, the wait staff or both. But I think we waited maybe 20 minutes and when the food was delivered, it was kind of lukewarm, not hot.
So I would still recommend Phoenix Street and will definitely return the next time we’re in South Haven. It’s good food, reasonably priced, but allow a little extra time depending on the day and hour.

This is your typical breakfast hole in the wall but I’m rating based on food and service. I guess we had a little bit of a head start because the waitress caught me timing her. As she place our water glasses after filling our coffee cups she noticed the timer on my phone going… Oops, then she asked, are you timing me. We denied it but I think she knew knew all the better. My wife was taken back by her comment but we waited to see what happened.
The reason we had the timer running was because previous reviewers said service was slow. After about 7 minutes from taking our order, the food came. As she set down the plates she said, my timer said 6 ½ minutes. We just politely giggled. I gotta say, 6 — 7 minutes is quite acceptable.
My wife and I both had the boaters breakfast which was ham, sausage, bacon and 3 eggs over easy including fried potatoes. All was very good, considering comparing all hole in the wall breakfast places. The breakfast was very good and the service was timely, I wonder if the running timer had any influence.
We would go back seeing as we have been here just about every time we are in town.

We walked in and found a clean table finally and seated ourselves. Before too long the waiter came by and asked what we wanted to drink. We were then given menus and we each selected the Gyro plate. They each had feta cheese which I failed to notice on the menu. It came with shoestring French fries which were cooked perfectly.
What bothered me about this place is the neglect of tables that were vacated by customers. They remained dirty through our entire meal and no effort was made to clean them. Totally unacceptable

Avoid the biscuits and sausage (in theory) gravy.
The corn beaf hash, isn’t. It tastes good but it simply cubed potatoes with some cut up meat.
The eggs Benedict was way over cooked but the second version was very tasty. The addition of thyme is very interesting.
In a pinch an ok place but I wouldn’t go out of my way.
One of the adjacent waitresses way incredibly rude.

We had brunch here yesterday and were given attitude about wanting to eat outside. We did eat outside and our server was fabulous. The food was amazing and made up for the elderly woman who gave us grief for eating outside.
Today, we came back with 2 additional friends. There was no one sitting in outdoor seating. We asked for the 4 top outside and were told that 4 people couldn’t sit outside. We said «Really? There was a group of 4 out there yesterday when we are brunch.» She became loud and rude and said «Well if you are insisting. It will be awhile.» We decided to go somewhere else due to be poor customer service and bad attitude of the staff.
It’s very disappointing because the food and outdoor atmosphere are incredible. I will not pay for poor customers service though. There are many other establishments that have good food, good atmosphere and great customer service. Reviews and word of mouth of powerful things. Replace your bad customer service employees and you’ll do better.
Best of luck.

We stumbled upon Phoenix Street on our way back from Douglas this past Sunday. The restaurant was busy but we were seated right away. Fast service and our server anticipated all of our needs. Bloody Marys and mimosas, score! I had the gyro omelet served with a side of tzatziki. Very light, flavorful and I finished the whole plate! My husband thoroughly enjoyed his generous portion of corned beef hash and eggs. We definitely recommend!

The restaurant isn’t very big so the tables are fairly close together. We went there with a large party (7 adults and 4 kids) so it’s hard to tell if our large party affected the wait times. We had to wait for tables– which is understandable with a large party in a small restaurant. The hostess was very apologetic for the wait time (which didn’t seem that long considering our party size) and she offered to seat us separately but quicker if we wanted (which we declined.)
It seemed as though it took longer for us to order and get our food. We weren’t very hungry before we arrived but by the time our food arrived, we were starving. The people working there were helpful and friendly enough. The waitress wasn’t overly friendly and seemed a little frazzled/​stressed with our party but she was polite enough and brought us everything we needed/​asked for.
As for the food, it seems as though breakfast and lunch/​dinner are available at the same time. We went around brunch time 11 – 1 and were able to order from both menus.
I’m not sure if it was because we were so hungry or what but everyone at our table seemed to enjoy what they ordered. I had the artichoke burger which I thought was pretty good. The feta taste was very faint. I would’ve liked more feta but that’s because I love feta. I had a taste of the California Benedict and Crab Cake Benedict and they were both delicious.
My one complaint would be the bathroom. It’s very small and poorly designed. When you use the diaper changing station, no one can come in or out of the bathroom because the changing station blocks the door from opening. It also blocks one of the stalls from opening so if someone is in there, they have to wait until you are done changing the diaper– a bit of an inconvenience for everyone. And since there are only two stalls, using the diaper station causes quite a line. Oh and the banging of the stall door and bathroom door on the changing station scares the baby.

We put our name on the list and were told there was a ten minute wait. We sat at the table for 40 minutes before the food arrived.
Worst omelette I’ve ever had. So runny it was impossible to eat.
Server was lovely-it’s unfortunate she works in this half-​assedly run place.

Wide variety on the menu. Everything is very good. Larger portions. Always busy, but, always seated promptly. Clean throughout. Waitstaff and hostess alway pleasant, polite, & friendly. It can get packed during the Summer with tourists & boaters.

Our server was really sweet, she had two names and I can’t remember either, I am sorry. She was very attentive and took good care of us.
The food was just ok. I was really excited to try their breakfast and left disappointed. I would have been hungry as well, but my toast filled me up. I ordered the homemade corned beef hash. It was covered in green onion and some other green herb, perhaps parsley. I could not even taste the corned beef. I was trying to pick the corned beef and potatoes out from the green onions. It was nearly inedible. I was so sad. I could not tell you whether the corned beef was good or not. My husband got the pancakes, they were huge, fluffy and delicious. The eggs and bacon and toast were good. If those were bad, we would have had a real problem. I didn’t return the hash, because I didn’t want them to make me another one. It wasn’t an issue with how it was cooked or getting the wrong thing, but just thinking what I got was not enjoyable to eat.
I saw a photo of someone else’s corned beef hash and it did not have nearly as much green onion as mine did. I thought I just didn’t like what they were making, but it appears now that maybe I just got a poorly executed hash. Sad face.

Not worth the wait! Or the hype!
Like any small tourist town, your options are slim for just about everything. That usually works to your advantage and enhances your restaurant dabbling. I researched places for Sunday brunch and thought Phoenix Street Café, during September, would be the best option.
When I arrived, the wait was 30 minutes. My name and number was added to a list and I left to shop around town until I received a text that my table was ready. Super convenient! I was impressed that this was being utilized by such a small café! But, my waffle order came out cold and pretty tasteless. The service was below average. I was offered a coffee refill just once, and our server could never be found. The atmosphere isn’t very warm or inviting — think a rehabbed store shop with tables and chairs.
For one of just a handful of restaurants in town, this café has such opportunity! Improve your service and your well-​crafted menu and small town charm will be appreciated.