Monthly Archives: February 2011

Brunch Is Taking Over NYC

Posted on February 27, 2011 | Leave a comment

It is no secret that brunch is taking over New York City.  New Yorkers are increasingly dining at an AYCD brunch with unlimited mimosas and bloody mary’s, or a brunch spot with a complimentary cocktail. Reservations are quickly becoming a requirement for brunch.  Check out this article from Crain’s New York discussing the trend!

“According to research provided to Crain’s by Google, over the past 12 months, New Yorkers have made 35% more searches per capita for “brunch spots” than residents of any other metro area. Google also reported that the number of searches by New Yorkers rose 10% in that period.”

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Posted in All you can drink, AYCD, Fun

Brunch Fail: East Village Tavern

Posted on February 24, 2011 | 1 Comment

Another day another NYC AYCD brunch. Three-day weekends are mini-vacations made for us career-driven, weekend-warrior, stress cases in New York City. The only way to celebrate is with double brunch!

East Village Tavern for AYCD Brunch

We thought East Village Tavern would answer all of our AYCD brunch prayers

After Saturday’s brunchen escapades at Yerba Buena and post-brunch at Destination Bar, I was feeling great. Then, in my champagne haze I was appointed reservation maker for our Sunday Brunch, party of 10. I called 4 places, and was convinced Virage took my name and number, when we showed up on Sunday it was a no-go. Superfail.

So there we were, 10 of us with no place to brunch! So we opted to head toward brunch heaven, aka East Village and pledged to find something, and there it was, what we thought would be a great choice: East Village Tavern. Superfail # 2.

Review:
Nearly everything about this place failed. From the ice in my mimosa, the mimosas being served in a draft glass, a hair in one of the girl’s drinks. Add on some stale beer scent, super-dive-y atmosphere, little-to-no seating and a terrible server, and you have East Village Tavern.

My Rant: Drinks were almost never filled, the food was decent but very much like “bar food”, small portions. Rather than serving us drinks, the bartender was counting her tips. Which brings me to our waitress: What awful service! She was slow, mean, grumpy, lazy… She even came up, no warning and told us that our AYCD deal has expired (limit to 1 hour.. But who ever really honors that anyway)?? There was a gleam of hope when looking at the menu-there was a decent selection of drinks we could order that is included in brunch. In the fail-fashion of EVT, however, there was no flavored vodka at the bar to make our drinks.  Now the food, it was decent.  Sabra had the pancakes.. they weren’t the greatest.  I had the Veggie Omelet and salad.  It was decent, but it came with cheese even though the menu description

did not include cheese.  Britt had the burger, which she claims was one of the best burgers she has had in a while.  She scarfed that thing down in 2 minutes flat!  The other Court had the Chicken Wrap, but she focused on the sweet potato fries.  And Natalie had the Breakfast Burrito.. which she claims was decent.  Eh.

East Village Tavern Burger: Great Burger, better Sweet Potato Fries

The only reasons we didn’t leave this place:
1. We trekked all the way to Avenue C
2. They served the best sweet potato fries I’ve had in a while (And Britt loved her burger)
3. The music wasn’t that bad

Last call: This brunch experience was simply sub-par. I’d skip this venue and never return. (for Brunch).. but check out the Yelp reviews for other reasons to stop by.

Brunch Review: 1 mimosa

Price:  $15.95 AYCD for 1 hour plus your brunch meal

The Info:
East Village Tavern
158 Avenue C
New York, NY 10009
212-253-8400

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Posted in All you can drink, Alphabet City, AYCD, East Village, Inexpensive, Manhattan, Poor Service, Seedy

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Ayayay: Yerba Buena

Posted on February 24, 2011 | 1 Comment

After a few weeks of trying to convince the girls to try a new place, I finally made it to Yerba Buena in the East Village for a Pan Latin boozin’ brunch. Like most Alphabet City restaurants, the walk to the restaurant was grimy, dirty, crunchy, hipster.. everything you love about Avenue A. After making my reservation for Saturday brunch the night before, I was not anticipating a busy cafeteria, but I was wrong, I think.

Review:
We changed the reservation from 7 girls to 4, which was delightful. I was the second one there and took a seat right at the bar. For me, a later brunch is always better so I was very pleased with a 2 PM meal (brunch seating is either noon or 2 on the weekends). As the rest of the digi-girls arrive (yes, we are all in digital marketing) Yerba Buena gets incredibly

AYCD Brunch

AYCD Mimosas at Brunch

busy. Please note, “busy” is all relative, the restaurant must seat a charming 25-30 guests. Julie tells us that she has brunched at the Perry Street location, and

really enjoyed it. So, we were even more thrilled to sit, eat and enjoy our AYCD — because at this point, it was nearly 2:20 and we haven’t been sat yet. A foreshadowing of our slow meal..

From the moment we sat down, the service was abysmal. There was one, extremely friendly, server who clearly could not handle the brunch crowd. The four of us ordered our drinks immediately, but receive them almost 10 minutes after we sit. The drinks were almost always empty for about 5 minutes (which is a long time when you’re hungover) before the all you can drink, sangria, margaritas or bloody’s were refilled. There was a silver lining: the drinks were strong, and the liquor wasn’t cheap. You could taste the good champagne in the mimosas, the plethora of non-Jose brand tequila in the margarita and the horseradish-laden vodka in the bloody. Delicious and strong.

Spicy Guacamole

Great Guac

Now the good stuff, the food. We all thoroughly enjoyed our meals:

Apps: Guacamole.. guac..avocado.. it was great! Delicious and spicy!

Perfectly Fishy Fish Tacos

PerfectlyFishy Fish Tacos

Fish Tacos: @Yaypril says “They were amazing. Nothing fishy about them. Fried but not heavy.”

Julie and I both had the Steak and Eggs: The meat was a bit fatty,

Steak a Caballo

AYCD and Steak n Eggs.. Delicioso!

and rice and beans a bit bland, but whatever the orange sauce was – it was perfect. The salad was delish and the eggs were just right.  Not typical for brunch, for me anyway, we decided to share some dessert: Decent, but not great, Dulce de Leche but superb churros with chocolate dipping sauce. But it is a good thing we got the dessert.. after nearly 20 minutes for it to get to our table after we placed the order I was hungry again!

Last call: This NYC AYCD brunch spot is well worth it, so long as you are not in a rush. The drinks are strong, the apps are tasty, food is great with a nice Latin flare and the dessert menu is small but sweet. Service is lacking and there isn’t much else to do in the neighborhood.

Dessert: Dulce and Churros

Dessert: Dulce and Churros

Brunch score: 3.5 mimosas out of 5

Price range: Meals are between 9 and $14 with $12 All you can drink option.

The Info:
Yerba Buena
23 Avenue A
NYC, NY
212-529-2919
For more details and a full menu check out their Site or other reviews on the overall experience on Yelp.

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Posted in All you can drink, Alphabet City, AYCD, Decent Food, East Village, Inexpensive, Latin, Manhattan, Poor Service

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Park it Here: Garage Brunch

Posted on February 20, 2011 | 1 Comment

Garage in the West Village  is one of my favorite NYC brunch establishments!
It has it all:

  • Delicious food
  • Great drinks
  • Live jazz music
  • Classy ambiance
  • Moderate pricing
  • Great service
  • All You Can Drink mimosas and Bloody Mary’s.  Or at least one if you opt to not to the AYCD deal

Review:

Garage is an ultimate go-to brunch spot when the parents, and even grandparents, are in town. It’s even ideal with just one, or all of your girls.

The clientele is calm and more mature than most AYCD venues. Maybe it’s on the live jazz music that plays in about 20 minute sets.

Every omelet is delicately made with nearly no grease and the grilled chicken sandwich is outrageous.  Last weekend, I had the Caprese omelet, tomatoes, mozzerela and basil.  In the past, I’ve ordered the spinach and mushroom omelet and the Farmers Market omelet (Fresh roasted zucchini, tomatoes, asparagus, eggplant, and yellow squash, tossed with goat cheese).  Honestly, each one was equally delicious.  However, Renee (a frequent #brunchtastic bruncher), is on a search for the perfect steak-and-eggs combo.  She did not find it here.  We are on the search for a great steak-and-eggs meal for her.

The sandwiches are quite tasty as well. The grilled chicken lay on Rosemary and Thyme  Focaccia roll with a mini salad drizzled with the perfect amount of Garage’s house dressing. If you love waffles, it is phenomenal as well! Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside and loaded with whip cream and chocolate…

We can’t forget about the live jazz! It’s such a great touch, particularly for the parents. It classes up the place, not that it needs it (relative to other AYCD brunch places). And if you’re lucky, I’ll bring my grandfather and he’ll even want to sing for you.

Only 2 downsides
1. If one person at your table wants to order unlimited drinks, your entire table must order unlimited drinks
2. When ordering unlimited drinks, they tend to take a while to fill up your glass

Last call: This  place is a dependable brunch spot.  Particularly if you are entertaining out-of-towners.   It’s perfect for a low-key catch up brunch, going away brunch (we miss you Nadine!) and a place to relax and listen to live jazz music after a long stressful week. When I’m here I enjoy myself, my fellow brunchers and especially the food.

Brunch score: 4.5 out of 5 glasses
Price: $16.95 per dish with 1 drink, plus $6 extra for AYCD

The Info:
99 7th Avenue South
NY 10014
(212) 645-0600

Visit their Site for more information and the full menu!

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Posted in All you can drink, AYCD, Great Food, Greenwich Village, Inexpensive, live music, Manhattan, West Village

Sunburnt and Silly: Sunburnt Cow AYCD Brunch

Posted on February 17, 2011 | 2 Comments

My first AYCD brunch experience in NYC was deep in the East Village. After what felt like a long grimy walk from Greenwich Village, I made it to Avenue C. And there it was: A whole-in-the-wall looking bar with a sunburned cow above the stoop. I had arrived at the Australian gem of a brunch spot, Sunburnt Cow.

Review:

The Sunburnt Cow is the ideal post-crazy-night-out-hangover-cure. The cure is simple: greasy food, hot men with accents (all servers and bartenders are Aussie) and bottomless mimosas or bloodies with your fellow hung-over or still-drunk brunchers. Upon arrival you will notice that the brunch-goers at this establishment are in last night’s attire – they’re typically shackers or just continuing their party. If they aren’t in yesterday’s clothes, they didn’t spend the time to get all dolled-up for brunch here. Attire is very low-key and laid back, much like the attitude.

When completely sober the food is mediocre at best. Regardless of my state-of-mind upon arrival, I always opt for the burger with the lot. It comes with a mountain piled atop the rare piece of meat: a pineapple, fried egg, tomato, bacon and more. When Paired with at least 10 mimosas, I’m one happy bruncher.

As a rule of thumb, always call ahead for a reservation. This after-after-after party is typically a full house. Beware: if you arrive without your full party the hostess will not seat you. The hostess may even try to pawn you off to their sister locations: Bondi Road and the Sunburnt Calf in the UWS (ugh what a schlep). As an AYCD (all you can drink) brunch note: some establishments limit seating to 90 minutes. The Cow tends to watch the clock. So drink up and eat something. Then head to the bar for more libations from the sexy Aussie bartender.

Last call: The drinks are bottomless, the service is great, the atmosphere is fun and the venue itself is pretty dive-y. If you’re looking for the hair-of-the-dog so you can continue partying, this place is perfect. But remember: the food isn’t great and the drunken party-scene can be a bit much if you aren’t prepared. This seedy brunch spot is a great place for those crunchy hipster types, and if you just want to get loaded in a dark bar.

Brunch score: 3.5 out of 5 mimosas
Price range: $20 includes food and bottomless brunch cocktails and Fosters

The Info:
Sunburnt Cow
37 Avenue C
NY 10009
(212) 529-0005
Facebook
Visit their Site for more information

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Posted in All you can drink, AYCD, Crazy, Decent Food, Fun, Great Food, Inexpensive, Party, Seedy

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Cheers!

Posted on February 16, 2011 | Leave a comment

Cheers and welcome to Mimosa Maven! This blog will provide you with reviews of the many AYCD and non-AYCD brunch spots in New York City. From Brooklyn to Queens and all of the Manhattan neighborhoods, you can find your NYC how-to-brunch guide here.

Stay tuned as I review these tasty brunch spots one mimosa at a time.

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Posted in AYCD, Manhattan

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