Restaurant Review: Steady Eddy's Cafe

Another appropriate title for this post would be...

 The Search for the Great Black Bean Burger

Many restaurants have their default veggie burger. Many times it is a black bean burger. Many times it sucks, or is very average. That is why I decided to take myself on a quest to find the greatest black bean burger in Genesee County.

And for a moment, I thought my quest had ended, and I didn't have to search very far.

Steady Eddy's is a quaint restaurant located on the second floor of the Flint Farmer's Market. It's been around for over fifteen years and almost every time we go, we end up on a waiting list. Part of this is due to its popularity, and the other part is due to the fact that it is a very small place: one main room with a dozen or so small tables and a coffee bar, and a patio overlooking the outdoor market in the summer time.

When we can afford it, Cameron and I like to go to Steady Eddy's on Saturday mornings for breakfast. Their south of the border omelette is our favorite morning meal, and Cameron loves the tofu reuben for lunch.

You can see why I love this place so much simply by taking a look at their menu. A large section of it is vegetarian- and vegan-friendly. I think I've tried just about everything by now. But what I truly love most about Steady Eddy's is their spicy black bean burger. The first time I ordered it, I expected it to be about as average as any other, but instead it ended up being my favorite menu item.

At this point I unfortunately have to begin speaking in past tense for reasons that will soon be explained:

What I loved about the burger was the fact that the patty seemed to be homemade. If you've ever made your own veggie burgers (or any kind of burger for that matter), you know that it's never a perfect circled shape. It's a bit clumpy and very meaty. This was the texture of Steady Eddy's burger. It just looked and tasted homemade, and even if it wasn't, I was happily ignorant in my assumptions. It was incredibly flavorful, albeit not "spicy" as the name implied, unless by spicy they meant "filled with flavorful spices," not "spicy hot."

The toppings are great too; fresh avocado, red onion, tomato, a dollop of sour cream and a slice of melted cheese all sandwiched inside an onion roll. They were the perfect complement to the flavors already inside the black bean patty.

The chips on the side, however, are always stale and the salsa is completely the opposite of the burger: tasteless. So I never eat them (which is rare for me. I always eat the sides!).

On Saturday Cameron and I decided to have brunch at Steady Eddy's before stocking up on market veggies. I was excited to blog about (and eat) the burger and sing its praises. But then it arrived, and I saw that something was wrong...

 

This was not the spicy black bean patty I was expecting. It was quite literally the "cookie cutter" type patty you'd find in a Boca burger box. I took a bite and was relieved to find the flavor still great, but it wasn't as great as before. Regardless of whether or not the patty they used before was homemade, something definitely changed.

Don't get me wrong, it was still delicious, but I definitely felt a slight pang of disappointment, especially since I knew I was going to have to be honest when writing this blog post. I had intended on ranting and raving about how my search for the greatest black bean burger in Genesee County had finally ended, but now...I don't know. I may have to start looking again.

I asked our server if she knew of any changes made to the dish and she wasn't sure, but she knew what they used now was a Gardenburger. Gardenburgers are, in my opinion, the best quality brand vegan burger on the market. But now that I know that's what they are using, I can't help but think about the fact that I could easily assemble the same burger at home. It's not as special anymore to enjoy it at a restaurant.

However, this will not deter me, nor should it deter anyone else, from visiting Steady Eddy's in the future. They have plenty of other high quality, homemade dishes that include ingredients from the market downstairs. The waitstaff is always cheerful and attentive. The environment is warm and friendly.

Although my journey toward the greatest black bean burger may not be over, in the meantime I can still enjoy a great omelette or a bowl of homemade vegan chili at Steady Eddy's Cafe to fuel me along the way.