Both the east-side and west-side locations serve breakfast from 7-10:30 a.m.

Food

I’ve worked my way through each item on the breakfast menu at Life and Time Free Range Fast Food.

Life and Time is a fast-food restaurant with two locations in Bend focusing on clean, organic ingredients.

While the bowls, wraps and sandwiches are a healthy alternative to most fast food, it’s the breakfast menu that keeps my partner and I coming back again and again.

Both locations serve breakfast from 7-10:30 a.m. On the breakfast menu, Life and Time offers a traditional burrito ($7.50) and a sweet potato burrito ($8) with the option to wrap up both in a gluten-free wrap (additional $2).

These burritos are hefty. With the traditional burrito, there’s a choice between bacon or sausage and it comes with egg, Kennebec potatoes, cheddar cheese and Life and Time’s breakfast sauce.

According to my partner, a breakfast burrito aficionado, it’s the best breakfast burrito in town. It stays together, the ingredients are fresh, and it’s easy to eat on the go. The potatoes are crispy, the sauce is creamy and the ratio of eggs to potatoes and sausage is perfect. As an added bonus, it’s a great value for the price.

If I’m in the mood for a burrito, I’ll order the sweet potato burrito with a gluten-free wrap. It’s made with egg, black beans, sweet potatoes, corn, salsa, cilantro and Life and Time’s breakfast sauce. It’s lighter than the traditional burrito, but just as filling. And if I’m not super hungry, I usually have leftovers for later.

The ingredients of the fresh frittata ($8.50) are lovely; however, they are served on the side of the three fried eggs rather than whipped into the eggs. I’m sure this concession was made in the name of speed, as I’ve never had to wait long after ordering.

My go-to breakfast is the power bowl ($7.50). When I ordered it last week, the two fried eggs were neatly sliced in half and arranged on one side of the bowl. On the other side was brown rice and half of a thinly sliced avocado. All of it was drizzled with a creamy superfood sauce and sprinkled with house-made everything seasoning. It’s the superfood sauce that makes the power bowl special. It’s creamy and made with lemon juice, which adds a refreshing tartness.

And it’s almost guaranteed that I’ll order my breakfast with a bonded coffee ($5). The bonded coffee is what is commonly called bulletproof coffee, made with butter and medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil. One of the staff suggested ordering it with cocoa for a touch of sweetness.

Service

When I walked up to the counter, a woman was being helped at one register. The other line was open and set up as a self-ordering kiosk. I walked up to the kiosk and selected my order by tapping large, easy-to-find buttons that displayed photos of each menu item.

I liked that I could take my time, but the system did ask me to confirm my presence multiple times so it wouldn’t time out. A staff member kindly checked in on me as I made my order. He said the self-ordering kiosk had been installed only the previous week.

Atmosphere

Usually, I’ll pick up food from Life and Time by pulling through the drive-thru at the west-side location. Last week, I dined inside for the first time at the east-side location, which doesn’t have a drive-thru.

I enjoyed looking at the canvas photos on the wall of people enjoying the outdoors. However, like most fast-food restaurants, it didn’t invite me to linger after I had finished my meal. The music was loud, and it felt sterile. While I might not return to dine inside, I know either my partner or I will be back soon, picking up breakfast. Life and Time’s quality, speed and price are hard to beat.

More info

Contact, location and hours:

lifeandtime.com

West-side location:

320 SW Century Drive #100, Bend

541-797-0168

7 a.m.-8 p.m. daily

East-side location:

1462 NE Cushing Drive, #120, Bend

541-728-2105

7 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Saturday

Price Range: $3.50-$14 per menu item