Silvestre Deli and Bistro

Wandering around Gastown on Saturday morning around 9:30am. Not many restaurants were open serving a big breakfast. We originally wanted top try Calabash; however they did not open until 10:00am. We were hungry and ready for breakfast. Along  Water Street, a store that looks like a gelato shop was serving all day breakfast, sandwiches and their regular Peruvian menu.

Tortilla Ham Breakfast ($12) came with warm and crispy ciabatta bun and a choice of coffee or tea (English Breakfast). Tasted average and was not worth 12 bucks.

Side sauces: wow these three side hot sauce were delicious. They tasted homemade with distinct levels of hotness. We both thought that the sauce was lovely in addition to our meal.

Tortilla Chorizo Breakfast ($12). This omelette like dish was topped with lots of meat and garnished with parsley.This was really salty for veggie girl's palate. To make matters worse, it was a tad greasy underneath the dish. There are many other places we could check out if we waited until 10am.

The service felt rushed as a group of 6 was coming in. They wanted to combine our table of 5 with another 4 top.  We were waiting for the rest of our party to return from the restrooms, and while this was going on they started whiping our table while we were still sitting there, and the next group to arrive was standing awkwardly, and apologetically behind us waiting to sit down.  There were plenty of other tables available, and there was no request from the staff for us to move.  We would've been happy to move if requested, but we were not expecting the group to sit in our table, and felt this was not the best way the staff could've handled the situation.  Ultimately this experience will be tarnished by the events that occured at the end of the meal.

OVERALL:

+ Has dinner potential with authentic Peruvian menu
+ Good location for gelato and convenient to get to
+ Casual dining and funky decor

- Service was non existent: didn't get to ask about the hot sauce, did not get coffee or tea refills
- Expensive for breakfast and dinner options

Pear Delicatessen

On our Easter Long Weekend trip to Seattle we took the train to downtown, and were quite hungry after looking for breakfast on Easter Sunday.  Not surprisingly (although at the time to us it was) there wasn't very much open, even in downtown.  We thought our best luck would be around Pike Place, so that is where we headed.

Rather than wait inline at some of the more popular venues (Piroshky Piroshky, or Le Panier) we chose to go somewhere that would fill our food needs quickly.  This lead us to the Pear Delicatessen along Pike Place.  Pear Deli was inside of a shop that had a lot of local foods and drinks, so there was plenty to look at while you waited.

Reuben decided to go with the Salmon Lox on a Pumpernickle Bagel.  This was a satisfying choice as it had plenty of cream cheese, smoked salmon, red onion and capers.  The bagel was also excellent.
Veggie Girl went for the Ham and Cheese Croissant.  The croissant was still soft despite being toasted, and the cheese seemed to be processed.  The flavours were on point, and this was a satisfying choice.

Although this choice came out of desperation it ended up being a good decision, and in my mind was a better option than waiting inline at the tourist traps down the street.

Summary:
+ Great alternative to the busier restaurants in the area
+ Delicious food
+ Interesting shop
- Not a lot of seating, better for takeout