5 brunch options start the day off with flair
Houston has a wealth of great brunch options. And the list keeps growing and improving. Here are five to try now. State of Grace Where: 3258 Westheimer When: 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays Chef Bobby Matos has updated the brunch menu at this upscale River Oaks restaurant. The new options are in keeping with the lunch and dinner menus’ mix of Southern classics with internationally infused flair.
Among the new offerings: soft-shell crab with fried egg; Kimchi & Eggs served with pork belly and curried fried rice; Mexican-inspired Steak’N’Eggs accompanied by refried beans, cotija cheese and bacon-fat tortillas.
“I update the menus constantly and feature seasonal Gulf seafood whenever possible,” Matos said. “The new menu items often reflect ingredients that we as a staff are eager to incorporate, like kimchi.” Xochi Where: 1777 Walker When: 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Sundays
James Beard Award-winning chef Hugo Ortega and his wife, Tracy Vaught, own a local portfolio of restaurants that each feature expansive Sunday brunch buffets. Xochi, which recently earned a rare four-star review from Chronicle critic Alison Cook, is no exception.
It features a long list of Oaxacan delicacies paired with drinks dreamed up by beverage director Sean Beck. To cap your brunch experience, choose from one of pastry chef — and Hugo’s brother — Ruben Ortega’s visually compelling desserts. The buffet is priced at $34 per person and $12 for children. Cane Rosso (Montrose) Where: 4306 Yoakum When: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays With the recent addition of chef Jonathan Jones, the pizzeria’s menu continues to evolve with a local touch. Now it’s expanding further with a list of new brunch plates — think Tex-Italian dishes plus Southern staples. The brunch menu at the Heights location will roll out later this summer.
Fresh options include polenta topped with poached eggs and salsa verde, as well as a bucatini pasta made with spicy Gulf shrimp and ghost-pepper guanciale — a cured meat prepared from pork jowl — in a tomato sauce. Jones also crafts a jalapeño-cheese Southern hoecake with guanciale and sorghum butter.
Jones said he wanted to “bring big and bold flavors to the community that Houstonians will like.” And, of course, there’s $1 mimosas. Frank’s Americana Revival Where: 3736 Westheimer When: 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Sundays
The River Oaks-area restaurant has reintroduced its Sunday brunch with a new menu featuring seasonal dishes alongside Southern-comfort staples — think biscuits and gravy, fried chicken, sticky buns and crab cake Benedict.
“The request from our neighborhood guests for weekend brunch service has been overwhelming over the last few years and something we just couldn’t ignore any longer,” owner Mike Shine said. “With our soon-to-open private dining rooms expansion and additional kitchen, the timing was just right for us to launch brunch service.” Brasserie du Parc Where: 1440 Lamar When: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays Master Chef of France Philippe Verpiand is offering Parisian brunch fare downtown. Grab a seat overlooking Discovery Green and choose from a variety of classic dishes imbued with French flavor. The Ratatouille Crêpe is a vegetable medley with sunny-side-up egg and mozzarella, while the Dorado du Golf features Gulf snapper topped with saffron cream and served with fingerling potatoes and baby heirloom tomatoes. For something sweet: Pain Perdu — vanilla French toast with fresh berries.
Beverage director Kimberly Paul also serves cocktails, such as the Sunny Side of the Parc, a house-made limoncello with a splash of Green Chartreuse, fresh lemon and champagne.