Fabulous benny bowl at The Sweatered Hen

It was the best breakfast I’ve had in Calgary in years… and the most expensive. It was a BBQ brisket bowl at the Beltline’s Sweatered Hen. At $23.50, it was worth every glorious forkful.

A newish Beltline classic

Here’s what was in this outsized bowl. Two perfectly poached, medium-runny eggs smothered in house-made hollandaise. Loads of roasted potatoes and onions, along with burnt brisket ends, swimming in Kansas City BBQ sauce.

What put it over the top was the execution. Quality ingredients. Efficient delivery. Everything hot, including the house-made potatoes, which in many places are just warmed-up hash browns. Bottomless cups of locally roasted coffee (an additional $4).

Being a bowl, my meal didn’t come with toast. Didn’t miss it. In fact, my companion and I could scarcely finish our marvellous breakfasts. His Mediterranean bowl was a whopping $26.50, but with an ingredient list this long (see photo), he wasn’t complaining.

The catchily named The Sweatered Hen is the inspiration of owner and chef Andrea Darling, who also started Calgary sandwich shop L’il Black Rooster.

The Sweatered Hen
819 17 Avenue SW, Calgary
Opens daily at 8 am
587-387-7272