Noshwellmenu

East Hasting’s Perch is a self-styled gluten-optional eatery serving comfort food and local draughts on tap in a casual environment. They hang their hat outside the edge of Chinatown amongst the ramshackle storefronts — some decaying with age — while more recent additions sheltered by barred windows and doors.

Inside, the spacious eatery is enveloped by wood furnitures and fixtures, flanked by a bar in the back of the room. The menu is an eclectic mix of traditional diner food (burgers) — some, kicked up a few notches on the gluttony scale (i.e. the aptly named Death Burger stuffed with everything including the kitchen sink) — and thoughtful vegan alternatives.

I ordered the generically named Burger — 5oz. of irregularly shaped, handmade beef patty garnished with the usual lettuce and tomato and very lightly dressed with dijon mustard and mayo — all towering between two kaiser buns, which were unfortunately dry and crumbly. Perch gets points for the homemade patty, but it was a bit on the overcooked and under seasoned side. The ability to voluntarily unhinge your jaw to eat this monster would be a helpful skill.

Perch features a small, but respectable selection of draughts on tap from local breweries: R & B  and Central City. My burger was accompanied by a Red Racer stout, a light, creamy stout with a smooth finish.

Case’s Brie Melt was a vegetarian Jenga pile of avocado, cucumber, tomato, spinach, mayo and generous, thick, melty slabs of Brie cheese. Both our generously portioned burgers were mercifully accompanied by green salads and slaw (or your choice of spanish rice or soup — no ‘taters here).

Overall, Perch’s clean, friendly space is a nice reprieve from the gritty streets it occupies. The food was decent, and the ingredients fresh, but our meals didn’t bowl us over — missing seasoning and flavour in some places. Our meal, including taxes and tip came to $40.50, which tips Perch on the pricier side for a diner.

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