It was a beautiful day for Sunday brunch, so the only choice was a restaurant that still had an open patio, where the food was going to be great.
Betty’s it was. Not only was I able to have my Jack Russell terrier tableside next to the short, flower box laden fence, but I got to sit in the sun. The angle was steep for noon, a telling sign of shorter days, and if you don’t believe me, look at the shadow the home fries cast.
Betty’s is one of those places where you’ll run into people you know, meet new people and have one hell of a time deciding about what to eat. Spinach and Potato Pancakes, thick Smothered Cornbread, Mickey’s Casserole made of eggs, bread, sausage, cheese and cream, or Blueberry Almond French Toast Casserole?
I went for the Betty’s Chicken Pot Pie. It was full of chicken, peas, carrots and parsnips in a creamy gravy with a flakey crust. It was served with a cranberry-applesauce and a side salad. As a kid, frozen pot pies were my only brush with pre-fab food. At Betty’s, my nostalgia melded with a higher understanding of what a pot pie is supposed to be. Phenomenal.
My companion had the Eggs Benedict, which almost didn’t get into the picture here, so they must have been great. Those hash browns were the crispiest I’ve ever seen (I order mine “burnt” everywhere else and feel lucky if they’re browned), and I know they were perfect because I ate every last crunchy one of them.
We met people at the next table…again, a BR story. The gentleman in red told me about how he moved here from upstate because it’s a college town and he knew he’d want to go back to school some day. Meanwhile, he managed to make rent working as a busser when he first arrived. Since then he’s worked a series of jobs with better salaries, bought a house on Prospect for $30K, is fixing it up and getting closer to going back to school.
His sister, sitting next to him said, “Yeah, but you live really frugally.”
He said, “Sure, but I can here.”
About then the food came, the dog was making like castanets, going after end-of-season bees, and our two tables and one more watched and laughed, commenting as a bee went upside down in the orange juice and drank like mad–fighting the inevitable end of the season. We could relate.
I don’t know if Betty’s patio will be open next weekend or the one after that, but do yourself a favor and go there any day of the week for breakfast, lunch or dinner. In fact, don’t even worry about the weather; the bitchier it is outside, the more you’ll appreciate the home-cooked style of Betty’s food. The atmosphere is always warm there, and the staff helps make it that way.
Betty’s
370 Virginia Street
Buffalo, NY 14201
716.362.0633
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