Wake Up To FirstBake

With the internet connection at my house often being spotty, and sometimes non-existent, I've been spending more and more time at cafes and coffee shops. Though I've been trying to visit a new coffee shop every time I find myself in need of free Wi-Fi, I often find myself coming back to FirstBake again and again. A farmhouse style morning cafe found within Farmers Fishers Bakers in the Washington Harbor at The Georgetown Waterfront, FirstBake serves coffee, teas, fresh squeezed orange juice, toast, and other small breakfast items from 7:30am-10am, Monday through Friday.

I have now been to FirstBake at least five times, and have tried nearly everything on the menu. Though this many visits may seem pretty normal, I live in Alexandria, and only work in DC one day a week, so I have been going out of my way to wake up early and get to Georgetown before 10am, and every lost minute of sleep has been completely worth it.

At first it was a little difficult to choose between the english muffins, cinnamon rolls, donuts, breakfast tacos, oatmeal, and toast, but each item being priced under $4 made it really easy to just choose multiple items, and on my first visit I ultimately decided on the orange juice, english muffin, and cranberry orange toast with honey butter. 

The cranberry orange toast was simple amazing. The thickness and fluffiness of the toast made me think I was biting in to a piece of french toast, (without syrup of course). It has a wonderful orange flavor and  I've typically only been used to  experiencing orange "bread" in cake form, so it was nice to have an orange bread that wasn't too sweet. The english muffin was a little too crispy for my liking, as I prefer my english muffins to simply be warm and soft, and not toasted to a crisp, but I'm sure the staff would be super accommodating if I made a request for a less toasted muffin in the future, as the staff here offers great service!

On my second visit I ordered the Steel Cut Oatmeal,  which comes with a side of raisins, almonds, brown sugar, and vanilla cream. These are all the ingredients you would want in an oatmeal, providing the perfect amount of sweetness, crunch, and creaminess to your bowl.

I also ordered more toast during my second visit. Though the Cranberry Orange toast is still my favorite  of the three flavors I've tried, the 7 Grain with Cinnamon Butter and Apple Walnut Raisin with Cream Cheese and Cinnamon Sugar were nothing short of great.  

On yet another visit I went with the Breakfast Taco (with bacon) and the Donuts.

After eating the Cranberry Orange Toast, I thought that would be my favorite item from the menu here, but this Breakfast Taco now tops my list (so far at least, as I still have to try a few more items). The bacon bits are the perfect addition to the taco, and give me my bacon fix without making me guilty like I normally do after I eat two or three strips of bacon at any other restaurant. I also cannot rave enough about the flour tortillas themselves as they remind me of my grandma's homemade tortillas. 

The FFB Donuts are basically the beignets you would find at Founding Farmers, served without sauces on the side. The donuts are tasty enough on their own that I really didn't miss the sauces too much. 

Since FirstBake is not exactly centrally located, I'm sure it's difficult for a lot of people to get to Monday-Friday mornings, but it's definitely worth the extra effort of leaving the house a little bit earlier, or visiting on a day you don't have to be in the office until later, or even using a visit here as an excuse to arrive to work late (you can take items to go). Though I ordered multiple items on each of my visits, the portions are generous, and one item is definitely sufficient to keep you fueled up through lunch.

You can take a look at FirstBake's full menu here: http://www.farmersfishersbakers.com/menus/first-bake/