Back in the day, in the good old bible belt of Illinois I used to frequent the champagne brunch at our fanciest local restaurant. You know the place; you celebrated your Bat Mitzvah, sweet 16 and prom there as the rest of the restaurants in your godforsaken town thought that chicken fried steak was gourmet. Anyway, going for brunch here for the first time at 20 was how I knew I was a grown up. A full blown fucking adult who could go to a fancy restaurant, eat nothing but bacon and drink so much cheap champagne at 11:30am that I was vomiting in those fancy, fancy toilets by 4pm. Brunch to me brings back nothing but happy memories, and a touch of indigestion. Brunch is the goddamned best and anyone who says otherwise is just being silly. Here is why:
1. You can slum it. It is totally acceptable to go to brunch in your yoga pants and Uggs. No one will judge you here, not at brunch! Get comfy, sprawl on the sofa and open the paper. Brunch venues just scream 'this is your damn house, too! Relax a little, we're going to serve you alcohol before a socially acceptable hour!' You can feel safe at brunch. No need to remove your sunglasses, no pressure to have had a shower beforehand. Think of brunch as an extension of your own house, but with far superior food that you haven't had to cook.
2. Brunch food is best food. Is it breakfast? Is it lunch? I can see how our forefathers struggled over this question and birthed brunch as the solution. It's both. I love that you can have all the best breakfast foods, but at a slightly later time. Eggs Benedict or French Toast at noon. Winning!
3. Brunch is reasonably priced. Lunch is always less expensive than dinner, and brunch is no exception. Giant, crimson, fiery Bloody Marys or a glass of sparkling wine make up the bulk of the bill. Fantastic dishes rarely reach the £8 mark at brunch, making it an economical choice if you are trying to spend less in the week.
4. Brunch is baby/child friendly. Brunch is where the 'yummy mummy' brigade convenes. It would be strange to finish brunch and to have not seen a stroller or heard a little voice saying 'but why, mummy?'. More and more my friends with children communicate that they are living a near reclusive lifestyle do to the judgy looks of others at their little bundles if they make noise or do what comes naturally to children whilst out in public. This is, of course, unacceptable, and brunch is one of the only times it is socially OK to see a mum with a cocktail in her hand enjoying herself with her baby present. And I'm not saying it's in any way agreeable that society treats parents like social pariahs, that's just how it seems to be these days. But not at brunch!
5. Brunch is a great meal to eat alone. If all of your friends are MIA head out to brunch by yourself. This is one meal where it is totally OK to bury your head in a newspaper and not make eye contact with anyone. No one need feel awkward enjoying a solitary latte with a portion of pancakes. It feels great. When I moved to NYC I often indulged in a solitary brunch. I felt really sophisticated and continental necking Bloody Marys on Bleeker street sans company.
6. It gets you out of the house on a Sunday. Seriously, wouldn't we all like to linger in bed wallowing in our self-imposed migraines? It sure is easier, but Sundays are precious and so often squandered in this way. Once out for brunch the day usually continues elsewhere, on to other adventures that would never have happened beneath your duvet.
I am so excited to have discovered a few really nice places for brunch in my neighborhood and plan on taking continuous advantage of them. Please come along and join me in my sweatpants.
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