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Want outdoor dining without really eating outdoors? Try Firefly Bistro for a unique experience. Upon entering, you find yourself in a canvas tent, surrounded by lush plant life. Now that the record breaking heat wave has lifted, sitting in this non-air conditioned locale is very pleasant and relaxing. The fans and open spaces help bring in a gentle cross-breeze. The menu changes regularly, and on this day for brunch, a limited but appetizing list of entrees were listed. Mixed drinks are primarily soju-based.

What caught my eye on the beverages list was “European-Style Hot Chocolate” for $4.75. Apparently, Firefly takes a brick of Swiss chocolate and melts it down with milk. It is then poured into a tea pot and brought to your table. I gave this a shot, and when I poured my first cup, the color didn’t look much different than the powdered hot chocolate to me. It didn’t even look very thick when I was pouring my first cup. My doubts all left after my first sip. This was so rich in flavor. For all chocolate lovers, this is the drink for you. It’s definitely not thick and velvety like the chantico Starbucks used to sell, but Firefly’s hot chocolate is definitely a lot more drinkable than the super sweet chantico. One teapot of this hot chocolate gives about 2 and a half cups of enjoyment.

I did have something more substantial for my lumch. After consulting the waiter, I decided on the orange-chipotle shrimp frittata ($12.50). The frittata was good, though it would have been quite bland without the orange-chipotle sauce and the tablespoon of pesto on the side. I have to admit, I couldn’t quite taste the orange, but the chipotle brough a subtle kick to each bite. The avocado really complemented the different flavors. I felt slightly jilted on the shrimp, as I think I only got two pieces that were halved to give the impression of four pieces of shrimp in the frittata. Nevertheless, it was well prepared. The potatoes on the side, on the other hand, were a different issue. I suspect that a whole batch of potatoes were cooked earlier, and they were probably sitting in a separate tray until needed. You can tell that they weren’t so fresh, as the potatoes were slightly soggy, lacking the crispness one would expect from looking at their golden color.

My brunch companion went for the green goddess omelette (also $12.50). We kind of expected them to chop up all the veggies into fine bits, but we were pleasantly suprised instead to fine whole pieces artichoke hearts. She also got a side dish of grits with her meal. For those who have never had grits, think polenta meets porridge. I’ve had grits only a couple of times, and they certainly are not my favorite side dish. However, I do think that the grits here make a wonderful partner to the omelette. The grits here are a lighter than the ones I’ve had before, less sticky. While Firefly does make their grits smoother in texture, they are still courser than polenta. My brunch buddy also agrees with me about how disappointing her potatoes were.

In general, I do have to recommend Firefly. The ambience is lovely, and the food (for the most part) is quite good. The service, from what I observed, is friendly and attentive. I say “observed,” because I watched our waiter and the owners/chefs greet all the other diners and repeatedly check that they were happy with everything. My table did not experience such attention for some reason. In fact, even when guests leave, at least a couple people thank the customers for dining there and invite them to come back. When we left, we were completely ignored. Usually in such situations, I leave a smaller amount in tip or recommend to the person who is paying to do so. Fortunately for Firefly, the food was good, so we gave the minimum 15%.

1009 El Centro St.
South Pasadena, CA 91030
(626) 441-2443

Hours:
Mon-Wed 11:30am-2:30pm, 5:30pm-9:30pm
Thu-Fri 11:30am-2:30pm, 5pm-10pm
Sat 10am-2pm, 5:30pm-10pm
Sun 10am-2pm

By Pauline (see more of her posts).