This weekend we were fortunate enough (or unfortunate if you’re our liver) to hit up two different all-you-can-drink (AYCD) brunch spots. We found ourselves in Murray Hill on a wet Saturday afternoon in need of a bite to eat and a drink before seeing The Hangover at the Kips Bay movie theaters. We had heard about the all-you-can-drink brunch at La Giara on 3rd Ave (b/t 33rd and 34th) and stopped in to see what it was all about. While La Giara offers a reasonably priced and quite diverse brunch menu , the all-you-can-drink component includes only mimosas (pay $5 for one and the rest are free and unlimited). A great deal to be sure, but we weren’t really feelin’ unlimited mimosas that day. So we headed next door to check out the AYCD brunch at Blockheads (3rd Ave b/t 33rd and 34th). This may be the AYCD deal of the century. You get your choice of a brunch menu item and all-you-can-drink mimosas or champagne for $10.95/person. An omelette from a diner is more than that alone. And if you fancy a margarita, they’re just $3 each. Jill had a generously-sized chicken and jack cheese omelette while I tried the ham, egg and cheese quesadillas (3 huge quesadillas). A nice side salad also accompanied each of our dishes. The champagne was certainly flowing freely as we had about 6 glasses each in the hour or so that we were there. And they weren’t rushing us out anytime soon either — our server even poured us a final glass after we paid our bill and were about to get up to leave. Needless to say we were definitely prepared for The Hangover. Our bill came out to $23 and change + tip, which is hard (if not impossible) to beat for a boozy brunch. We took an epic walk around downtown on Sunday starting out in the Meatpacking District where we checked out the new Standard Hotel and culminating on the Lower East Side for brunch. There was a 45-minute wait at Essex so we headed over to Bondi Road (Rivington nr Suffolk), the Aussie sister of Sunburnt Cow, and despite a wait for tables we were seated right away at the front bar. This place is tiny, loud w/ indie rock and packed w/ LES hipster-types who are hell-bent on continuing the previous night’s festivities. It makes for a fun party atmosphere. The deal here is $18 for a menu item + unlimited drinks (cash only). The beauty here is in the optionality — as in your choice of mimosas, bloody mary’s, Foster’s, screwdrivers or greyhounds (vodka and grapefruit juice). We went with the greyhounds which proved to be strong and refreshing. There is slightly less choice with the food (eggs benedict, an omelette of the day, fish & chips, banana pancakes, a steak sandwich and the famed burger w/ the lot), but who are you kidding, you’re not really here for the food, anyways. That is, except maybe for the burger, which is what I had. It is by far the most unique burger I’ve ever tasted. It stood about six inches high and was piled with bacon, fried egg, fried onions, beets, cheese, lettuce, tomato and pineapple. It was juicy, it was sweet, it was gigantic, it was well-prepared, and was probably the best novelty burger I’ve ever tasted. The beef is an afterthought on this bad boy. There’s no LaFrieda or Black Label in the equation here. In fact, at first, I thought they had forgotten to add the beef patty to my burger, but sure enough it was there buried under mounds of toppings. We made it through about 4 greyhounds each in an hour’s time. One thing to note about Bondi Road (and Sunburnt Cow, too, for that matter) since there is usually a long wait and the place is small, you will be asked after about an hour or so to give up your table and continue your AYCD session in the bar area. Another unique item worth giving a shot is the $3 oyster shooters. They are spicy and are loaded with oysters. Sans the oyster shooters, our bill came out to about $40 not including tip. It’s hard to say which is the better AYCD brunch between Blockheads and Bondi Road. If you’re looking to grab a champagne brunch in the neighborhood (there are 6 Blockheads locations), then there is no better value or brunch spot than Blockheads. If you have friends in town and are looking for a party atmosphere, then Bondi Road is your place. While you get a bit more food for your money at Blockheads depending on what you order (Jill’s Blockhead’s omelette was more substantial than her Bondi Road one), the large selection of alcohol, including beer, is a huge plus and draw for Bondi Road. Is it worth the $7 extra dollars? Depends on what you’re in the mood for. Here’s how they breakdown:

VALUE: Advantage to Blockheads, which at $10.95 a person is the best AYCD Brunch deal in the city. Bondi Road/Sunburnt Cow are right up there, too, though.

ATMOSPHERE: Hands-down Bondi Road has the better atmosphere of the two. Blockheads just can’t hang with the Bondi LES vibe — loud, indie music, hipsters and fun Aussie staff.

ALCOHOL OPTIONS: Gotta give it to Bondi Road. Who else offers all-you-can-drink Greyhounds and Foster’s?

FOOD: Before this weekend, I would have said Bondi Road for sure. After a great showing from Blockheads on Saturday, I think it’s too hard to call. You’re gonna get more omelette for your buck at Blockheads (bigger and comes with a big side salad). But the Bondi Road “burger w/ the lot” is something to behold and is as unique and tasty as anything I’ve had in a while.

CONCLUSION: You really can’t go wrong with either of these AYCD options.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS