Veselka - Ukranian - $

Website

Veselka is a staple to the East Village. It's been there forever, and it always surprises me how busy it maintains to be.

I went back for brunch recently, after only having been for dessert previously. Now, I know that I probably should have taken the opportunity to sample the borscht, or pierogies... but i was in the mood for brunch brunch. And since I was nursing a heavy hangover, I went big time.

I ordered a monte cristo. Something I'd never had before, and something I'll never order again. Granted, I should have known what I was getting myself into: french toast made with challah, then sandwiching turkey and some krakovska- a polish sausage which is pretty good. But the sandwich came out totally soggy and mushy. And the sweet potato fries were your typical, frozen-fried fries. Not fresh, not good.



I'll never order that again. I'd say, stick with the Eastern European treats. There's a reason why Veselka is still famous, and there's practically no other place to get potato pancakes or pierogies, so go basic.

Schiller's - A McNally All Star - $$

http://www.schillersny.com/

Schiller's is another one of those restaurants at the top of my "Best NYC Restaurants" list. In fact, all of McNally's restaurants are (Balthazar, Minetta Tavern, Pulinos, etc). Everytime I go, I'm secretly wishing to meet Chef Riad Nasr. Schiller's is a great LES go-to spot. Brunch, Dinner, Drinks- all good. I usually go for brunch more often than dinner. The home fries are faboo, bloody mary delish.



- Eggs Norwegian


- Huevos Rancheros


- Bread basket from Balthazar


- Bloody Mary

About $30pp.

Poco - Spanish - $$

http://www.poconyc.com/

Poco boasts that they are "One of the top 10 best brunches in NYC." I guess I could see that. For the entire 4 hour birthday brunch I was there for, the restaurant was packed. They have a good deal- 3 cocktails and your meal for $26. And everything on their menu sounds incredible. But sadly, my excitement was not satisfied, and my imagination, not fulfilled. I ordered the lobster benedict- very blah. I hardly tasted the lobster- it definitely wasn't fresh. I was more excited about trying the lobster mac n' cheese, which we ordered to share. I'm still wondering where the lobster in the lobster mac n' cheese was. Otherwise, it was delicious mac 'n cheese, made with manchego and asiago, and then topped with crunchy bread crumbs, very tasty. The bloody mary was one of the better ones I've had lately.



But all in all, I wouldn't recommend trying anything fancy here. Just go for a cheap brunch and don't expect an amazing meal.

Bareburger - Organic Burgers - $

http://www.bareburger.com/ (Astoria, NY)

While Astoria has plenty of great restaurants, this is one of the best restaurants for the yuppie scene. Bareburger serves all kinds of organic options for burgers. They let you choose your meat, offering bison, elk, turkey, veggie, beef, etc., as well as your bun option. You can go whole grain, brioche, even lettuce wrapped if you want. Everything is organic, including the ketchup and fries. All their choices sound incredible but I've only had a couple to comment on.

- Maui Wowie Burger
(I had it with the turkey. Yummmm)
- Lamb Burger
- Portabella Burger
(Haven't had this one but I cant wait to try it.)
- Sweet potato fries

$20 pp

Jing Fong - Dim Sum - $

http://www.jingfongny.com/eng/

Is there a better Dim Sum place in NYC? I think not. Every time I have a visitor from out of town, I always take them to Dim Sum. It's a delicious, fun, unique experience. Jing Fong is the largest of Dim Sum restaurants in Chinatown, and it gets super crowded on the weekends, but even the wait is an experience. You wait in the lobby, packed in with hundreds of other people while the host calls out numbers on a microphone, in both Chinese and English. It's like bingo for brunch. When your number is finally called, you ascend a very steep escalator to the large banquet hall (often used as a Chinese wedding venue) and if you thought the wait was chaotic, you will quickly change your mind. Busy.

The basic idea of Dim Sum is that back in the day, the Emperor had all the restaurants serve him little dishes of food- allowing him to sample all the different foods. So here at Jing Fong, you get these women parading around the room with carts filled with Chinese dishes. They pass by your table, you choose what you like, she stamps your card. At the end of your meal, they count up the stamps, and you pay.

The food may be foreign, but be adventurous and try it all.

- Chicken feet
(Yeah, everyone "ewws" but they're so delicious, I have an entire dish to myself)


- Tripe
(Don't get the tripe off the cart, get the tripe that's at the table counter in the center of the room)
- Chinese broccoli
- Shrimp wrapped in rice noodle


- Egg custard
- Any of the desserts


You will eat until you're stuffed and walk out with a $20 bill.

Red Rooster - Soul Food - $$

http://redroosterharlem.com/

So Marcus Samuelsson is one of my favorite chefs to follow these days, and he's the co-owner of Red Rooster. Even my mom thinks he's a cutie. It's a great new restaurant in Harlem at a decent price point. They have a pretty big bar where I had a cocktail while waiting for my friends. There's a social vibe, and I easily struck up conversation with the solo brunchers at the bar. My Godson (8 months, came with my friend) is such a cutiepie that Marcus' co-owner came and took our picture. I chatted with him a bit about the restaurant. I was even more excited to eat after having the one on one with the owner.

When we were seated, we ordered away:

- Breakfast Basket to start
- Red Rooster Burger
(I still have no idea why I was compelled to order this. A burger!? There was nothing special about it! It was a good burger, but that's not Southern Food!!)
- Poached Egg, Shrimp & Red Grits
(This is what I SHOULD have ordered. My friend did, and it was delicious.)
- Whiskey Fudge
- Sweet Potato Donuts
(Everyone must try these.)

All in all, I don't think I'd go back for brunch, but I am very much looking forward to going there one night after work. I hear that lots of handsome men in suits go by.

Pomme Cafe - French Bistro - $$

http://www.pommecafeny.com/ (Astoria, NY)

Took my French mom here for Sunday brunch. They have a $14 brunch special which includes your meal, coffee/tea, and a cocktail. In Manhattan, $14 gets you your cocktail. So needless to say, I'm a big fan of Pomme's brunch. They also seat you with a basket of crossants and nutella. My mom was a fan.

-smoked salmon eggs benedict
(Instead of an English muffin, they serve it on a flaky biscuit. So yum.)

-waffles
(She loved them so much, she didn't even put syrup on them.)