Aug 14 2009
A Boozy Barbounia Brunch
We headed over to Barbounia (Park Ave. South @ 20th Street) on Sunday with our friend Nathania to check out the Mediterranean brunch with the “never ending flow of champagne cocktails for an extra $12!!!” The dining room was packed at 1:30 pm, so we were glad that we called in advance and that they set aside a table for us. We first noticed a large poster outside of the restaurant advertising the endless champagne cocktail brunch (which includes unlimited mimosas, Bellinis, or champagne) and once inside we were greeted by a welcoming host who seated us right away. Now, it is important to note that this place was packed when we walked in but much less crowded towards the end of our brunch. We ordered our respective champagne and champagne cocktails and it did take some time to get the first round (note to self- next time we’ll head here on the later, less crowded side). We were worried at first and thought that we may not end up getting the bang out of our all-you-can-drink 12 bucks, but we were wrong. Our servers turned out to be tremendously generous with the booze – piling on glass after glass once we made it clear (in a very friendly manner) that we really were out for that “never ending flow” of bubbly. The champagne was served in classy, full size flutes and it was of great quality. Certainly no plastic cups or mixed use glasses here. The champagne cocktails also exceeded our expectations- not all juice!
For entrees, Andy chose the Moroccan eggs with lamb meraguez (sunny-side up eggs with tomato sauce, paprika, garlic, and lamb meraguez served in a steaming hot skillet). He certainly won with that dish.
Nathania went for a traditional feta cheese omelet which she said was tasty and which was served with pretty substantial breakfast potatoes and herbs.
I was in the mood for something lighter so I chose the chopped salad (cucumber, tomato, onion, parsley, mint with lemon tahini dressing and sumac). It was fine- but it really was made up of only the chopped vegetables mentioned (no lettuce or extras) and the tahini overpowered any hints of mint or lemon in the dressing. It was a very large salad, but if I am in the mood for a salad next time I will certainly go with the classic Greek or roasted beet options. I certainly want to try the Turkish eggs (spinach, ground lamb, chickpeas, sunny-side up eggs and tahini served in a skillet) or the Poached Egg Barbounia (poached eggs on an English muffin with spinach, grilled tomato and yogurt sauce) next time around. The thin crust brick oven pizzas also looked wonderful (and huge!). Andy and I decided we would split one pizza and one salad or egg dish next time around, though I did notice the burger catch Andy’s eyes a couple of times.
Keep in mind it’s going to cost you more than the typical all-you-can-drink brunch…about $25-30 a person after tax and tip. Then again, not too many places of Barbounia’s caliber even offer an all-you-can-drink brunch option.
All in all, quite a successful all-you-can drink brunch. A nice atmosphere, solid Mediterranean fare, and most importantly, quality drinks that keep on flowing. Cheers to Sunday Funday!
I can second your approval of the Barbounia brunch. My fiance and I hit it up on weekend on the later side, around 2 or 3. We had the hummus app, which also came with that delicious bread. We found it to be a very good hummus and a generous app all around. We did the AYCD champagne deal (which we always see as a challenge to make the proprietor regret offering that deal), and though our server could have been a little prompt with the bubbly, it was all around great. We both had specialty egg dishes (I think the Turkish and the Moroccan), and both were yummy but needed salt.
It was a little scene-y but if you ignored the other clientele, it was a really good brunch and very nice. I’m looking forward to going back!
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