Blizzard Home Brunch with help from S&S, Cambridge, MA

Last weekend, right after Xmas, there was a pretty strong blizzard messing up Brunch plans for all Brunchers in the Northeast. That's why Ani and I decided to stay home and prepare our own, with a little help. We did not feel like anything too heavy, so we did away with the Eggs, and decided that it was a Bagel and Lox kind of day. So, off I ran to S&S, through the snow, mind you, to get our fix and bring home the bounty. S&S is an Inman Sq. institution. Although we go there often enough, there has not been a posting in this blog about this establishment (although we have posted some thoughts on its sister restaurant, Ryles). That is why I won't go into the details of describing S&S (or its menu) thoroughly. I'll save that for a future posting. Let it just be said that S&S is THE jewish deli in Cambridge and probably in the whole of Boston (some people claim they have some competition from Zaftigs in Coolidge Corner). This is the place to go to get Lox and Bagels.

Armed with a healthy portion of fish and two Bagels (one sesame, one everything) I went back home, where freshly brewed hawaiian coffee, OJ and warm scones (courtesy of our friend Jenni) were waiting for me. Fortunately, we also had some home made cranberry jam, a project of Ani's that put to good use the fresh berries  that came with our box of vegetables from our CSA. All in all, it was a great experience and a fun way to stay warm and away from the snow, while not giving up our Brunch rights.

Orinoco Restaurant, Boston, MA

By now, you may have realized Diego and I live in the Boston area. So, if you know anything about the culinary world around here you might be wondering how can we have a brunch blog and never blogged about any South End spots....

We did most of that area before starting the blog and, trying not to repeat places, we hadn't been back in a while.

That changed this weekend, when we brunched at Orinoco, a cozy Venezuelan restaurant located in Boston's South End, with great atmosphere, delicious passion fruit -panchita- juices and filling arepas.

The menu is mostly comprised of small plates; empanadas, fried sweet plantains, bacon-wrapped dates, seven different types of savory arepas, and two sweet arepas (banana and berries). There are also bigger plates, like salads -although we didn't try them, so I don't know how "big" they actually are- a pork sandwich and several breakfast plates.

I ordered just an arepa (a grilled corn pocket sandwich) with stewed

shredded beef, called arepa Mechada. First, let me say that the sauce was absolutely delicious; tomato-based and slightly sweet, complemented the tender meat perfectly. Second, the arepas come as they are -no garnishes or side

dishes; a 3in. corn dough with about four tablespoons of filling. Ex-post, I know that would have been enough for me (a petite woman), but ex-ante, I had to order something else for the meal to feel complete. I went with the fried green plantains, one of my all-time favorite caribbean dishes and a great option at Orinoco; without sugar added and at the right point exactly before getting crispy.

Diego, also thinking that one arepa would not be enough went even further and ordered the Resuelto breakfast plate. It was basically a "deconstructed" Mechada (meat on the plate and arepa on the side), with tomato and fried onion scrambled eggs, and black beans. A powerful dish aimed to feed any Latin macho. As such, Diego finished it all helped with many cups of coffee and a passion fruit juice.

I also had a passion fruit-based beverage: a passion fruit mimosa that arrived at the table at the same time we were finishing the meal(!), as if it were an aperitif, rather than an actual drink. But it was so amazingly delicious that I didn't say zilch and I zipped it as dessert.

All in all, Orinoco was a great discovery. It felt very authentic and the food tasted and looked really homemade. In addition, we got there exactly before the place started getting crowded. There were three of us (Pablo, the third bruncher had the berries sweet arepas) and we could choose between a small table and a booth. A couple of minutes later it would have been no longer the case. However, I was checking the waiting line the whole time and I don't think anyone waited for more than 10 minutes (there are not that many tables; just enough to fit the crowd) a clear plus when looking for a relaxed place to brunch.

The Gazebo Restaurant, Maui, Hawaii

Yes, you read it correctly. We are in Hawaii. And it's Sunday... Actually, we weren't planning on having brunch; lunch plates are more the style around here. We were looking for a casual light lunch on the beaches near Kapalua and we discovered The Gazebo, an out-the-way "beach dinner" with award-winning omelets.

Let me first say that the view was absolutely stunning. Diego complained about our table a little bit at the beginning -by the window, with amazing views of Napili bay- but then he changed seats (on the same table) and saw this

and found his cool.

This was only momentaneous, though. His food choice was as uncool as his initial mood... Instead of going for the obvious option -the gazebo eggs Benedict!-, he ordered a tuna sandwich. He said he thought it would be a grilled tuna sandwich.... But we were in a dinner!!! so a tuna salad sandwich was brought to the table. As with the view, he was initially unhappy, but then admitted that the sandwich tasted quite good, and that it was more beach-compatible than any other item in the menu. To drink, he ordered a POG -passion fruit, orange and guava- juice. Super refreshing and delicious.

By now you must be wondering whether we may have expanded our idea of brunch to tuna sandwiches just to say we went to Hawaii...

We didn't. I did have eggs -should we say at least one person in the table has to order eggs to be considered brunch I'll have to check all the previous postings to be certain of this...- I had the chicken and basil (and tomato) omelett, topped with Jack cheese and accompanied with home fries and four heavily buttered toasts. The omelett was cooked to my taste - not runny- but the chicken was a bit bland. The basil's flavor helped it significantly, however, and I ended up devouring three quarters of it. The home fries were on the hashy side, but quite decent. Treasoning my brunch principles (diego's fault), I also went with the POG and passed the coffee. So, was this the perfect brunch? Certainly not. Was this the perfect setting? You bet!

Brunch in Cambridge at Brookline Lunch, Cambridge, MA

Say you are in Cambridge, MA and Saturday sneaks up on you. You decide you've had a long enough week and it is time to forget about the uninteresting details of everyday life and concentrate on the important things. You decide you want to go out for Brunch. Cambridge? Brunch? Where do you go? Brookline Lunch???????????????? You bet!

Ok, I agree it is a confusing name for a Brunch spot in Cambridge. The fact it is called Brookline has nothing to do with the neighboring town, but with the address of this establishment on Brookline St. (by the way, this is the first time since Ani and I are writing this blog that we come across an establishment with no official web site! In any case, here's a link to a Yelp! page with all the necessary info). Lunch, I don't understand. Maybe they thought lunch would be their thing when they opened this place. Maybe people do go for lunch. Maybe it hints at the fact that prices are more lunch like than dinner like... Whatever the reason you should not be discouraged and consider this hidden gem as an option for the Mother of All Meals when in Central Square.

Brookline Lunch is located in a little rundown building just off Mass Ave. The decor is eclectic and dominated by exposed brick walls and old artifacts/toys that might have been forgotten and left there by previous tenants 60 years ago. Tables are old and a little bit unstable. Still, the whole atmosphere is mostly dominated by pieces of art borrowed from Out of the Blue Art Gallery, which is located not far, on Prospect St. I believe this establishment was closed for repairs for a while (can't tell what was it that needed to be fixed) last year, but it is now back in business full blast.

Now, one of the main features of this place is that it is clearly inexpensive. Don't expect fancy cutlery or table centerpieces. On the other hand, affordability lures in a pretty interesting and heterogeneous crowd ranging from hungry grad students to starving poets and artists. The establishment has a family-owned-and-run feel and everything is cooked to order. The menu is dominated by egg-based food divided by categories: Egg breakfast sandwiches, Benedicts, Eggs+ (like Eggs + Bacon) and Pancakes with Eggs (yeah, pancakes are considered egg based food). As always I decided to give the Eggs Benedict a try. The main reason I was attracted to this option is that they offer a wide variety of Benedict-like dishes, where different ingredients take the place of the thick cut ham. I went with the Bacon Benedict. It was really tasty, I have to say. Eggs were perfectly cooked and the home fries (of which I'll say more in a second) were perfect. The only complaint is that bacon was a little scarce. It is obvious to me - and we can put it up for vote - that two strips of bacon are needed per English Muffin. At Brookline you'll get one. Of course, you can't complain about value, even with the one strip per muffin situation. Ani, on the other hand, went with the Ham and Cheese Egg Sandwich. It had a great home-made look (and taste!). As with all dishes, home fries accompanied the sandwich in style. These home fries are something else, I'll tell you that. Crispy on the outside and soft inside, mixed with all sorts of vegetables, from large pieces of green peppers to broccoli, they are a great side to any dish and great way to jump start your weekend. One more thing: do not forget to ask your server for the home made hot sauce - it goes great with the potatoes.

All in all, this is a great option for a low key Brunch experience in Cambridge, where sometimes it gets steep to have a good meal. We will certainly be back.

Wedding Brunch at Cornelia, Greenwich Village, NYC

It has been a few days since our last posting, but this does not mean we have not been brunching. The main reason behind our disappearance  was the wonderful Thanksgiving break in Ahmerst, MA (and as great as the turkey was I should not tell you much about it as TG dinner is clearly not a Brunch experience). More interestingly, the weekend before last we went to NYC to attend Pablo's and Vicky's wedding. Since they got married at city hall, the festivities consisted of lunch after the wedding and Brunch the Sunday before. It was a fun event and the the groom's and bride's families were there, as well as a few friend like Ani and myself. Visiting from Spain was Anastasia (which has also made a previous appearance in this blog), from Houston, TX, Gustavo and from Adrogue, via NYC, Mercedes.
Given the size of our party, finding a Brunch spot in Manhattan was a little bit of a challenge. Pablo and Vicky solved this problem successfully by picking Cornelia Street Cafe. This establishment is tucked away in a little street (Cornelia) just off Bleecker in the heart of the Village. Ani and I were assiduous visitors at Cornelia back when we were living in NJ. It is a very relaxed cafe where you can chill out and enjoy great Eggs Benedict and Bloody Marys while taking in the awesome atmosphere of a Sunday morning in the Village. Particularly amusing is the fact that they fully open their windows in Summer and you can take the art of people watching to new heights.

On top of that they offer a very comprehensive Brunch menu, including a Prix Fixe option, which was the usual choice for Ani and I. Luckily for us, the wedding Brunch consisted of such fixed menu. This is what you get: Coffee/Tea, Bloody Mary/Mimosa, a piece of pastry (like the wonderful warm chocolate bread from Amy's Bakery just across the street) and an entree. While people around the table ordered different dishes, the Eggs Benedict and the Quiche were the most popular choices and, as it happened, Ani and I each ordered one of these (can you guess who got the Eggs Benedict???). The Eggs Benedict are just great here. They are usually cooked to perfection (in ~30 times I have been here I can remember only one less than perfect Egg) and covered with a formidable Hollandaise, not too thick, not too runny.  The Bloddy Marys are also very solid and consistent. While they are not the best ever, they are well above average and more than reasonable for the price of the Prix Fixe. Quiches are another one of Cornelia's specialties. They offer a different Quiche of the Day every weekend and they are usually very tasty. In our case, Ani got to enjoy a ham, bacon and cheddar quiche-bomb (there was also a less adventurous vegetarian quiche option). It was served with mixed greens and was more than enough to send you home happy. All in all, this is a great place and a very typical representative of the great Brunch scene that NYC has to offer.

While it is true that you might not be celebrating a wedding every weekend, it pays off to find an excuse to visit Cornelia as often as possible and enjoy life West Village style.

Fusion, Bloody Marys and Spice at East Coast Grill, Cambridge, MA

This week Ani and I decided we wanted to give East Coast Grill a try for Brunch. We had been there before for dinner and I was particularly interested in visiting this Inman Square legendary establishment - ECG is consistently ranked as one of Boston's best restaurants - to enjoy the mother of all meals. There was one main reason for my unbridled enthusiasm. If you've been to Inman Sq. before you might think this was the fact that there is always a line outside or that they are solidly fully booked every night of the week. This was not the reason. Every time I walk by ECG, while on my Quest for the Perfect Brunch, I can see the most wonderful thing through their windows. It is a perfectly set up Bloody Mary self service bar with dozens of different ingredients to choose from to make the perfect eye opener. If this is not a reason to pick a Brunch spot, what is? But I am getting ahead of myself here... We'll get to that.

East Coast Grill is a pretty cool restaurant that serves a type of Latin-Southern fusion food where dishes are mostly (but not only!) seafood based. Culinary examples of what you might find in the menu go from fish tacos to southern style BBQ, making a quick detour through a raw bar where solid oysters are served. Also popular at ECG are their special events held around the year, the most popular of all being Hell Night. Truth to be said, the common denominator found in all dishes here is the fact that they tend to be rather spicy. I guess that is not a surprise in a latin-southern restaurant, but what is particular to ECG is that they make a statement out of it. Hell Night is just the main date in the calendar where this aspect is enthusiastically celebrated.

So, what about our brunch? While Ani went with her usual Grape Juice / OJ combo and coffee, I could not resist from venturing deep into the Bloody Mary bar described above. I decided to go with it head in first. When you order the drink, you get a tall glass filled with vodka and ice, topped with a lime and rimmed with hot spices. Then, off you go to the self service area where the sky's the limit. I decided to try a few things so I could have a general idea, but not too many so I could make out the particular tastes. I went with: Heart of Palm, Mango and Avocado fresh mix, Garlic and Chile sauce, Pickled Jalapenos, Olives, Tabasco sauce and Celery. Good, ain't it? If you think that's a lot, well... it was just a very small fraction of all options possible. Now, that does not make a Bloody Mary. There is one crucial ingredient left: Tomato juice. ECG offers three different options: standard tomato juice, Bloody Mary Mix and Clamato. Wonder what this last one is? It is tomato juice mixed with just the right amount of clams juice which makes the drink saltier and tastier. Of course, I decided to go with this last, more adventurous, option. The result was just amazing. Brunch perfection in a glass. I can hardly wait to come back and try a different combination.

What about the food? We opened with three oysters from the raw bar. They were meaty and tasty. Very solid, indeed. Ani is not a big fan of raw prehistoric animals in shells, so she asked for some cornbread croutons as a snack. Here we have to take our hats off to our waitress, as she agreed to serve us 3 oysters (while 6 is the norm) and the croutons (that were part of some other dish). After this prelude, and while I kept sipping from my self-made Bloddy Mary, we got to the entrees. Ani went with the Amilcar's Omelette, which comes with avocado, black beans, jack cheese, salsa verde, salsa roja, queso fresco and guava paste. I thought it was pretty good and I especially liked the salsa verde. Ani thought it was too much of a fusion dish (she confessed she is not very much impressed with latin fusion food, as all dishes tend to contain way too many ingredients) and did not like the fact that the black beans where inside the omelette and not mixed with the cheese. Not a complete success. I, on the other hand, nailed it. I got one of the specials. Salmon and Chorizo Cakes with fresh tomatillos and beans. It was just out of this world. The cakes where golden crispy and spicy, but very well complemented by the tomatillos. It was a perfect dish to pair my clamato based Bloody Mary.

I have to say I had a great time at East Coast Grill. Making my own Bloody Mary was fun and their ingredients were fresh and tasty. Oysters were a great way to start our meal. On top of that, my dish was remarkable. Maybe Ani, was not a 100% pleased with hers, but it might have not been the strongest dish in the menu. Furthermore, her complaints about latin fusion food made me feel she may have not been unbiased in her judgement. :)

East Coast Grill is an Inman Sq. classic and you will not be a local until you've visited it. What better time than Brunch to do so?

Minimalist Brunch at Market, Boston, MA

When you think of Brunch, do you have baroque images of big dishes filled with bacon, fries and other forms of grease based food in your head? Is your idea of the most important meal of the week a type of comfort food where quantity and overall goodness are more important than presentation? Do you like to sit at a spot where you can see right into the kitchen where a 20 year old is flipping your pancakes and poaching your eggs? Then you have no business visiting Market at the W hotel in Boston's Theatre District.
Ani and I have been meaning to visit this nicely setup establishment for a couple of months now. We first discovered the place when our friends Javier and Nicole (who have just happened to visit Boston again last week and have been immortalized in the previous posting!) visited Bean Town before their wedding and decided to stay at the W. If you visit their web page you'll see they describe themselves as "wicked cool". Well,... They are right. While waiting for Javier and Nicole at the lobby we were admiring the place and were very surprised to discover that Jean-Georges has a restaurant in the hotel. Apparently, Ani read about him in a New Yorker article so we decided to make a mental note to visit the place for Brunch sometime. That time was today.

Market has a very quiet and sophisticated atmosphere. It does not feel as a hotel restaurant at all. Tables are very nicely setup and the menu matches the wide range of offerings you can find at any top Brunch destination at Soho in New York. Prices are just a little steep but nothing to cry about. Also, how expensive can Brunch be?

On to the food and drinks! Besides our usual cups of coffee we decided to share two drinks. One was Ani's favorite mix of OJ and Grapefruit Juice in equal parts. The other was a drink that caught our attention: Lychee-Raspberry Bellini. I have to say I am not a big fan of Bellinis, but this one was quite tasty. Ani was not sure about the Lychee, but in the end she ended up having the whole drink for herself! I barely tasted it and heard that it was good...haha.

Ani decided to have a gruyere omelette with roasted potatoes (as always) and fresh tomato salad. It looked quite tasty and the vegetables were fresh and flavorful. Oh, there were also some toasts. But I took care of that...guess I was trying to compensate for the lost Bellini. On my side I went minimalist all the way. I decided to try a deconstruction of Eggs Benedict (I am also predictable, I guess). It was fresh smoked salmon served on top of hollandaise covered poached eggs resting over nicely cut baskets of brioche. Wow! The dish also came with a great side of fresh greens salad which included fennel as an ingredient. Just great.
Maybe we did miss some human warmth. Maybe the lack of students/actress/singers/poets/waitresses was noticeable. Maybe they called us "M'am" and "Sir" instead of "dude". But our servers were fully trained and efficient and everything was just right. We had a great Minimalist Brunch experience and recommend you have one too. Make the most of the weekend!

Russell House Tavern, Cambridge MA

For quite some time we have been looking for brunch places in Harvard Sq. Because the university attracts students and tourists in equal parts, brunch menus around the square tend to be either cheap breakfasts -sometimes with a texmex twist- or upscale prix fix meals. We love the latter, but you can't always pay $45 for brunch! Specially not this weekend, when a group of ten Argentinians crossed the Charles river to brunch with us and were eagerly waiting for our recommendation as to where to go. The whole thing was very spontaneous, and we found ourselves desperately thinking of places to go, where big parties could be quickly arranged and that would not make a big hole in our friends pockets. We remembered having seen the word "brunch" written on the windows of Russell House Tavern, a gastropub recently opened in the heart of Harvard Sq. Having dined there before, we knew the large downstairs room would be able to fit a big group. Since the dinner meal had not disappointed us -hearty French-accented American menu- we thought it would be good to give it a try.
Everyone at the table was very happy with their choice. Almost all of the men went for the "Pit Master"; a roasted pork and egg scramble served over golden toasts that was guaranteed to clog some arteries. Everyone of them finished the plate and did not utter a word while doing it, so I'm sure it was great.
Most of the women went for the more minimalist -although by no means healthier!- "Toads in the hole", one of my favorite breakfast meals. Rarely found in brunch menus (usually called "something" in a hole) it is a fried egg sandwich (in this case, sweet croissant, yummy) with the particularity that both slices have a round hole -a circle- cut in the middle, such that the yolk is left exposed. Of course, you are supposed to break it and eat the bread soaked in yolk. Delicious. The menu said it came with hash, but the side was more like homefries; small squares of fried potatoes. Also delicious.
Two people at the table went for the real healthy choice: the local leaf salad, a mix of greens, walnuts and dried figs dressed with a mustard-cider vinagrette. They both added shrimps to it; two huge chilled shrimps that topped the salad. Not only did the salads looked great, but they gave us a chance to test the patience and good manners of our server. Our friend Javier thought he had read grilled instead of chilled shrimp and complained and demanded the "error" to be fixed. Our poker-faced server brought a new salad with grilled shrimp. Then Javier decided it was ridiculous for the salad to come without bread (after all, everyone else at the table had some in their plates!), and he said so to the server. Once again, the server brought him some bread with a big smile on his face. There was a similar and final episode with the coffee... let's just say we left a generous tip!
As Russell House Tavern has a very sophisticated list of drinks and cocktails, we couldn't do without some alcohol. I went with a Mimosa, Javier had a classic Bloody Mary and the adventurous Diego asked for a bacon-infused-bourbon Bloody Mary. I asked him if it was similar to the one in Lord Hobo, but he said it was like comparing apples with pears, as one was with vodka and the other with bourbon. All comparisons aside, he quite liked it.
So, was this the perfect brunch? I personally enjoy being bathed by sunlight, even in winter, so I wouldn't always choose a downstairs salon (note that they have an upstairs room and a patio in summer...). But if you are in Harvard Sq. with a large group and do not feel like spending $45+ per person, Russell House Tavern comes close.

Tupelo, Cambridge MA

This weekend we stayed close to home. We went to Tupelo , a cozy Inman Square restaurant specialized in Southern comfort food. We had been there for dinner before, but for some reason we had never thought about it for brunch. Boy, we won't make the same mistake twice!
Diego said it was the best brunch meal he ever had. And I think he was mostly thinking about the egg and chorizo sandwich (roasted peppers, onions, cheddar and watercress on a portuguese sweet roll) with home fries, but the amazing service we had may have contributed to the feel-good atmosphere. I didn't catch our server's name, but the three of us (Diego's mom was there) agreed that he exuded "joie de vivre". With a big smile on his face, he complemented the whole brunch experience. He even convinced us to have dessert, something we never ever do when having brunch. The pecan pie from Petsi Pies (from the same owner as Tupelo's) was like nothing we'd ever had. Sweet but not overwhelmingly so, it had the perfect marmalade tying the pie together and a rich crust. It came with Toscanini's bourbon ice cream, made specially for Tupelo. We didn't care much for the ice cream (there was a tiny hint of bourbon, but it was mostly cream), although our lack of appreciation may have something to do with our unconditional loyalty to Christina's Ice Cream. Our server made sure we had fresh coffee throughout.
Ok. Let's get back to the brunch. We had the daily special crispy grits as an appetizer (deep fried grits squares) and they were just right. Super soft pureed in the middle and crunchy on the outside, it was the perfect southern comfort food in a bite size. I tried to compensate this high caloric intake with a spinach, apple, bacon and red cabbage salad, but I may have missed the mark by asking for the creole vinaigrette on the side. Everyone around the table agreed the mustard-based dressing was the best of the plate.
To drink, Diego ordered a local beer, Saint Botolph's Town from Pretty Things, and he said it was great; more than a beer, almost a brunch drink. I went with the classic half OJ, half grapefruit.
So, was this the perfect brunch? Yes, if we go with Diego's claim as he was biting his chorizo sandwich. I should try something "brunchier" (i.e. not a dressing-less salad!) next time to make a good judgement.... but even now I can say that if this is the perfect brunch, it is only such for winter; Southern comfort food may not be so comfortable to eat under a 110 degree sun!

Concord Inn, Concord MA

In Argentina, the third Sunday in October is Mother's Day. We were very lucky to have Diego's mom, Ely, in town to celebrate it 10,000 miles from her (and ours) country. We wanted to plan the perfect day for her. So, in the middle of a fall foliage trip we stopped to have Sunday brunch at the Concord Inn, in the charming and history-relevant Concord MA.
The Inn is any mother's delight (Ely even took pictures of the rose-lined ladies room!). It was built in 1716 and has operated as a hotel since 1889, and still conserves the floors distribution of yore. Different function rooms occupy the first floor, from a 19th century tavern, a casual restaurant (these two serve their standard weekly menu on Sundays), a very posh rose-and-lilies tea room, two small rooms and a traditional restaurant. Brunch is served in the last four, although the tea and the small adjacent rooms were reserved for a wedding party when we were there. The succulent brunch buffet was spread out across the three common areas that communicate the formal dining rooms with the more casual part of the building.
We sat at the Merchant's Row Restaurant, described as "refined but not formal" in the Inn's website; an accurate description to which I'd add antiquey and historic (some 18th-century like chandeliers and wallpapers) but not old-fashioned nor over the top. Well.... being greeted at the table by a lost Louisa-May Alcott who was worried about had happened to her 19th century Concord may have been too much.... but she was nice and the "act" did not take long.
So, onto the food. First let me say that we did not have very high expectations -especially Diego. It is a $26.95 all you can eat buffet brunch (all you can drink coffee and orange juice included) in a touristy landmark. We couldn't have been more wrong. From super fresh smoked salmon, shrimp and mussels to made-to-order perfectly-cooked omelets with seasonal ingredients and carved meat, all the food was fresh, tasty and superbly done. The cold offerings, besides the seafood, constituted of a cheese table, a fruit table (mostly different types of cantaloupe and pineapple, all ripe but not fermented) and various salads (a mesclum of greens, couscous-based, Caesar). I do not remember all the hot offerings (which shows I'm not a food critic, just an avid bruncher!), but these are the few I can think of: pasta with four cheese sauce, haddock in lemon sauce, German bratwurst with red cabbage... there were about seven or eight hot trays in total. In addition, there was a wide variety of breakfast meals. Bacon strips, potato pancakes, hash, scrambled eggs and waffles (with fresh cream and strawberry preserved for topping). Do you want more? Add freshly baked bagels, pastries and croissants. A special mention needs to go to the mini lemon poppy seed muffins which Diego said to be the best part of the meal, and that I very much wanted to take home in a stealth operation that he boycotted.
Was it over? Of course not! There was still dessert to be had. We tried the apple crumble (Diego's favorite), the flourless chocolate cake (Ely's pick), the key lime pie (my choice). All three delicious. I also had chocolate dipped strawberries and Ely took a bite of chocolate dipped profiterole. Had we wanted more, we could have also tried a yellow cream filled cone or a chocolate and fresh cream cake. Once again, I may be forgetting some other options. But I'm sure they were as good as the ones we did have.
So, was this the perfect brunch? Well, I had lox, cream cheese and bagel in a picture perfect setting. Diego didn't have eggs Benedict, but really good carved meat and omelet. That would have been enough. Instead we kept gushing all the delicacies until we had no more room left. The food, the setting, the service was great, the after-brunch feeling of having eaten all you could eat, not so much!

Friends and Brunch at Frances' Deli, Chicago, IL

Brunch has many fundamental social functions in our society and, as such, it has earned its place as a cornerstone of Western Civilization. One of such functions is to congregate friends in a relaxing atmosphere while the lasting effects of the previous night out dissipate into oblivion. My friends,  Agustin, Fernando & Jony, and I had a fun reunion in Chicago last weekend and decided to go out together on Saturday night. After we woke up the next morning, while still in the impenetrable mist that covers "the morning after", we decided to mindlessly walk towards a Brunch spot and relax while we did some catching up. Agustin, being the host, suggested we could pay Frances' Deli, in Lincoln Park, a visit. He lives nearby, in Lakeview, and the weather was so great we decided to walk over there. Although the place was always "five more blocks away" we eventually got there. I can tell you, it was definitely worth the walk.


Frances' Deli is a real gem right at the heart of Lincoln Park. It has been there since 1938 and they offer a wide variety of plates ranging from traditional NY deli to Midwestern diner style. The setting is quite nice and, if you visit them during the unusual times during which Chicago's weather allows for outdoors human life, they have some tables on the sidewalk. The perfect place to do some people watching.
Now, if you've had a long night, the quality and quantity of food in your Brunch is of utmost importance. That's why I order one of Frances' specialties: the skillet.

Looks great, doesn't it? This dish is just Brunch perfection in a hot ceramic container. What's in it? Potatoes, Mushrooms, Green Peppers, Onions, Habanero Cheddar Cheese and Two Eggs. Oh, also, because I thought this combination would not be able to restore my energies, I decided to add a "protein": corned beef. Wow! It was awesome. Couple that with a large glass of freshly squeezed orange juice and one gazilion cups of coffee and you're as good as new. Jony decided to have an omelet, which looked massive and Agustin seemed to have some sort of sandwich (it was early when he ordered and by the time I regained consciousness he was done with his dish....what can I say?). Fernando seemed a little affected by his late night adventures and he decided to play it safe and just ordered toasts.

Truth be said, we had some trouble standing up after finishing the opulent servings and we had to walk all over Chicago for the whole afternoon to burn those calories. But, it was goooood...

All in all, I loved this place. Food, setting and company were great and that is what makes the quintessential Brunch experience.

Brunch at a Classic Diner: Lou Mitchell's, Chicago, IL

As we documented last week, our friend Fernando visited Boston for a few days and we took him out for Brunch while he was here. He left for Chicago on Friday and was going to spend the weekend there with another friend of ours, Agustin. I had to go to Indiana on a business trip so I decided I would join them in the windy city for the weekend, relax and sample the Brunch scene over there. I said goodbye to Ani, who stayed in the Boston area, and seems not to have gone out for Brunch :( and off I went to Chicago.

I made arrangement to meet up with Fernando for Brunch on Saturday. I've been to Chicago many times and I wanted to take him to a Classic place. I instantly thought of Lou Mitchell's. This is a living monument to the Classic Diner in America, located just where historic Route 66 begins. What's even more important is that, in contrast with most other surviving diners out there, food here has remained high quality and fun for the last 85 years. Although the place has a long a distinguished history, I am ashamed to say that Ani (and I, as a natural consequence) heard about it for the first time two or three years ago when they were visited by the Top Chef TV show.

The procedure to visit Lou Mitchell's is by now standard. Drive to the West Loop in Chicago, just a few blocks from the famous Sears Tower. Drive by the main entrance and attempt to find the dream parking spot just there. Fail. Drive around the block and find a lucky spot on Jefferson St. Remember to be there early. They close at 3pm and there is a line most days. If you find a line do not worry, things move fast and while you wait you will be offered to taste their awesome donut holes sparkled with the right amount of powdered sugar. While Fernando and I did not find a line this time, we made sure we gave the donut holes a try before taking a seat. Delicious as ever.

The atmosphere inside is great and it seems like the place looks the same way it did 50 years ago. The first thing you notice when you sit down is the home made grape jelly and orange marmalade. Don't expect high end english delicacies! They are just goooooood! The other interesting detail is that as soon as your server takes your order they bring over a small plate with a slice of grapefruit and a small baked prune.

Fernando ordered one of their signature dishes: an Omelette served in a skillet with house potatoes. That's just bliss in a plate... well, skillet.   As I entered the restaurant I noticed they had an Eggs Benedict special. I decided to be adventurous and give it a try. It's always a good idea to be suspicious of diner Eggs Benedict. It's never quite right and the Hollandaise sauce could be a time bomb waiting to go off in your stomach... Nonetheless, I decided to live dangerously. The bet payed off. Although the Hollandaise was not fancy New York delicate, it was tasty and hearty. The eggs where perfectly cooked (although a little small for some reason) and the plate also included house potatoes. If I add to that the toast I stole from Fernando's dish, you can certainly call it a full Brunch meal.

Lou Mitchell's might not be a hip high end place in Manhattan but if you find yourself visiting Chicago and want to take a stroll down memory lane in old Route 66, you will not be disappointed by the tasty comfort food of the Classic American Diner.

The Paramount, Boston MA

Imagine you are walking down the quiet and regal streets of Boston's Beacon Hill and suddenly you hit a long line of people waiting for something on the street... what is this place? are they giving away free stuff? is it a restaurant? can we put our names down some list? how long do we have to wait in line? why are we waiting if there are so many empty tables? what the f@#%! is going on?!?!?
You will find the answers to all these questions as you wait 45' to an hour for your breakfast. And, if you've already been to The Paramount before, you will get to answer most of them as desperate first-comers try to understand what's going on. So, here they are: The Paramount is a restaurant that has been operating in Beacon Hill since 1937. It has a cafeteria-style breakfast where you wait in line to order your food (with a tray in hand) and not until you have the meal on your plate and have paid for it can you head for a table. They guarantee that there will be a table waiting for you. I've been there three times already and it has always been the case. Furthermore, you can play a game while you wait, and try to find a party that doesn't have a table ready by the time they leave the cashiers. Has not happened either... That's the reason for the line. A line that reaches the door will take about 45' to reach the cashiers. A line that extends to the street means about one hour of wait. You do not write your name anywhere and by no means you seat while waiting.
Waiting in line may sound like a deterrent.... but if you think carefully about it, it's not so bad. You would still wait for 45 minutes to an hour in any other place in downtown Boston on a Sunday. At The Paramount, at least you are under a roof, playing the game I described before, and constantly updating your meal choice as you continually check out the trays of those who successfully made it to the finish line.
The wait is worth it and you can work out a good appetite while at it. If not, ask Fernando, our guest for the week, who ordered not one but two brunches!!! 1- Breakfast sandwich (egg and cheese in a bagel) with sausage (inside) and homefries. 2-French toast. He didn't leave a crumble of these two very generous servings... In addition, he ordered a glass of carrot juice mixed with apple juice. The servers were really nice pointing out that they only had fresh green apple juice which may not taste as good, but he went for it and was great.
Diego and I opted for a "lighter" fare :). I had the breakfast special, which includes two eggs (over easy for me), homefries, toast and coffee; a bowl of super tasty fresh fruit (definitely one of The Paramount's most popular sides) and a large glass of carrot juice mixed OJ. Awesome!

Diego changed his mind a couple of times while we were waiting, because everything everyone ordered looked so delicious. He ended up ordering three yummy pancakes topped with fresh fruit (he said they are as good as those at Centre St. Cafe) and a side of sausages. He steered away from the carrot juice (which raised the curiosity among those waiting because it looked so orange and great) and ordered simple OJ instead.

It might not be the perfect brunch in the sense that it is not the most relaxed experience, with all the wait, the trays and the people staring at you while you eat. But the food is great, the staff super nice and the experience unforgettable.

Brunch @ home, courtesy of Barney Greengrass, NY

We wanted to celebrate Diego's dad's birthday in style. He had fallen in love with Barney Greengrass, the New York deli also known as the "sturgeon king", after seeing it featured in a No Reservations episode. However, he was in Boston for just a couple of days and there was no way we could fit a trip to New York in his busy schedule. So, what to do? We brought Barney Greengrass sturgeon and salmon to us!! Granted, shipping it was expensive, but it was worth it. The sturgeon was ridiculously meaty and tasty, and the color of the salmon was coral bright. Most importantly, after having been delivered overnight by FedEx, they were very fresh; if I hadn't known, we would've thought they were just bought locally. We ordered half pound of each, thinking we would have plenty for at least two meals. Instead, we devoured the entire lot in a seating, together with three bagels, a quarter pound of corned beef and a couple of ounces of cream cheese and chives, all from S&S. We had originally thought about accompanying it with poached eggs and hollandaise sauce, but after some consideration, we thought that would be too much. We also had some champagne in the fridge ready to prepare mimosas, but neither Diego nor Quito (Diego's dad) like them, so we did without. Is it brunch without eggs, homefries, or alcohol? I don't know. But we had a great time. And what's better than to have coffee and great fish with the people you love while wearing pjs?

The OTHERSIDE Cafe, Boston, MA

We had some shopping to do around Newbury St. It was warm and sunny so we said why not try Stephanie's? We made a reservation through Opentable.com. We thought we would beat the crowds. We were wrong.
It turns out Stephanie's on Newbury does not accept reservations for street-side brunch. This was not pointed out anywhere, either on their site or on Opentable. So, we got there, were treated really badly and were told to put our names down the 45-min waiting list. We had been walking around for an hour already, waiting for our reservation time, and so we were in no mood to wait for another hour. For some reason both Diego and I got in a very bad mood, and we both thought the afternoon would be ruined. Then we had an epiphany.

We suddenly remembered there was this cute little place on the other side of Mass Ave. we'd been meaning to take a shot at. We sat at the OTHERSIDE cafe and our day was automatically fixed. It was perfect; outdoor seating, great smoothies and super relaxed customers and servers. It is on "the other side" in

every aspect. Geographically, it is located on Newbury, but across Massachusetts Ave (facing I-90). Style-wise, it has a bohemian feel in contrast to the posh eateries on the lower numerals. The servers were great, with a big smile on their face, super helpful and down-to-earth. Not like the pretentious bunch on the other side, who feel superior just because they can decide when or where you sit. Granted, if what you want is people-watching, maybe this is not the place (well, it depends on the type of people you want to stare at...). But if you want to have a nice brunch with friends, or maybe a cool beer on a summer evening, you should definitely venture to the Otherside.
We both happened to have the banana, orange and strawberry smoothie (made with non-fat yogurt, ice and honey), but the entire smoothie list sounds delicious. Ours was great. The sweetness of the banana and honey placated the acidity of the strawberries and oranges and the texture was perfect.

I went with my usual. The smoked salmon platter. All I have to say is that the bagel was too big for the amount of salmon. And, I wouldn't call it a "platter". It gives you the idea of a lot of food (and they certainly thought so, as it was the more expensive item on the menu), when in reality it was just ok. Other than that, the fish tasted fresh and the bagels were ok.
Diego had the real treat. A mushroom, bacon and brie omelet. They have an open kitchen and you can actually see the hippie looking servers cook your omelet. It was really enticing; I didn't try it but I was dying to do so! It came with homefries -which I did try. They were ok.

We were so relaxed and the atmosphere was so pleasant that we ended up staying long after we were done with our meal. They even have WiFi available and we were able to surf the Web for a bit. Time seems to fly at the Otherside!

People at the the Otherside really came thru for us last weekend after that failed attempt at Stephanie's. We will definitely be back to repay our debt...

Ryles Jazz Club, Cambridge, MA

Ryles is a symbol of Inman Sq., much as S&S -the deli across the street, of the same owners- is. It is THE place to go to listen to jazz musicians (known and unknown), and to go dancing on its upper level dance floor. On Sundays, they hold a Sunday Jazz Brunch, which features the same menu as S&S (an S&S-specific review will come in the near future) but on a more somber room, with plenty of space between the tables and a calmer and more relaxed atmosphere. This tranquility is created, paradoxically, by the live jazz band that is playing. On the Sunday we went it was the Yoko Miwa trio. And they were so good that, even though people kept chatting and brunching, the noise level in the room was ridiculously low. So, it was possible to have a nice and lively conversation without rising one's voice (not bad, considering we were less than three feet from the stage) and without being constantly interrupted by loud laughs from the next table (as it is sometimes the case at S&S). This is particularly surprising as there were large parties brunching and many kids running around. Apparently, jazz seems to have a hypnotic effect on the kids, and they were most content with open-mouthedly staring at the stage without interacting with the other brunchers.
In addition, the waiters were pretty inconspicuous and non-intrusive while, at the same time being perfectly attentive and aware of the tables' needs.
So, what did we have? By now, you should know what constitutes the usual for us... well, at least for Diego. He had "Eggs Copenhagen" which replaces the traditional bacon or ham in Eggs Benedict with one slice of thickly-cut smoked salmon. They looked great:
but Diego complained of one egg being slightly runny. His plate also came with homefries, which I found to be on the dull side, as they were closer to have been boiled and then sauteed with onions rather than actually being fried. Diego explained that they were in the jewish tradition, S&S being a New York-style deli and all. He still did not convince me.
But, I got to have my favorite brunch dish; which is everywhere in New York, but a rare find in Boston.... I had bagel and lox!
The salmon was great. Being a deli, they have such a large demand of cold cuts and smoked fish, that everything is super fresh. What else can you ask from lox? On top of this, I ordered a strawberry mimosa which seemed as if it was prepared with fresh OJ and strawberries (I did not ask if this was indeed the case) and tasted delicious. My only criticism, if any, is that I was not asked what type of bagel I wanted... I really did not care, but maybe someone else will.
So, I guess that while it was not the perfect brunch, they do have pretty decent versions of our perfect brunch plates and a really nice atmosphere. We are getting closer...

Airplane Light Brunch at the Friendly Toast, Portsmouth, NH

The weekend before last Ani was still in Colombia and I had no particular plans. Luckily for me, Analia (not to be confused with Ani...) and Julian came to my rescue and invited me to this airplane show in New Hampshire (NH). A friend of them, Marcial, was visiting and the four of us took off for Portsmouth, NH. So, Saturday morning they picked me up, half hour after we had originally planned but, according to Julian, at least it was "en punto". When we were no more than 20 miles from the airport where the show was taking place we hit ridiculous traffic and could not make it in time. We decided to go to the show on Sunday instead (it was awesome, by the way), and go to Portsmouth to have brunch. I suggested we should try The Friendly Toast. Ani and I are regulars at their Kendall Square location in Cambridge, MA and I knew their original spot was in Portsmouth, NH so we decided to pay their flagship location a visit. I have to say that the experience in NH was very similar to the one in MA modulo the creepy MIT students and the 1 hour wait that is unavoidable in Kendall Square. They have the same menu (which I really like) and eclectic decor. Not to be forgotten, they offer the same type of home made toasts including flavors like Jalapeno, Pepperjack and Cheddar cheese. Best of all are their daily specials, which have never let me down. Analia and Marcial had different versions of the ubiquitous brunch classics: Eggs Benedict. Julian went for a very interesting looking omelet called Sklarmageddon. I am sure you can imagine the potential damage this type of culinary option can cause to your arteries. In my case, I decided to go with one of the specials. This is what they were offering:

Can you make out what's written on the board? Not surprisingly I decided to give #2 a try. After all it was a weekend and I needed something out of the ordinary to make up for the air show fiasco. #2 stands for B&B Homefries. This means: Brie and Bleu Cheeses melted into homefries with artichoke hearts, roasted yellow peppers and tomato. All of this was served on top of a bed of baby spinach and basil. As if this was not enough, the dish included your choice of a home made toast (Pepperjack and Jalapeno in my case). I really can't describe the effect of this calorie bomb on my health. It was awesome! You can see the picture and reach your own conclusions. I may not have been able to see the air show on Saturday but at least I had and airplane light - as in as heavy as a plane - Brunch experience instead.

City Girl Cafe, Cambridge, MA

The best homefries ever. I really didn't care much for the rest of the plate, but, OMG.... next time, I'll just order several sides of homefries and call it a brunch! There is a funny story around this... On a previous brunch at City Girl Cafe, we arrived almost at closing time, and they told us they had run out of homefries. My look of utterly sadness and disappointment must have worked on them, because they ended up bringing some they had scraped up from the pan. But apparently, the waiter "made a mistake" and brought the order that belonged to the woman in the next table, who had also begged for some homefries -and had arrived before us-... I realized what had happened before anyone else, and I proceeded to put my fingers all over the plate and eat as many homefries as possible before the poor woman could even say anything... So, you've been warned! I'm willing to go to war for City Girl Cafe's olive oil and rosemary roasted potatoes!!!
As for the rest of the meal.... I ordered the sandwich montecristo. Turkey and prosciutto with fontina cheese and fig aioli between two slices of unsweetened french toast. The prosciutto was paper-thin and barely there. The bread would have been ok, had I known it would be soaked up in egg and milk. I was looking forward to a crispy ciabatta or baguette, rather than a soggy loaf. Having said that, though, a special mention to the fig aioli which had the perfect combination between sweet and savory, and accompanied the sandwich without overpowering it.
The other brunchers seemed to be generally happy with their choices. They were all items from the new brunch menu, so hopefully there will be many more weekends to enjoy them. Diego had a scrambled egg and goat cheese sandwich, Sean French toasts, Jacob a brunch sandwich and the adventurous Jenni ordered brunch pizza (fried eggs, bacon and potatoes on top of a pizza crust) that was described as "weird", "interesting" and "out of this world" and was eaten until the last crumb. In addition, Jacob had the auspicious rosemary lemonade, but he wasn't able to taste the rosemary infusion at all. Luckily the lemonade was very nice as it was, so he did not feel the need to send it back.

The prefect brunch? Maybe not... But the perfect homefries? You bet!

Continental Breakfast, San Andres and Cartagena, Colombia

Alright. This is not about one particular brunch spot. Is about my daily breakfast experience while vacationing in the Colombian Caribbean this past week. It turns out that mid-range South American hotels offer full-scale breakfast included in their fare. The idea is that you would have a hearty breakfast that should keep you full until dinner time. But if you don't do anything else than laying on the beach, it actually lasts until the next breakfast!
Eggs any style? Check. Pancakes, waffles and bacon? Check. Loads of fresh fruit, fresh seafood, baked pastries and open bar? Check, check, check, check. To top it all, there were breathtaking views of the ocean and I had not a worry in the world. If this is not the perfect brunch spirit, what is it??

Variation of a Classic: Brunch at Jane's, NYC

So, after Ana left for Colombia (hopefully she'll write a post about some Brunch-like experience there) I decided to spend the weekend in New York City with Vicky and Pablo. I was taking the 3pm bus back to Boston, so we made plans to have a go at Brunch before leaving. After all, New York is, by all accounts, the Brunch capital of the world. We set course for Jane's on Houston. Is this place in the Village or in SoHo? I guess it's on the north side of street, so probably the Village... In any case. We met up with our friends Melany and Alejandro and the 5 of us had Brunch while it was pouring violently in the City.

I have to say that I have been many times to Jane's and it has become one of the places in our usual rotation of Brunch spots in NYC. The atmosphere is pretty relaxed and the dining room is quite large. This means the waiting time is slightly less than the average in New York. They have a pretty solid Brunch menu, with all the fundamentals, and you get a free drink with your dish. What more can you ask for?

Pablo and Vicky went old school and ordered the French Toast, an absolute favorite at Jane's. As always, it looked massive and cooked to perfection. They come here often too and always get this dish, so you certainly can't go wrong with it. Melany and Alejandro were more adventurous an went with the Salmon Scramble. It looked very nice and well presented. I decided to order a variation of the conceptual cornerstone of the Brunch experience, Eggs Benedict. They call this dish Benedict Johnny (see picture) to distinguish it from the classic dish and from another creation of theirs, Benedict Jane.

The Benedict Johnny is a great twist of a classic. It consists of two circular pieces of corn bread (I am sure Ana is regretting leaving for Colombia before Brunch now...) topped with two chicken sausage patties, poached eggs and tomato hollandaise. You starting to get hungry now, right? It's a great dish that is served with house roasted potatoes on the side. Simple, innovative, effective. I highly recommend it, although one of my poached eggs was slightly undercooked (it's so hard to get them exactly right... I should write a post on this subject). I ordered a Bloody Mary with it, as no Brunch endeavor is complete if your Eggs Benedict are flying solo. Although it was not memorable, the drink was not bad at all. I especially liked that they serve the drink with some kind of pickled tomato. Yummy!

So, if you happen to be lost somewhere in between the Village and SoHo you should definitely try Jane's for a classic New York Brunch experience.

Centre Street Cafe, Boston, MA

After "sandwich brunch" on Saturday we decided it was time for something more traditional for Sunday. Our friends were still in Boston, but had already visited the more touristy parts of city. So we took them to one of the city's best kept secrets: Jamaica Plain. We promised them a walk around the neighborhood and the beautiful arboretum, but Diego and I knew that the main reason for the trip was to brunch at the Centre Street Cafe. This small and cozy cafe right in the middle of JP's commercial district offers amazing food made with high quality organic and seasonal products. It's so popular that there's always a line outside (even in winter) but it's worth the wait (and the 40min. T-ride, in our case!). Vicky and I had the potatoes Santa Cruz, perfectly seasoned red bliss potatoes with -as the menu said- "a mountain of veggies" on top, finished with shaved cheddar and salsa cruda. The broccoli was the best of the plate. Cooked to perfection and lightly sautéed, I am considering having just them next time (I know, it wouldn’t really be brunch…). I will probably accompany them-as I did this time- with a tall glass of half OJ and half carrot juice; absolutely delicious!
Diego had "summertime bennies" - CSC's take on eggs Benedict. The eggs were scrambled rather than poached and had two half-inch slices of heirloom tomatoes (one red and one green!). The ham was thick cut to match the tomato slices.
But it's not only about the food... The staff is incredibly friendly. Even if they may not hug you as they do with their friends (also waiting in line) they treat you right as if they had been waiting for you to come looking for the perfect brunch.

Brunch Sandwich in the Bay Village

Last weekend our friends Vicky and Pablo visited us in Boston. The weather was perfect for a long walk around the city so we set out to walk from the South End to the North End. At some point during this promenade Brunch time would be upon us, so we had to carefully plan where to go to fulfill our weekly ritual needs in a satisfactory way. We remembered there was this little sandwich shop in the Bay Village - this is a small wedge of peace in between the South End and the Theater District in Boston - we've been meaning to try for a few months now: Mike and Patty's. They open only for lunch time, so weekend Brunch seemed like our only option to visit the place. Now, if this is a sandwich shop that opens for lunch... Why am I writing this post about a Brunch experience? Without getting into the fundamentals of Brunch (which I keep promise to discuss in a future posting), I claim that our experience at Mike and Patty's was certainly Brunch like. They have a couple of small tables outside, where we sat, and we peacefully enjoyed great food in a relaxing manner. If that is not enough to convince you, just take a look at my sandwich: brunch bliss packaged to go! I had this great sandwich that included eggs, bacon, cheddar cheese, avocado and chipotle mayo. It was just exquisite. Ana had (not surprisingly) a grilled cheese sandwich. It looked amazing and original. Besides cheese, it included grilled green collards, tomato and ham. Our friends went with more adventurous options that, I am ashamed to say, drifted from the platonic Brunch ideal (e.g. Pablo had a sort of Taco). In any case, the experience was certainly very pleasant. Sandwiches were made to order in an open kitchen literally two steps from where we ordered. Mike and Patty's has a very homey and neighborly feel that we greatly appreciated. More importantly this excursion of ours made it clear that there is nothing wrong with eating Brunch between slices of bread.

Brunch at Olsen, Buenos Aires style

Hello, brunch enthusiasts! This is your other host in this attempt to find the perfect brunch. Even though I think we should discuss the theoretical basis for brunch in detail, I decided that my first posting should be about a particular brunch experience. We'll get to the fundamentals in a future posting.

During the last couple of weeks I've spent some time in my home town: Buenos Aires, Argentina. Although brunch culture is not dominant there (yet...), there are a few places that offer the possibility to indulge in this God given right. Most of them are located in the area of Palermo and Olsen is my favorite. The highlights of this establishment are the peaceful zen like decor and the argentine-nordic fusion culinary creations. I have to say that every time I visit Buenos Aires I make it my duty to spend some time chilling in their relaxing atmosphere while sipping wonderful drinks. So this is what I did, with my friend Anastasia, last week.

Let's get to the low down. Their brunch menu offers many options for brunch, including Pork Bondiola (if you don't know what this is, you'd better start googling...), Yogurt and Cereals and, my favorite, home-made Salmon Lox. The picture above shows an open Salmon Lox on top of Scrambled Eggs Sandwich. It was, as always, delicious. Not to be forgotten are the remarkable Papas Rotas (broken potatoes). According to Ani, these are just reason enough to visit Olsen. I agree: you would have a hard time finding any form of potato based side dish in any US brunch serving establishment that compares to them.

Even though Buenos Aires does not seem like the place to go on your Quest for the Perfect Brunch, you'd be mistaken not to spend some hours (days, weeks, etc...) enjoying life and food at Olsen in a brunch state of mind.

Counter, East Village, NYC

This is an organic and vegetarian bistro on 1st ave and 7th st in New York City. To be perfectly honest, I was not convinced that veggie brunch was such a good idea.... In addition, the lack of waiting that many of my friends argued as a positive quality was, to me, a bad sign. I have to accept now that I was just prejudiced against a meatless meal; the food was delicious! The lack of a crowd was probably due to the neighborhood being widely associated with nightlife (11 am seems too late for the after-club crowd to wait awake for).
We started off with a basket of pastries (it came with three of each type, which was perfect because there was three of us, but I don't know whether the number would change depending on the number of brunchers). A blueberry loaf, a biscuit with home-made nutella on top and a mini blueberry Madeleine were served with a side of nutella (small pieces of nuts could be seen in the mix) and soy berry butter. I was starting to get the hang of the place. However I was not ready to commit to the organic/veggie style one hundred percent. I cringed in disgust when my request for a tofu-free frittata was met with a "without tofu there's no frittata" response. Apparently, the tofu replaced the eggs and would hold the frittata together. The waitress was very friendly about the whole thing. She could have snarled at me for my ignorance on all things vegan but she very patiently made sure I understood how the dish was made. I have no idea how they gave it a sponge-like texture that only eggs can give, but it was really good. It came with perfectly caramelized leaks and roasted red peppers. It also had ripe grape tomatoes and a delicious and slightly sweet tomato sauce. It was accompanied by a potato and a carrot hash and a mesclum of baby greens. These looked and tasted as if they had just beenpicked up from the upstairs terrace/garden where they grow most of the vegetables used in the restaurant's meals.
The two other brunchers (Pablo and Vicky, Diego being in Buenos Aires on his own brunch experience) had biscuits with gravy and veggie burger with French fries respectively. The biscuits were great, although the gravy was a bit heavy. The French fries that came with the burger were amazing. Hand cut and perfectly golden, crispy but not burnt. They had the exact amount of saltiness to make you keep eating them despite drinking coffee rather than water.
I cannot bring myself to think of this as the perfect brunch just because I have been raised to associate meat and perfection together....
But maybe it's just a matter of coming back to Counter a few more times!

Le Monde, Upper West Side, New York City

Your typical French bistro, just across Seinfeld's cafe. The outdoor tables were very picturesque, but it was too hot to drink coffee and munch home fries and bagels without the A.C. on. Diego wasn't there, but my friend Catherine took care of the eggs Benedict. They were ok; not terrible, but not particularly delicious.
The third bruncher ordered fruit, yogurt and granola. This seems to be the health-conscious response to brunch... I don't particularly agree with this trend. Remember, brunch is about relaxing and feeling the experience; if you are going to be worrying about counting calories,
don't do it!
I ordered bagel with smoked salmon; although very New Yorker, not very French. Nothing was particularly memorable, except for the shortage of salmon... With only two slices, I ended up having 3/4 of lox and bagel, and 1/4 of just bagel.
I'm probably not going back again.... They have a nice Parisian-style outdoor setting (small white tables and wicker chairs) which could be considered as an appropriate background for the perfect brunch, but the food was not on pair with it.