On My Mind: The Ethnic Brunch Spot

I've come across many French(ish) places that do brunch. Er, I should say I've come across a lot that bill themselves as French somewhere on their literature or use French glyphs on their menu (see the menus for Bistro Bistro and Panam in yesterday's post), but their offerings usually don't count as "ethnic" or even particularly "French" to most. Throwing a crepe (ahem, "crêpe") or quiche onto a menu doesn't exactly make an otherwise American/contemporary/western fusion restaurant scream FRENCH, but no one wants to say "we serve generic Americanized contemporary dishes from a variety of origins." Or even worse, "we serve a lot of English and German fare with a side of crêpes."


I'm on a tangent here, but what I'm trying to get at is the fact that you don't find too many really ethnic/regional fare being served up for brunch. At least if you're not looking for them. And if you're not counting Dim Sum, which I don't (I'll get to that another day). Will actually list some out tomorrow, but am very excited to have stumbled across a South Indian, Japanese and Mexican restaurants that serve  brunch.


Mimosas, Bloody Marys and all.


Very excited to do some research on this. Very excited the weekend will soon be here. Brunch is calling.

For Your Viewing Pleasure: Brunch Menus

Very long weekend and week. A bit frazzled, but promises of delicious brunchy bits to come. Until my next brunch outing, I'm tiding myself over with images of brunch menus from around the world. And by "the world," I mean the United States and Canada.

Fresco's, Somewhere in Canda
http://www.frescoseurogrille.ca

I like this one because it has a Zaftig holding a try full of delicious and instead of giving you a full menu. Fresco's keeps it simple, they don't provide menu details -- I'm guessing they hope you'll be sold on the All You Can Eat Sunday Brunch Buffet premise, which they deemed important enough to capitalize for emphasis unlike the claim that it's "Great for the whole family," because it's probably not that great. Between the pizza, pasta and the extraneous comma after "bar" (or LACK of commas after "pasta" and "chicken," but let's just assume it's one typo and not two), I feel like this menu is for Canada's equivalent of a Denny's.

Butch McGuire's, Chicago, IL
 http://www.butchmcguires.com

I don't want to jump to conclusions, but I THINK Butch McGuire might be Irish. Not from Ireland, mind you, or else he would probably wouldn't have felt the need to label the entree section of the brunch menu "Top O' the Mornings." Nor the need to ask his patrons to "Build your O' Omlet." Nor to advertise that you can "Plan O' Party" at his pub. Oh, and if you didn't notice the shamrocks bursting out of the logo in the bottom center, you're probably blind. I have a soft spot for pub food, and I do bet the food is greasy and delicious in the way that I'm ashamed to admit I love (particularly when hung over). If anyone ever eats here, I need to know: is it as tacky as the menu leads me to believe? More importantly, how are the Bloody Marys?

Bistro Bistro, Washington DC

http://www.bistrobistrodc.com/

Titular redundancy aside, Bistro Bistro has a fancy pants menu next to Butch's and Canadian Denny's. Voted the #1 brunch buffet in D.C., in a survey that may have only included the people who worked on Bistro Bistro's website (they offer no details to lead you to assume otherwise), this menu doesn't scare away people the way that Butch's might. No, this is a menu for the truly elegant brunch consumer. The don't serve crepes as Bistro Bistro -- far too pedestrian -- they serve crêpes. And don't even think of asking for a vegetarian crêpe, you pleb, you better ask for a Crêpe Végétarien. If you're not feeling up to the task of accenting your order, you can rest easy knowing that you can always just get the Pancakes & Meat -- no circumflex required. This place looks legitimately delicious, and if I ever wind up in the D.C. area for Sunday brunch, the Crêpe de Paris is going to be on my plate.

And finally, a San Franciscan menu

Panam, San Francisco, CA

http://www.panamsf.com/

I actually find this menu aesthetically pleasing, which is only funny because their website is so grating that I want to throw my computer into a wall. There's a music loop that you can stop -- momentarily. As soon as you open another tab or it feels otherwise neglected, the damn irritating loop starts back up again. It's awful music too, so it's not just annoying in its repetition, it's actually just fucking annoying. What was I talking about? Oh, yeah, menus. Well, this place also tries to fancify (just made that word up, write it down OED!) its offerings by using Francophone glyphs. GOSH DARN IT. That stupid music has completely crashed my train of thought. And with that, I'm going to bed.

Eat, Drink and Brunch Merry.

There's More: We Brunch Hard THE BLOG

Elon James White, creator of the stellar music video "We Brunch Hard," which I posted the other day,  doesn't just stop with an urban ode to brunch. He also has an entire blog. Devoted to brunch. I've never met this man, but I think we would get along SO well. This dude likes going to brunch, likes vitamin-enriched alcoholic daytime cocktails (see yesterday's post) AND blogs about it. I hope he keeps up actively posting, because it's pretty awesome to read about someone else brunchin' hard on the other coast.

http://webrunchhard.com/blog/

Most posts are about New York restaurants, but a few are from other states, which is cool. I've put an RSS feed in my bookmark toolbar just in case he updates it. There are so many pictures of delicious looking things -- something I am sorely lacking. He also has a twitter feed for tweets to #WeBrunchHard. This is giving me some great inspiration.

To give you a preview of what you can see on his blog, I thought I'd post a photo of something that I've dreamed about eating (sans bacon) since seeing shrimp & grits featured on an episode of Throwdown with Bobby Flay :

Shrimp & Grits /w bacon & and sauteed mushrooms from Watts Grocery - Durham, NC (original post here)


Although I can't find an embeddable version of the Bobby Flay video -- which is FANTASTIC, the man he throwsdown with is this absolutely delightful old southern man who (spoiler!) KICKS BOBBY FLAY'S BUTT -- you can watch most of it in Bing.com video search results here. It's totally worth it.

If you're feeling lazy, here's a less fun video of Bobby Flay cooking up some shrimp & grits:

Fe Fi Fo Fum: Time for Brunch Rum

While the Mimosa and Bellini have done wonders promoting champagne for breakfast, the Bloody Mary has made drinking vodka acceptable before noon, and the Mint Julep has made even drinking whisky (ahem, bourbon) almost mandatory at a hot summer brunch, no brunch drink has really propelled rum onto the list of acceptable daytime alcohol.

Given the number of rum/flavored rum based citrus cocktails there are, I think it's time we start using rum as a vehicle for vitamin-C consumption at brunch. With that sentiment, I am highlighting some of the tasty rum based brunch cocktails that I've come across on the interwebs (and so to be real life). One could even argue that these cocktails are good for you -- just think of all the antioxidants your missing out on by not drinking an ice cold glass of Rum Brunch Punch!

May Day

2 ripe peaches, pitted and roughly chopped
1 part rum
4 strawberries, cubed
flesh and seeds of 2 passion fruit
4 oz cloudy apple juice
1 Tbsp superfine sugar
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
crushed ice
apple fans for garnish

Blend all the ingredients together with crushed ice, pour the mix equally into two highball glasses.
Garnish with an apple fan. 

From About.Com:Cocktails

Rummy Mary

3 quarts tomato juice

1 liter (about 4 1/4 cups) light or dark rum
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup fresh lemon or lime juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Sliced lemons or limes for garnish


Chill all the liquid ingredients.
Combine all ingredients in a punch bowl or other large container. Float an ice mold or small block of ice. Float thin-sliced lemons or limes for garnish.
From Great Party Recipes


Rum Brunch Punch

1 QT orange juice (100% fresh squeezed for the best taste!)
1 half court white or gold rum
Lots of crushed ice
Orange wedges to garnish glasses
Fresh mint leaves, for hint and to garnish

Mix orange juice, rum and ice; agitate in a cocktail shaker or use a wooden spoon to mix in a pitcher. Garnish with hand-torn mint and french orange wedges.
From Boston Haitian Reporter

We Brunch Hard: An Ode to Brunch

Wow. If only I had done this first. Okay, so maybe I would never have done this, but Elon James White has absolutely made my day with his "We Brunch Hard" rap (the video is surmised with "The Official Music Video... about Brunching... hard"). I have to get over the fact that it's New York dominating the brunch scene again, but in this case, I'll live with it.

YumYum Give Me Some: Mission Beach Cafe

I'm not quite sure that I would call Mission Beach Cafe a cheap spot, but it's definitely a moderately priced place that's worth every penny -- the food is amazing and the atmosphere is well worth what you pay.

I went to MBC a few weeks ago with a friend. As with any decent brunch place, MBC was packed given that it was 1pm, but as soon as we walked in, Jason, the host, tried to squeeze us in since we were a party of 2. We got our drinks while we waited (all of 5 or 10 minutes), and I was not disappointed by the tangerine-pomegranate mimosa I ordered -- it's half a bottle of champagne, so be warned, do not order the large if you're driving!

The drinks were only the beginning of our brunch adventure. To start we had the veggie quiche, which was properly proportioned for $3, tasted great (probably the 2nd best quiche I've had in the city -- Butler & the Chef has the number 1 the Salmon quiche is divine), and got us excited for the rest of our meal. We then had the biscuits with pumpkin sauce -- a bit sweeter than I imagined, but I've never had anything like it. To round out our starters, we also got a pancake with fruit compote, which was one of the few distinctive pancakes I've had out to eat, fluffy but firm, not too salty but not too bland -- just right.

For our entrees, I had the Dungress crab Benedict with red and yellow peppers. This is the dish that won me over Completely. Basso's, which isn't too far from MBC, has a great crab cake Benedict, but it's nothing like this. The flavors of the sweet peppers with some of the best hollandaise sauce I've had in San Francisco -- not too much lemon, with just the right flavor to make the eggs and crab taste like heaven.

I didn't try my friend's huevos ranchero's (I don't eat pork), but from his gallant attempt at finishing his meal after our many starters, I know he wasn't disappointed.

The best part about every dish was that nothing tasted over spiced; everything we ordered had a very fresh-flavorful quality.We left full and happy. We had great service. It was a great atmosphere. And the food was just lovely. This may be my favorite brunch experience, it's well worth the trip to the Mission :)

All the Info:

198 Guerrero St
(between Brosnan St & 14th St) San Francisco, CA 94103

(415) 861-0198

www.missionbeachcafesf.com

Rain Check: The $20 Homemade Brunch

My designated brunch buddy this weekend decided he didn't want to brave the rain, and I have to admit that I didn't blame him. When it's gray and foggy out in San Francisco that's bad enough, but when it's actually raining it's hard to motivate yourself to get out of bed. I was sold on the idea of going in for brunch, knowing that there was a bottle of Moet in his cabinet for mimosas. Given that brunch alone is no brunch at all, I was more than sold on having brunch at home. Although I never really have the urge to have carb-orientated entrees when I go out, today seemed like the perfect day for homemade french toast, a veggie/goat cheese egg scramble, and course mimosas. An ambitious, but achievable menu (recipes below).

I have a secret. I am not a horrible cook. Despite the amount of money I spend eating out (brunch, specifically), I actually know my way around the kitchen well enough to make a meal. My brunch buddy, Ja, is more adept than me -- he is more of a "chef" than "not horrible" like me. He likes to make food even if he's the only one eating it, following recipes, and trimming artichokes just to learn how. Being "not horrible" isn't really a dirty secret, but I think the dirty secret is that I actually like to cook when I'm cooking with purpose. Between work and life, cooking seems like such a hassle unless you're cooking for *something,* you know? A holiday, a dinner party, your family, your significant other after a fight. It always feels like you need reason. A rainy day brunch is officially a great reason. Why? Because if there are mimosas involved, it's a great reason. Not to mention, making brunch at home is way cheaper than going out to brunch. And I mean way cheaper.  I picked up groceries (in the rain) for about $20 that made a great brunch. Eating in is more effort, but a great alternative to eating out and still having an excuse to drink champagne at noon.

The Menu:

Veggie Scramble
4 Eggs
Splash of Whole Milk
1/4-1/4 Red Onion (Large)
1/2 Green Pepper (Large)
3 White Mushrooms
Goat Cheese
1 Roma Tomato
Half Ripe Avocado
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper

1.) Chop your all the veggies
I like to dice mine, but to each their own.
2) Sauté Onion, Pepper, and Mushrooms in a bit of olive oil
3) While veggies are still cooking (works best with 2 people), whisk eggs and milk. Add salt and pepper to taste.
4) Once veggies are done sautéing, add them to eggs. Scramble eggs on low/medium heat
5) Once eggs are "set" (i.e., solid but still "wet" looking) add goat cheese to taste, then add diced tomato.
6) once eggs are done, top with diced avocado

Easy French Toast
1 Cup Milk
2 Eggs
Dash of Cinnamon
~Tablespoon of Sugar
French Bread Loaf
Corn Oil

1) Whisk Mlk, Eggs, Cinnamon and Sugar together
2) Slice French Bread
3) High skillet/griddle to medium heat and add corn oil as needed
4) dip bread slices into egg mix (soak crust for a few extra minutes to soften)
4) Fry on each side until done.
Use Leftover french bread to make some toast on the griddle to go with the eggs for an added plus.

Mimosas
3 parts Champagne
1 Part Orange Juice
Put in glass. Drink.

Voila! For $20 (not including champagne) and a little bit of kitchen time, you can have a luxurious brunch without leaving your house. And still have mimosas :)

Brunch: A Pre-Preview Bite

This weekend I am going to do Sunday brunch at Bacar. Instead of waxing poetic about what it might be like, I thought I'd spread this bit of joy around:

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2010/04/fug_girls_slideshow.html#

Breakfast for Dinner: Not Brunch

Although yesterday I did indeed include Darla's, a "breakfast all day" joint, on a list of bottomless brunch cocktail places, I wanted to clarify something. Breakfast for dinner, or "Binner" as some people have affectionately dubbed it, is not brunch. Even if you get drunk.

I'm not hating on breakfast for dinner, I actually love breakfast food anytime of day. However, eating breakfast for dinner is eating breakfast foods during dinner. Breakfast for dinner does not play with our cultural concept of "meals" nor does provide any impetus to observe the generations old tradition of sitting around on from morning through the afternoon drinking citrus based cocktails and eating a combination of both breakfast AND lunch inspired foods. My brunch foods consumption generally falls on the breakfast food side of brunch offerings, but damned if I'll say no to a shrimp cocktail at 11am on a Sunday.

What about brunch on a weekday? I have yet to brunch on Monday-Friday, but holidays regardless of what day of the week they fall, qualify as brunch days for me. I am curious if brunch would be as delectable on a Tuesday as it is on Saturday or Sunday. Maybe I should try it out...


UPDATE: I stand corrected, it's "brinner" not "binner." Whatever it is, it's not brunch :)

Brunch Etiquette: To Drink or Not to Drink

I think the question of daytime intoxication is a big one. Monday-Friday, it's a no-no (I don't care how poplar the liquid lunch is in movies), but on Saturday and Sunday... well why else does the Bloody Mary exist? If you google the term "drunk brunch" there are 12,000 results. TWELVE THOUSAND references to (in quotes) the term "drunk brunch." Based on my fifteen minutes of in-depth researching, I am left to conclude that internet consensus is that brunch is a socially sanctioned time to get drunk. I don't disagree. Which is why I won't dig too much deeper in case I uncover that some people actually don't think brunch is an excuse to indulge in a good old fashion daytime drunk. Given yesterday's look into the history of brunch, I think I am going to adopt the motto: Go for the food, stay for the cocktails.

The only disappointment in my search results was the abundance of New York drunk brunches. New York City seems to be the drunken brunch capital of America according to Google. While New York is home to a lot of restaurants and tons of reason to drink like the fact that every day you wake up and you're still living in New York [ed. note: I'm from Boston and baseball season just started, couldn't refrain] San Francisco has more than a few reasons to show up in a google search for "drunken brunch." In fact, here are 10 reasons. Presented to you in no particular order:

[Warning! This list is out of date, leave a comment with your favorite bottomless mimosa (or bloody mary!) in the comments since I'll be posting an updated list soon]

10 Places to get Bottomless Brunch Cocktails in San Francisco

Mercury Lounge (SOMA)
http://mercurysf.com/?page_id=45
Sunday Brunch 10am-3pm
Bottomless Delights: $11 Mimosas, $11 Bloody Marys

Lime (Castro)
http://www.lime-sf.com/brunch-menu.php
Saturday & Sunday Brunch, 10:30am-3pm
Bottomless Delights: $7 Mimosas, $10 Pomegranate Mimosas, $12 Bloody Marys

Barracuda (Castro)
http://www.barracudasushi.com/location.php?id=5
Sunday Brunch 10am-3pm
Bottomless Delights: $7 Mimosas

Circa (Marina)
http://www.circasf.com
Sunday Brunch 10am-3pm
Bottomless Delights: $9 Mimosas

Darla's (Inner Sunset)
http://www.darlas-sf.com/
Breakfast All Day! (Saturday & Sunday Bottomless)
Bottomless Delights: $8 Mimosas

Paul K (Hayes Valley)
http://www.paulkrestaurant.com/menu-brunch.htm
Saturday & Sunday Brunch 10:30am-2:30pm
Bottomless Delights: $12 Mimosas, $12 Bloody Marys

Panam (Castro)
http://panamsf.com/
Saturday & Sunday Brunch 10am-3pm
Bottomless Delights: $10 Mimosas, $10 Bloody Marys

Luna Park (Mission)
http://www.lunaparksf.com/index.asp?page=brunch#link829
Saturday & Sunday Brunch 10am-3pm
Bottomless Delights: $9 Mimosas (2 for 1 Bloody Marys isn't too shabby either)

Moussys (Nob Hill)
http://www.moussys.com/menu.php?which=brunch
Saturday & Sunday Brunch 10am-2pm
Bottomless Delights: $15 Mimosas

Fresca (Noe Valley)
http://www.frescasf.com/movies/noe_menus/brunch.html
Saturday & Sunday Brunch 11am-4pm
Bottomless Delights: $12 Mimosas

And as an added bonus, I'll throw in the Hotel Utah Saloon, which I wrote up this past weekend, as reason #11 for San Francisco to be proclaimed Drunk Brunch capital of America (or at least the west coast.)
Hotel Utah Saloon (SOMA)
http://www.thehotelutahsaloon.com/menu.html#weekend%20brunch
Saturday & Sunday Brunch 11am until whenever they decide to stop serving you, I guess?
Bottomless Delights: $9 Mimosas

Brunch: A History

If I am going to spend time writing about brunch, I figured I might as well dig into the history of this bastard child of the traditional 3 daily meals. First I'll start with what I assumed was the history of brunch and then compare that to the origins I found on the interwebs.

Though I can't recall the first time I made brunch plans, my high school (which was a boarding school) and college both served brunch on Sunday. Instead of the usual schedule of 8am-10am breakfast/12pm-2pm lunch, there was a single 10am-2pm smorgasbord of unhealthy but delicious options that no one ever woke up early enough to see during the week -- a wonderfully justified money saving tactic that reinforced the idea of the "lazy Sunday." I went to New England schools for both high school and college, which were culturally similar. Both were founded on English traditions (I had classes on Saturday in high school that I blame the British for) and more importantly, they both placed a lot of emphasis on meals as social time. Sunday brunch wasn't just for eating, it was for spending time with friends, catching up about the week (i.e., talking about who hooked up with whom that weekend) and eating until you're so full that getting up seems like a Herculean task.

Even in academic institutions, the idea of sleeping in and waking up to a gluttonous breakfast of waffles, syrup and scrambled eggs every Sunday is the norm.  With 8 years of brunch being routine, when I got into the real world, I was overjoyed to find that the lazy Sunday brunch didn't go away, it just got more alcoholic. Subsequently, I've always thought brunch was something a bunch of privileged, rich and probably snobby British people came up with when looking for ways to fit more gossiping and elbow rubbing into the way. Can't you just see imagine a bunch of Victorian era women sitting around a garden in England gossip-mongering? White lace, fancy teacups and butlers galore.

So how close was I? Well, according to the New York Times: "Although the meal itself came to glory in the United States, the word is a British invention, coined in 1895 by Guy Beringer in a visionary article titled 'Brunch: A Plea.'" The NYT article continues:

Instead of England's early Sunday dinner, a postchurch ordeal of heavy meats and savory pies, the author wrote, why not a new meal, served around noon, that starts with tea or coffee, marmalade and other breakfast fixtures before moving along to the heavier fare? By eliminating the need to get up early on Sunday, brunch would make life brighter for Saturday-night carousers. It would promote human happiness in other ways as well. 'Brunch is cheerful, sociable and inciting... It is talk-compelling. It puts you in a good temper, it makes you satisfied with yourself and your fellow beings, it sweeps away the worries and cobwebs of the week.'" [read full article here].

More great bits of brunch history can be found on foodtimeline.org here, which has some interesting resources to reference. If you want to see what's been and being served up for brunch (in California), check out the LA Public Libraries digital menu collection and do a keyword search for "Brunch" here.

So, unsurprisingly, the word was coined by a Brit. However, I do think it's subject to debate where exactly brunch went from luxury to overly gluttonous necessity.  Regardless, sounds like Guy had a vision of brunch that's become the accepted definition. That's my kind of guy.

The Butler & the Chef: Worth the Trip

I've now had the salmon Benedict at Butler & the Chef twice. Why? It's worth coming back for.

The food at Butler &The Chef is worth venturing to the small Soma neighborhood of South Park. Some people, including myself, have had a few hiccups with the service (an entire meal without water? Not okay) and the physical space of the restaurant -- cramped does not equate to "Parisian" quaint for me -- but the food, oh my, the food.
The first time I found myself at tB&tC, the line was so long that my friend and I wound up taking a table in the cold (~40F, not really outdoor seating weather) because there was a 40 minute wait for a table. I had the vegetarian soup of the day to start, which was delightful while it was warm, but unfortunately didn't stay hot for long in the cold. I also ordered a latte, which is served in a huge glass, so I wound up exchanging it for a cup of coffee (I tried to ask the milk/espresso ratio was in the latte and if I could have a small and the waitress just said "ok" and brought out what was basically just lightly flavored steamed milk).

Once my salmon Benedict on olive loaf came, I didn't care that I was outside or that I didn't have a latte. The eggs were poached perfectly. The hollandaise, slightly tart, was balanced perfectly by the olive loaf and the salmon (not sure how well it would go on the other Benedict options).

On my second visit with another friend, he got the quiche of the day. Definitely the best quiche I've had. So fluffy. So light. The salmon perfect. I had stuck with what I know (awful pun time) since I'm a "Ben-addict" (ha, sorry), and his quiche almost had me ordering a second entree.

The vegetarian split pea soup was even better than the vegetarian soup option the week before. The soup was so delicious, that I was able to overlook the waitress forgetting my soup. And my water. And mistaking my hot chocolate for a mocha.

This place is worth visiting for the food; everything is mouthwatering and nothing edible has disappointed. Just don't have the highest of hopes for the service and you'll be sure to get your money's worth. Speaking of money, it's not terribly expensive, but it's not cheap either. It's a nicer than middle of the road place that you could definitely impress a date with... just try and grab a less than cramped table :)


All the Info:

155A South Park St
San Francisco, CA 94107

(415) 896-2075

butlerandthechef.com

Find it on Yelp:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-butler-and-the-chef-bistro-san-francisco

Hotel Utah Saloon: Deliciously Cheap

For my first brunch post, I decided I wanted to go somewhere new. What calls to me when looking for a great brunch restaurant isn't necessarily... anything. I try not to judge a book by its cover. The Hotel Utah is the type of place you usually judge by its cover. It's a total dive, and true to the name it's an actual saloon. Built in 1908, the Hotel Utah has been standing in the same South of Market spot for a long time, so it's accumulated more than a few bumps and bruises over the years -- but if you look closely enough you can see it was once a beautiful building. The wood work of the bar is gorgeously detailed, which you wouldn't expect given you're sitting in a dive bar. Don't get me wrong, the place is a pit, but it's got some charm beneath the grime.
I was meeting a friend and settled on Hotel Utah because it was close to the Caltrain and while scanning Yelp, it showed up around the end of the results list (which is long when you're searching "brunch, soma). When I went to the website and saw the brunch menu, I knew I was in for a divish treat. And it was. The place is covered in 102 years worth of "personality."
When I walked in, even for all my brunch bravery, I almost turned around and walked out. My friend was at the bar drinking a $9 bottomless mimosa, which had me sold. A no-fuss bottomless mimosa is not easy to find in San Francisco! And it wasn't a bad mimosa either, not the best I've ever had, but I had 5 of them for $9 so no complaints. The bar tender, Robert (possibly Roger, I may have misheard), was incredibly friendly, and when I asked if there were any tables he giggled a little let me know there were tables behind me and upstairs... it's a seat yourself kind of place and we were the only ones there to boot. We settled on a table in front of the bar for ease of access to more mimosas and to enjoy the view... of the highway on ramp. Beautiful! [ed. note: sarcasm]
The menu is short and to the point: eggs, more eggs, another plate of eggs, home fries and a Monte Crisco sandwich (which has eggs in the batter). If you don't like eggs, this is not your "I'll have the french toast" kind of place. Alternatives are not on the table. But when they do, they do well -- and it's surprisingly vegetarian friendly. Just don't be afraid of the "trash heap scramble" -- a concoction of spinach, potatoes, zucchinni, and cheese. It's creamy and delicious in a way that a lot of places that charge way more than $4 aspire to achieve. I was in shock at how genuinely pleased I was with the trash heap (I had the "Baby breakfast burrito" which is the trash heap scramble inside of a flour tortilla and cost $2 less than the straight trash heap). It was $4 of delicious. Since the menu items were cheap and labeled as "small plates" (implying one should order a lot and share) I also got two crab cake benedicts, which were $4 each or two for $7. Usually I expect to pay $12-$16 for a crab cake or smoked salmon benedict, so for $7, I just had to opt for two. The food prices made me feel a bit gluttonous.
The crab cake benedict came out and it wasn't the most visually stunning presentation, but it more then adequate for $3.50 a pop.
 not too shabby for $7!
 The eggs were really well poached -- perfectly soft on with amazingly runny yolk. The crab cakes were slightly charred on the outside, which some people like, but the important thing was that they were hot all the way through. I won't claim to be a crab cake expert, but it's a bummer when you go into a place and get excited for crab cakes and they aren't cook thoroughly -- no disappointment at Hotel Utah, the crab cakes were hot and had some flavorful spices that went well with the nondescript hollandaise sauce. The english muffin wasn't homemade, but paying three times as much for the same dish won't guarantee you fresh english muffins. My friend opted for lunch and had a turkey club, which he said had delicious bacon, for the meat eaters out there, and he noted that the bread was perfectly toasted.


We stayed having mimosas from 11am until 2:30pm, and enjoyed every minute of conversation and food. The Hotel Utah is not the type of place you bring your mother on Mothers Day or your significant other on a brunch date. No, it's the type of place you are more likely to wind up when you're hung over and non-discerning. But I'm going to advocate that people try this place out when some friends when they're in Soma. When they're feeling brave and they're with people they know won't judge them for brining them to a grungy saloon at 11am on a Saturday (that takes some trust!). I wouldn't make the trek from your own neighborhood dive, but if it's not out of your way, hit it up for a surprisingly & deliciously cheap alternative to a higher end brunch.

All the Info:

500 4th Street
(between Harrison St & Bryant St)
San Francisco, CA 94107

(415) 546-6300

www.thehotelutahsaloon.com

Find it on Yelp:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/hotel-utah-saloon-san-francisco

The Inaugural Post

When you finally convince yourself that you should start a blog, you feel pretty narcissistic. At least I do. But since moving to San Francisco almost a year ago (10 months fly by fast), I've had a million moments that have compelled me to this one. And everyone of those moments has revolved around food. More specifically, around brunch food.

I am a brunch addict. I love that every Saturday and Sunday restaurants bust out their brunch menus of morning cocktails, eggs poached, scrambled, fried and filled with wonderful things, carbs in every shape and form, savory vegetables, sweet seasonal fruits and so much more. The delicious love child of breakfast and lunch that only gets to shine weekends is not only my favorite meal, it is my mission.

Looking at my bank account a few weeks back was when I realized I was having a love affair with brunch. I've spent more money on brunch than clothes or transportation since moving to this city. Why? Because there are so many amazing brunch places, and it had become my subconscious mission to find and try all of them. Now, it's a conscious mission. With a blog.

If I want to be totally honest with myself, I need to admit that having a blog helps me feel a little less guilty about spending an ungodly amount of money on brunch. Besides, if I'm going to do it anyway (spend ungodly amounts of money on brunch), I might as well document it, right? After all, why keep the joy of a brunch discovery to myself when I can share it with anyone who cares (not that anyone cares, mind you). I've posted a few reviews on Yelp, which I'm planning to post on here over the next few days, and that's probably the format I'll go with. I'll let you know what I had, how the service was, what the place is like and everything in between. I'll travel near and far (within San Francisco... and maybe some BART/Caltrain accessible locations), eat a lot, and I will do it all for the of brunch.

So to summarize:

San Francisco. Brunch. Reviews.