Audrey’s Kitchen

4834 SE Division St
Portland, OR 97206
(503) 233-1121

(no website available at this time)

In search for good brunch one day, I stumbled into Petit Provence, a delightful french bistro/bakery in the middle of southeast Portland! It was an elegant storefront on a street that has known better days. Hopefully, a place like Petit Provence will bring other businesses in to liven up Division street. The wait was considerable on a weekend morning, but well worth it. For the most part, the service was excellent. Our host, however, seemed a little sleepy and wasn’t too bright. While we were 2nd in line, we had a party of 3. A couple was vacating a table for 4, and we thought he was going to seat us there. Along the side the entrance where the booths are, 2 couples were leaving at the same time, so it would have made most sense to seat us at the larger table, and then seat the couple ahead of us at a 2-person table. Instead, he placed the couple at the 4 person table, and squeezed 3 people into a tiny 2-person table.

Cramped quarters aside, the attention to detail was excellent. Each table had their own basket of freezer jams and butter for morning pastries. I ordered the Petit Provence Omlette, soft and fluffy with tender bits of sausage, served with delicately seasoned hashbrown. It came with a choice of toast or muffin-I chose the muffin to my immense satisfation. It piping hot, tender, with slightly crispy edges. The intense poppy seed and lemon flavor off-set the sweetness and was the perfect begining to any rainy Portland morning.

My dining companion, (not the little girl, she and I shared the omlette) ordered their version of Eggs Benedict: fresh ham served atop a croissant instead of the usual english muffin. No picture was taken but it was a sight to behold. Their croissants are tender, flaky, and luciously buttery. It alone is the highlight of the meal, but with the strong poached egg and ham presence, it just didn’t seem to hold its own.

We did like the croissant so much that we tried to order one separately but was told that they were out. The server was so cute and anxious to have us try other varieties, but a plain croisssant was what the Kid wanted, so we declined. 5 minutes later, our waitress came out bearing the beloved crossiant on a dish just beaming with happiness because she managed to track down a croissant for us. That was so unexpected and very much appreciated. When the bill came, we were amazed that she didn’t even charge us for it, so we left her a big tip and vowed to come back often.

On our way out, we stopped to examine their extensive pastry display and purchased several baked goods to take home and share with our friends. Brunch is inexpensive. You could eat a hearty meal for less than $10 here and their impressive array of pastries start out at $1 and some change. This was a wonderful find and I can’t wait for another rainy day to warm up with a delightful brunch at Petit Provence.