Fried eggs, bacon, hash browns and coffee can make me very happy, especially on a weekend morning.
The hip new bistro called Twisted Citrus takes the brunch experience to a whole new level. The menu offers an inventive and diverse take on breakfast, with entrees both savory and sweet.
At 9:15 Tuesday morning, a very early time for this writer to be dining, the music playing was appropriately mellow — The Beatles, Cyndi Lauper, Fleetwood Mac. The place has a clean modern decor, bright citrusy colors and pleasant lighting.
A friend and I tried three enticing menu items, each with generous portions, visual appeal and big flavors. Our server, Christie was welcoming, easygoing and fully knowledgeable of the menu.
The Bayou Voodoo omelet ($10.99) sounded enticing but also a little challenging for early morning dining, with tabasco eggs, blackened shrimp and Andouille sausage, but Christie said it was her absolute thing on the menu, so I was swayed.
For starters, the entree’s heat was not fiery but subdued. The three-egg omelet spilled out jack cheese, spicy sausage, perfectly cooked and seasoned shrimp, and a creole cream sauce that pulled everything together. My sourdough toast was a fine counterpoint.
The hearty Morning Tacos ($8.29), three of them served in a nifty holder, are soft flour tortillas filled with scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, chorizo and cheese. Salsa, pico de gallo and sour cream can amp up the Mexican feel. Guacamole is 99 cents extra. They are a nice spin on typical breakfast ingredients.
Our sweet treat was an order of Funky Drunky Monkey Cakes ($8.29), two hefty banana pecan pancakes drizzled with a rum praline sauce — that put me in mind of Bananas Foster — and topped with sliced bananas and pecans, with some sublime chantilly cream on the side.
For two people, I’d recommend ordering one of the savory egg-based entrees, one of the sweet ones and splitting each.
The Twisted Citrus menu makes for colorful and detailed reading. Other three-egg omelets, which come with choice of toast, include Jimmy the Greek (feta, onions, olives, spinach and tomato, $8.49); The Kowalski (kielbasa, potatoes, kraut, onions and Mornay sauce, $8.29) and Santa Fe Caliente (black beans, chorizo, jalapenos, pepperjack cheese, ranchero sauce, $8.99).
A friend who stopped by our table said he’s hooked on the Twisted Citrus corned beef hash ($7.99) whose meat is not canned but brisket roasted in-house. There are huevos rancheros and breakfast nachos (each $8.29), and a Vietnamese-style Bahn Mi breakfast sandwich with eggs, bacon, pickled vegetables, cilantro and sriracha.
The sweets offerings are a parade of pancake and French toast temptations, including the restaurant’s most popular item, cinnamon roll pancakes with a cream-cheese glaze ($6.99), Red Velvet and blueberry pancakes.
Next time, I will try the Fat Elvis French Toast ($8.29), a damn-the-calories tribute to the king of rock ’n’ roll’s food obsessions — house made banana bread stuffed with peanut butter and chopped bacon and topped with sliced bananas and powdered sugar.
For those seeking a more conventional breakfast experience, Twisted Citrus offers build-your-own omelets plus toast ($7.49), a two eggs-potatoes-toast-coffee special ($6.99) and house-made granola and milk ($4.49). Twisted Citrus uses a special-blend coffee from Angel Falls in Akron, roasted weekly and ground onsite ($2.69), and served with your own carafe for refills. A build-your-own Bloody Mary bar ($6) is available on Saturday and Sunday.
There also is a lunch menu of salads and sandwiches — including tuna salad, Waldorf chicken salad, egg salad and shrimp Louie — available after 11 a.m.
Twisted Citrus is unrelated to the Twisted Olive. Instead, it is owned by Scott and Kim Shapiro, proprietors of the new TD’s Tailgate Grill, located directly next door, and the original TD’s location in Canton.
Food: 5/5
Service: 5/5
Reach Dan at 330-580-8306 or dan.kane@cantonrep.com.
On Twitter: @dkaneREP
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