Foodie Experiences
A Moody Centre brunch room built by people who thought pancakes deserved a wider window, with deep booths, rattan lamps and a flight of mimosas on a board.
Moody Centre, Clarke St
More infoThe Hard Bean started because Heather and Steve Rhodes could not find anywhere local serving pancakes when their daughters wanted them, so they built the room themselves. That stubbornness is the whole personality: brunch treated as a feeling rather than a slot, waffles and bennies running long past the hour most kitchens give up. The Clarke Street room is wide and bright with deep grey booths, rattan pendants and a living greenery wall, one block from the Port Moody Station Museum and walking distance to Brewers Row.
Doors open at 9 seven days a week and the kitchen runs late, so this is the rare brunch room that does not punish a slow start. Ask for one of the deep grey booths along the wall rather than a centre table; the room is wide and gets loud, and the booths take the edge off. Order the Yorkshire Benny at $17.50 or the Hard Bean Co. Hash at $19.95, and put a mimosa flight on the table, four glasses on a board, because it is the thing this place is actually known for and it beats picking one. Portions run moderate rather than enormous, so a side is fair game. Parking on Clarke Street is free and unmetered, Moody Centre station is a five-minute walk, and Rocky Point Park and Brewers Row are both a short stroll for whatever comes next.
Been here? Share a useful detail from your visit, or ask what you want to know before going. Reader experiences are self-reported.
