During our stay at the Grand Canyon we ate at both the the El Tovar Restaurant and the Arizona Room at the Bright Angel Restaurant.
Maybe lunch and dinner are better but our breakfast was just plain terrible. It is the first bad meal we have had during our trip to the US so far.
We both ordered the two egg breakfast with bacon and fried potatoes which came with a strawberry on the side.
The food was reasonably presented but when we started to eat we realised just how bad it all was. Normally at least something in a meal will be okay but with this meal everything tasted terrible. For me to say this, means that it must be bad as anyone who knows me knows that I am not fussy with my food and will eat practically anything.
The poached eggs were overcooked to the point of being hard boiled. The bacon was chewy and tough and difficult to cut, and the potatoes were soft and greasy and dried in the middle. The whole meal looked and tasted like it had been sitting for quite a while and was haphazardly reheated to serve up to us.
We did arrive about 20 minutes before closing time for breakfast so perhaps the chef was closing up the kitchen. You may find a better breakfast served up to you if you go earlier. But even so, if they are going to advertise breakfast to 11am then then they should continue to provide a quality breakfast right up until closing time.
About the only good thing about this restaurant was the view from our table which was on the Canyon side and provided some spectacular views. Also the waitress who served us was pleasant and helpful.
Our other two meals at the Canyon were in the Arizona Room at the Bright Angel Lodge.
For lunch we both had the half sandwich meal which included a pickle, fries and soup of the day. The soup was smoked corn chowder and was absolutely delicious and very warming as it was freezing outside.
The sandwich was okay but I wouldn’t say it was great – the bread roll was tough and it was difficult to eat as half the contents of the sandwich would spill out with each bite. Wanda had the vegetarian sandwich and I had the chicken salad sandwich but neither were particularly tasty…just okay.
The fries were really nice and so was the pickle on the side. Pickles are something that are served up with a lot of meals in the US and I love the idea.
Wanda also ordered a chocolate milkshake and I ordered a hot chocolate. They were both delicious.
For dinner at Bright Angel we ordered food to share. As we weren’t terribly hungry we thought we might order two appetizers instead of a main meal.. We ordered a dozen oysters and a quesidilla which doesn’t sound like much but the meals were huge and we couldn’t eat it all.
Having said that however, we did order a dessert to share which was Blueberry and Peach Strudel which came ala mode (which means it is served with ice cream). This was delicious.
In all, the meal was quite tasty and well presented but nothing to write home about.
Our waitress, Mary, on the other hand deserves a special note. She provided excellent service and was very helpful and chatty and showed genuine interest.
Note: This review has been updated since was first posted in 2008.
This is the perfect meal! I love to eat delicious!