The Elbow Room Cafe has been around a long time. Along Davie Street, but out of the West End, and officially in the high-rise, high rent district. It's a favourite among tourists and some locals too, though why isn't readily apparent.
There are rules posted in the menu, which are more an invitation to be entertained in a certain way. Don't ask for water, get it yourself, We'll bring you your first cup of coffee, after that, get it yourself. Getting crowded: leave. Don't like our choice of language: too bad.
Be prepared for banter from the servers that is rude, crude and sometimes hostile. It's all part of the act, and it works for a once-in-a-while visit. And while it isn't quite elbow-room-crowded, it is pleasantly small and intimate; the better to hear all the conversations.
To keep the locals coming back, the food could be a wee bit better, though the helpings are generous and the flavours possibly from natural sources. What can I say? It's a breakfast place and the reason anyone is here is to see how close the servers can come to being offensive. Underneath the layers of feigned anger and abusiveness, it's all about caring for each other. More or less. Maybe.
Great shtick but the food: meh.
Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.
