Brunch at The Blue Fox

Rosamunde Harcourt (2nd right) & staff at the Blue Fox. Photo by Deanna Ladret

Everyone loves a trusty brunch spot, where the eggs are always served just the way you like them, the ‘fresh fruit plate’ is actually fresh and where all your frustration from wardrobe indecision or the lineup at the door disappears with the first sip of hot coffee. Where, like a compass, the friendly servers and brightly decorated walls cheerily nudge you away from early-morning cynicism (or is it just a hangover?) and align you towards another good day.

Located on Fort Street’s 900 block – part of the newly minted Mosaic Village – The Blue Fox Cafe has been nourishing downtown dwellers for twenty years. Its longevity and unwavering popularity is a significant feat for any restaurant, especially in Victoria. It’s been hard work, admits owner Rosamunde Harcourt, who arrived at the cafe for our chat after a last minute potato-run to the Saanich Peninsula.

Harcourt opened the Blue Fox when she was 28 years old, before brunching came into vogue. “People didn’t used to go out for breakfast,” she recalls. “Now, of course, it’s caught on.” Caught on, indeed. The Blue Fox blazed the trail for dozens of other brunch restaurants across town, many of which now echo the cafe’s overflowing wait list and jam-packed attendance every weekend.

The Blue Fox has kept up its mainstay reputation through a commitment to quality ingredients like local free range eggs, Bond Bond’s Bakery toast, and made-from-scratch sauces and jams. A little shtick never hurts either, as fans of the Blue Fox salt & pepper shaker display can appreciate.

According to Harcourt, people now bring their unusual or decorative shaker sets to add to the cafe’s collection, which lines the shelves in front of the kitchen window. When people start bringing their belongings to your restaurant as gifts, you know you’ve made it.

The Blue Fox

919 Fort Street

250-380-1683