Something Old, Something New

Goodness.  I’m breaking ground left & right this week.  All this time it’s been all about the food & then poof!  One minute I’m rattling on about my travel antics, then I’m posting feet shots & other assorted photos of me (and still feeling rather queasy about that particular idea), and now I’m combining a weekend full of breakfasts into just one post.  Whatever next?

All this comfort-zone-stretching is quite exhausting.  And exhilarating.  And, between you and me, just plain fun.  I do love to push a few boundaries.  It’s about being honest.  Like when Elizabeth wanted a plate of bacon as an appetizer on Saturday.   She made no apology for telling the world what she really, really wanted, or, brazenly ordering it.  One plate of bacon, please.

I am good at doing the glass-half-full thing,  but even I have my moments when that’s too much of a stretch, & this breakfast became one of those moments.  So here’s my open letter to restaurateurs that serve breakfast, everywhere:

Dear Breakfast Restaurateurs,

I do love to visit & sample your wares.  Before I come I like to check out your website & get myself all worked up over the deliciousness that you portray there.  I like to get your address & maybe even print off a map, so I won’t waste a single second of prime eating time trying to find your door.  I check on your hours so as to lessen the chances of showing up when your lights are out.  Recently, I think 3 times in the last month, I have done my due diligence regarding your hours & showed up at the appointed hour of opening – hungry, enthusiastic & delighted to be there.  And 3 times I have been devastated to discover that while your website correctly declares that you are open, it forgets to mention that you don’t actually start serving breakfast until a later hour, & that all I can get at opening time is a cup of java & an overgrown muffin.  I think that most people make the assumption that if you offer breakfast fare, you start serving it when you open.

So, if you would kindly be more explicit about what time you serve breakfast, as opposed to what time you fling your doors wide-open, I would be most appreciative.

Love, cb

We pulled up outside Pomegranate Bistro at 7 am.  The lights were on!  The blinds were open!  The staff were buzzing!  Alas, there was to be no breakfast for another 2 hours.  We had so much talking to do that we decided to make a morning of it & hunkered down for a long wait at one of the sleek tables by the window.  To stave off the incessant gurgling emanating from our hungry tummies, I ordered up some granola with berries & yogurt ($6), while Elizabeth wantonly had her way with a plate of crisp Hempler’s bacon ($4).

By 9 am when brunch was officially served we were still only half-way through catching up.  Another couple of plates of food & 2 more hours would see us through.

Elizabeth settled on the Pom Benedict – toasted scallion cheddar biscuits, poached eggs & house hollandaise with smoked salmon ($16).

I had my eyes on the Mushroom Quiche ($9) which was small but tasty.  Not like Honore Bakery Quiche tasty, but tasty enough.  The best bit was undoubtedly the delicious parsnip chips used for garnish.  Parsnips are a much-maligned & under-valued vegetable, although I never understand why.  Parsnips are delicious & these chips especially so.  Long live the parsnip!  Huh.  Now I am writing this I want to roast parsnips for dinner.

As our marathon trading of Summer stories approached 3 hours, I realized I needed a little extra something to pull us through.

Enter the Savannah Hot Puffs – rolled in cinnamon & sugar with creme anglaise & whipped cream ($6)

Savannah Hot Puffs.  That would make a great name for the next All-girl pop group, don’t you think?

“Seattle – are you READY. TO. ROCK??!!  Let’s give it up for the Savannah Hot Puffs!!”  <insert sound of wild, perky tweens dressed in cut-offs t’s & holey jeans, screaming at the top of their lungs>

I sense I am going to become a little emotional here.  These were the best beignets I have had in America.  The best I tell you.  Still not as good as Kate Shaw’s, but a {very} generous puff of air above the others I have eaten in the last 18 months.  Goodness they were good.  There wasn’t enough creme anglaise, but what there was, was good.

After 3.5 hours we determined we should probably get on with our respective Saturdays, much as we would have liked to continue to hang out, eat good food & compare notes on life.  I had the misfortune of needing to go to Bellevue Square for my annual underwear-buying spree.  A 3.5 hour brunch with Elizabeth gave me the courage & sustenance I needed to survive it.

Unfortunately, before we could exit Pomegranate we had to wrangle our way out of the Great Billing Debacle.  The bill, when it came was all over the place.  $20 off, and not in our favor.  Once we got that corrected, we handed over our plastic & asked the bill to be split in half.  How the slips came back at $25.50 each on a total bill of $43.53 was quite beyond us.  Dear Kaitlin, you were super friendly & helpful, but even Daisy the Cat can do better math than that.  And if you’re wondering why we didn’t leave you a tip – we did – you just already added it on.

 So Pomegranate & The Savannah Hot Puffs were the something new.  The something old?  Cafe Presse.  Of course, to me, Cafe Presse will never get old.

Another thing that never gets old is those adorable Milligans.  Last time we brunched it was to celebrate Mr. Milligan’s arrival from England.  The Milligans needed to eat at Cafe Presse with me, since, as Mrs. Milligan put it, “I am so fed up with reading about Cafe Presse on your blog & not getting any of that food, I have to go with you”.  Exactly.  I gave them the full-on Cafe Presse experience.

 Of course, there was Chocolat Chaud ($5).

 Of course, there was Oeufs Plats (Baked Eggs) & baguette ($7.50) & Pommes Frites ($4.50).  And a Croque Monsieur ($6) for Mrs. Milligan, which made her eyes roll in any number of directions.  Always a good sign.

Of course, there was dessert.  Apple Tart for Mr. Milligan ($5).

The lemon-y-est thing on the menu for me: Gateau au Citron ($5).

Of course, the place was packed.  Of course, the service was awesome (Go, Dixie!), the bill was small & everyone left happy.  And of course, it was the best breakfast any of us had had in a while.

What I wasn’t expecting was that two of you lovely readers would also be there at the same time, eating Baked Eggs & introducing people you love to the deliciousness that is Cafe Presse.  It almost felt like a Foodie Footnotes reunion.  I am hugely flattered that you read my ramblings & even more honored that you choose to follow in {some} of my footsteps.

Bon Appetit!