Four Brunches and a Blog Article
I don’t know if it’s silly, healthy, harmful, whatever to “celebrate” the finishing of cancer treatments. Initially it was yet another reason to go out, treat myself, drink a few more cocktails than usual and just be thankful. And I confess that as I’ve moved on, it’s gotten slightly less grand in scale, maybe just enjoying an extra bubbly brunch or attending a special concert or dance event. Still celebrating, but not trying to over do it.
Until one fell on a Labor Day weekend, that is, and in my infinite wisdom, I decided that I would have brunch. every. day. Friday through Monday, drinking mimosas, trying to stretch those 2-hour limits, seeing when they’d kick me out. And then trying to figure out if I could actually be productive after, or just sit on the couch with the dog I’m watching this weekend. The dog was very appreciative of the cuddle time.
Friday – Pearl Dive Oyster Palace
It’s not all that common to find a weekday brunch on a non-holiday or in a place that isn’t embedded in a hotel, so when we discovered Pearl Dive a few months ago and I was able to play hooky on Friday, we checked it out. And it’s delicious, especially if you like a raw bar, but the brunch offerings are legit. I confess I always tend to go for the fried chicken because it’s such a large serving and the leftovers are perfect for the post-brunch munchies that show up after the mimosas have worn off.
Saturday – American Son
We got a little fancy on Saturday and went to… a place that’s embedded in a hotel, American Son in the Eaton. It was really cute, but I think the food was almost a little too cute. No bottomless option, so it doesn’t rank highly for me. But I will say that they really accomplished a mid-century modern feel for the interior. The food was yummy, but a little on the haute side, so a smaller portion than I’m used to getting for late breakfast. I’d be curious to go back and check out their cocktails sometime.
Sunday – Matchbox
Matchbox isn’t exactly new territory for me, but it was the first time trying their brunchbox, an unlimited small-plate brunch. I get so used to places where the drinks are bottomless, but this time it was flipped. The food was bottomless, but the cocktails cost $3 each, not awful, but it made it hard to go at them with my usual zeal. The one thing I most noticed was that their offerings will fill you up fast. Whether that’s intentional or just by virtue of so much bread and dough, I don’t know, but we tapped out on food faster than usual.
Monday – Ambar
Finally to round out the holiday weekend, we booked a Monday morning table at Ambar for their Unlimited Balkan Experience. Which is limited… to two hours. But still it’s always a hit, we’ve been there with a small group and a large group and we have a great meal every time. My only advice is to have an idea of your ordering plan ahead of time and be ready when the servers comes back around. A pet peeve of a timed unlimited brunch is when the server becomes less and less available, the closer you get to the end of your reservation.
All in all, I survived it. Four days, four brunches, many naps and the regular (ha!) application of fiber supplements got me through. I’m sitting here at work now like, “Hm, it’s 11am, I wonder where I can get brunch?” So this experiment was clearly a success, a very dangerous success.
I don’t know though… my birthday is coming up. It might be time for a repeat attempt! 
