Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Diners & Dives: The Lowbrow Brunch

When I last wrote, I waxed poetic about my love of The Fancy Brunch (TFB). But it's not the end all, be all of brunch. In fact, many of life's greatest surprises are found in diners and dive bars. There's more than a few hole-in-the-wall joints, breakfast focused diners, and (most surprisingly) dive bars that serve up a great brunch on the weekends.

Nova: The low end of lowbrow brunching
In San Francisco, possibly the most brunch inundated city in the world, the lowbrow end of the brunch gamut is filled with a ton of places where you can have a quality brunch without spending much money. What are some of the indicators of a good lowbrow brunch joint?

Price is clearly an issue. If you're paying more than $10 for an entree but having a lowbrow brunch, you've likely wandered into a casual dining purgatory (e.g., a Chili's). I suggest running as fast as you can, unless you enjoy your brunch with a side of screaming baby. Worse, you may have found yourself in a Hipster Hell, which is a place that over charges for shitty food based on the premise that the venue is cool. I would also suggest running. A proper lowbrow brunch shouldn't cost more than $20 per person including drinks and a small plate to start.

Seoul Patch's Brunch Menu
Lowbrow brunches also have a high correlation with ethnic food. Do not fear the lowbrow ethnic brunch: it is a testament to the multi-culture quilt that is American society... And I fucking love lowbrow fusions. The breakfast burrito is only the tip of the cheap ethnic brunch iceberg. In San Francisco you can find lowbrow brunch visionaries such as Punjab, the confusingly named Chinese food restaurant that doesn't serve Indian food but does serve a free mimosa with brunch (and only $2 for each mimosa after), and Seoul Patch Korea, a popup that dishes out Korea street food for brunch at places around the city including Dear Mom in the Mission and The Window in Soma. But I digress, despite their high overlap on a venn diagram, this post isn't about ethnic food or popups.

Full of kitsch: Friendly Toast, Cambridge.

The venue itself should be a great tip off as to weather or not you're having a lowbrow brunch. Are you in a bar? Is someone in the place already drunk? Is the place covered in kitsch? Does it feel like you're eating at a creepy old lady's estate sale? Did you just order from the window of a truck? Those easy questions to ask that will very quickly illuminate the classiness of your brunch.

Diners, the hillbilly cousin to the café, are often home to breakfast, which bodes well for their ability to have a solid brunch offering. In San Francisco, Dottie's is a plastic menu diner and breakfast/brunch mecca -- despite it's claims of being a properly accented café. The pancakes are delicious, the specials are messy, the chairs fairly uncomfortable, and presentation means very little at Dottie's. All that really matters is serving up a good, quality meal for relatively cheap.

And that, friends, is the essence of the lowbrow brunch. It is something to be enjoyed, loved, and most of all experienced. Don't be afraid of finding yourself on the wrong side of the tracks for a delicious brunch.

...Oh, and for the record, my personal favorite lowbrow brunch in San Francisco is hands down Red Door Cafe.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Long Time, No Brunch.

Oh, hello there. It has been awhile, hasn't?

With good reason I've been MIA on the blog, though I've been much better about adding musings and observations to my Twitter (@brunchblog). I was in Zurich, Switzerland for a bit, which is a land where brunch isn't a tradition (though it's starting a scene). Was in Seattle, where I did indeed brunch my heart out, but didn't have a reliable internet connection.

But excuses aside, where have I been in the last month? Some highlights:
15 Romolo Poached Egg Over Duck Hash


15 Romolo Waffle Shot & Bloody Hammer

I've indulged in a Punch Drunk Brunch at 15 Romolo. A longtime favorite watering hole, it's now a favorite brunch spot too. They have a fantastic bar bites menu available every day, and their weekend brunch menu is just as well done. All dishes are bigger than small bites and cost $8-$9 -- one dish makes a meal, but you can have a giant feast for the same price as a single entry anywhere else.


I dived even further into the bar brunch scene at Dear Mom, where a cash-only snafu aside, I had the perfect hangover remedy brunch. I'm pretty sure there was Kraft cheese singles on my breakfast burrito, but it was strangely perfect. I wouldn't take a date, but if you're a hardcore hipster, you'll win cool points coming here on the weekend.

I've also enjoyed the finer things in life at Serpentine, the Dogpatch delight that never disappoints. Between reasonable prices and a well honed menu, it's hard not to leave with a smile on your face. 



Dungeness Crab Benedict
While they don't have the world's greatest dungeness crab benedict, but it's pretty damn good for less than $15. Slightly blander than you expect, the hollandaise doesn't do well competing with the buttery biscuit at the base of the benedict. While the fried lemon rind on top doesn't really do much for flavor, when it comes to presentation it's incredibly pleasing to see with the friend capers.

Banana Pineapple Pancake
Serpentine's pancakes on the other hand, actually can claim to be some of the best in San Francisco. If you leave without sharing a $5 banana walnut pancake as an appetizer or dessert, we're not friends.

The breakfast sandwich my friend had was also one of the better in the city -- so simple, yet so delicious.

And the most unexpectedly delightful dish was the biscuits & gravy -- Serpentine isn't a southern joint, but they do it justice.
Serpentine Biscuits & Gravy
Those were just a few highlights, I'll try to catch up a bit more this week... Having not been to brunch in two weeks (come the weekend, at least), I'm starting to suffer from withdrawal symptoms.

Restaurant Info:
15 Romolo
15 Romolo Place, San Francisco, CA 94133
Brunch: Saturday & Sunday, 11am-3pm

2700 16th Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Brunch: Sunday, 11am-5pm

2495 3rd Street  San Francisco, CA 94107
Brunch: Saturday & Sunday 10am - 2:30pm