Napoleon Bistro

I have displayed a fondness for French restaurants here at Brunch DC, and Napoleon Bistro is no exception. Complete with waitresses with (possibly fake) French accents, a large menu of generally delicious French brunch dishes, and a charming French bistro atmosphere and decor (including an outdoor seating area), Napoleon is an excellent choice.

The menu comes with a variety of omelets, crepes, salads, and other brunch entrees. They also have a large assortment of coffee-based beverages and the brunch-associated alcoholic choices like the bloody mary and the mimosa. While the food is good, whoever wrote the menu perhaps thought a little too much about their creations. The "Da Vinci" omelet of ham and cheese is labeled "A dream come true" while the Michelangelo omelet of salmon, scallions, and cream cheese, is modestly described as "A Masterpiece."

For starters, they offer an interesting bread basket for $5. While this should be free, it does contain a pretty interesting and extensive assortment of breads with jam and butter. The walnut raisin and the Pain au levain (a sourdough French bread) were the highlights. The jam was not homemade, but was a decent variety. Ideally, this would be free, but I suppose $5 is not too much for very good bread.

On the omelet side, the "Rembrandt" of brie, fresh parsley and sun dried tomatoes is a highlight. Even though it apparently does not warrant an over-the-top epthitet on the menu like some of the other omelets, it stands out nonetheless. The omelet itself is perfectly done without any imperfections or burn marks. The cheese is nice and creamy, and the vegetables are fresh. It also comes with a side of potatoes and a skewer of fresh fruit (an interesting presentation).

The crepes are also good choices. Incidently, one of the better ones is far more an Italian dish than a French one -- the Florentine, consisting of roma tomatoes, ricotta cheese, pine nuts, and basil in a roasted garlic pesto sauce. The soft cheese complements the toasted pine nuts well. And they don't stiff you on the portion size either, as this dish comes with two side-by-side crepes. The other crepe highlight is the "Lisbon" which had smoked salmon, red onions, dill and cream cheese. This crepe was cut into four triangular pieces and was a very pleasant and refreshing dish -- much better than other crepe with salmon, the "Bolivar" (salmon, scrambled eggs, with a citrus-caper sour cream sause), which was too heavy.

The wait staff was unfortunately fairly pushy, particularly with the bloody marys and mimosas. They also have (possibly fake?) French accents -- maybe I'm completely off-base here and if so I apologize -- but they sounded fake. The coffee, whose awesomeness was heavily touted on the menu, was merely mediocre and not hot enough. Other than these small imperfections, Napoleon Bistro is a solid choice.

Contact information after the jump. Continue reading.


Napoleon Bistro
1847 Columbia Road NW
Washington, D.C. 20009
(202) 299-9630
http://www.napoleondc.com/ (N.B. An annoyingly animated website)


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Beyond the Beltway: White Dog and Marathon Grill in Philadelphia

(Ed. Note: Last weekend I visited some friends up in the City of Brotherly Love; naturally we had to sample the local brunch cuisine.)

Two mainstays near the campus of the University of Pennsylvania are the White Dog Cafe and the Marathon Grill. Both are situated within walking distance from the UPenn campus and serve respectable American food.

White Dog is located in Victorian brownstones and also features a pleasant outdoor seating area. The brunch menu features a bounty of both smaller appetizers and brunch "entrees." For starters they serve a delightful artisan cheese plate consisting of locally produced blue, cheddar, and chevre cheeses along with walnuts, organic jam, honey, and crusty bread. The cheeses themselves weren't particularly gourmet varieties, but they were savory -- the blue cheese with jam was especially sumptuous.

As for the larger dishes, the omelettes were nicely prepared and came with both potatoes and a salad -- which is a nice touch. The Mediterranean Omelette with kalamata olives, roasted peppers, feta cheese, and tomatoes was a delectable combination; though the side greek salad, which consisted of essentially the same olives, peppers, and cheese (and cucumbers instead of tomatoes) that were in the omelette, was a strangely repetitive choice, but I was not unhappy with the decision.

The pancakes were also a good dish. They were topped with caramelized bananas, toasted macadamia nuts, cinnamon mascarpone, and maple syrup. This was a decadant combination on top of fluffy pancakes.

The coffee was, unfortunately, horrible. Other than that, White Dog lived up to expectations. Reasonably priced as well. (P.S. It also has an excellent bar, with a collection of local brews).

Marathon Grill is nearby and it also offers a cornucopia of brunch options. The large menu features ten different omelettes, five benedicts, and sundry other brunch entrees.

While the variety was appreciated, the food was not quite as good as our experience at White Dog. The omelette was a little overdone -- not the perfectly prepared version we were served at White Dog. (Note the brown burn marks on the omelette here, compared to the absence of them at White Dog, above). Perfectly adequate fillings, though, I had the chorizo, manchego, and pica de gallo variety. The salmon eggs benedict was good, but not fantastic. The parfait was a disappointment. It was supposed to be served with "fresh fruit" but instead came with an ordinary fruit salad consisting largely of honeydew melon. The yogurt and granola were pedestrian.

As for the sides, the potatoes were on the dry side, and the toast was served with an all-too-casual butter and jam packet that they probably bought at the Fresh Grocer across the street. Similarly, the coffee was served with half-and-half containers and bizarre wooden stirrers instead of a spoon.

The food at Marathon was not bad, but White Dog wins my Beyond the Beltway: Philadelphia award.

Contact information after the jump. Continue reading.


White Dog Cafe
3420 Sansom Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
(215) 386-9224

Marathon Grill
16th & Samsom Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
(215) 569-3278

Mark Bittman Disparages Brunch; Brunch DC Responds

Many big names in the food community have expressed disdain for the meal we like to call Brunch. Bobby Flay, Anthony Bourdain ("Brunch is punishment block for the B-Team cooks"), Washington City Paper writer "Jule," and even some Hawaiians don't care for the meal.

We now have a new member to add to the brunch-hating crowd: beloved New York Times food writer, cookbook author, blogger, and Minimalist Mark Bittman. I write this with tremendous sadness since I am a big Mark Bittman fan, but it is true, he doesn't like brunch.

Yesterday I attended a panel discussion and lunch at the Center for American Progress featuring Bittman and D.C. Restauranteur José Andrés (of Jaleo, Zaytinya, and Oyamel fame), which discussed Bittman's new book "Food Matters." (The book is Bittman's first formal foray into food activism and he primarily argues that people should cook more and eat less animal products and processed foods, in order to be healthier, save money, and help stop global warming.)

In a brief interview I had with Bittman after the panel, I asked him what he thought of brunch. Bittman replied that he doesn't like brunch and doesn't usually eat it because "brunch is usually a huge fat-bomb." While I credit Bittman for his use of the phrase "fat-bomb" I am shocked and appalled that he would propagate such disparaging and false anti-brunch characterizations.

Unless you exclusively order eggs benedicts (Bittman's How to Cook Everything, page 734) that are heavy on the Hollandaise (p.790) or drink a dozen bloody marys (p. 802), brunch can be a healthy start to your day. Instead Bittman could order an herb frittata (p. 741), or an onion quiche (p. 744), or a bagel with cream cheese and homemade gravlax (pp. 300-1). In fact there are plenty of excellent and healthy brunch ideas (see "Brunches," pp. 810-11).

Next time Bittman's in D.C., I encourage him to try 2 Amys homemade bagels, cream cheese and house-smoked salmon, Rosemary's Thyme's pides, or the Tabard Inn's crab, spinach, and gruyere tart.

Hopefully he will see the error of his ways; in fact, he admitted to enjoying Cafe Atlantico's vegetarian tasting menu brunch this past Sunday. I encouraged him to build on that promising brunch beginning. Soon, perhaps, his next book will be entitled "Brunch Matters."

UPDATE: Bittman replied to me via Twitter: "Half of your examples are fat bombs!" I'm not sure which half he's referring to since I provided three examples, and of the three, only the tart is arguably fat bomby due to the eggs and cheese; but in any event, since when is Bittman concerned about too much fat? These are three delicious (meat-free) brunch options.

Cafe Saint-Ex

Cafe Saint-Ex is an aviation- and travel-themed bistro located in the newly-cool 14th street corridor between U street and Logan Circle. While many people know of Saint-Ex primarily for their weekend tradition of sweaty, crowded and dude-tacular basement dance parties, it actually has a decent brunch.

Saint-Ex is a small bistro with a small brunch menu and they do a few things well; in particular, they know how to fry green tomatoes. These slightly tart and crispy breaded fruits provide a refreshing edition to their eggs benedict and BLT. Both dishes skillfully incorporate the tomatoes: For the benedict, the fried green tomatoes are placed between the eggs and the English muffin, which is then topped with a tomato hollandaise. In the BLT, the fried green tomatoes provide a nice complement to the smoky and crispy bacon. The dish is finished with a tomato mayo and comes with fries or a salad (I recommend the sweet potato fries).

Another interesting brunch dish is the Monte Cristo. It is essentially ham and cheese sandwiched between two thick slices of French toast and served with a side of maple syrup. A successful Monte Cristo combines the saltiness of the ham and cheese with the sweetness of the French toast. While this one could have been a crispier, it was fine though not outstanding

Surprisingly good coffee as well.

Contact information after the jump. Continue reading.

Cafe Saint-Ex.
1847 14th St NW
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 265-7839.


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Darlington House

Darlington House opened to high expectations last year when it replaced the popular Childe Harold on 20th and Connecticut Ave, north of Dupont Circle. Unfortunately, Darlington House, despite its pleasant outdoor seating, fails to live up to expectations.

Like many other brunch establishments in the District, Darlington House offers homemade doughnuts (in this case, doughnut holes) as an excellent shareable brunch accompaniment. These holes, strangely, are delivered to your table in a paper bag, but once removed from said bag, are warm, fluffy, and delicious, and come with both chocolate and caramel dipping sauces. While I found the paper bag presentation to be bizarre, I was subsequently informed that this is not as unusual as I had thought. Evidently, you're supposed to shake up the bag to ensure uniform sugar disbursment among the holes. I still don't see the point. Nonetheless, the holes were good.

The rest of the food is adequate, but not exemplary. The highlight was the smoked salmon eggs benedict. The eggs were nicely poached, topped with a light hollandaise, and served with a side of in-season asparagus. Oddly, though, the eggs were placed on top of both smoked salmon and ham, as if the chef thought I ordered a traditional benedict but then thought "Oh no, did he order it with smoked salmon? I'll throw some of that on there too just in case." Alternatively, the dish is supposed to contain both salmon and ham. Which would be weirder? I'll let the readers figure that one out. Nonetheless, it was nice dish.

The omelets were also pretty good. The eggs were nice and creamy and the fillings were fresh -- I recommend the Connecticut Ave. Omelet, which is served with ham, goat cheese, and tomatoes. However, it came with a meager amount of breakfast potatoes and dry toast without any butter, jam, or cream cheese in sight.

Finally, we tried the vegetarian sandwich, which was supposed to come with grilled fresh "seasonal vegetables," but instead came with only mushrooms and zuccini, which are definitely not seasonal. The fries were decent.

The service was poor -- it was slow and unhelpful despite the restaurant not being that crowded. Darlington House is a decent choice if you sit on their patio on a nice day, but don't expect above average food.

Contact information after the jump. Continue reading.


Darlington House
1610 20th St. NW
Washington, DC 20009
(202)332-3722


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Brunch DC Update

Sorry for the sparse posting, I've been traveling a lot for the past month visiting law schools. Right now the decision is between NYU and Columbia. If you have any advice about those schools beyond what you'd find at AutoAdmit, feel free to email me. Regular posting will resume this week. In the meantime, I courage you to check out what I've written on Wonkabout:

• Bad food at The Heights in Columbia Heights
• All-you-can-drink bloody marys and Southern cuisine at Creme Cafe.
• Scandinavian brunch at Domku in Petworth.
• Fried chicken and waffles at Marvin on U. Street.

Thanks for reading!

Liberty Tavern

Generally I try to avoid brunch buffets. They're usually overpriced and consist of food that has been dried out sitting on hot plates all morning. Liberty Tavern, in Clarendon, is an exception.

Liberty Tavern serves a bountiful amount of fresh food, both hot and cold, at their (unsurprisingly) popular Sunday buffet for a reasonable $17. The buffet begins with homemade mulled hot apple cider, which, other than coffee or fresh squeezed OJ, is perhaps the only acceptable non-alcoholic brunch beverage. At least two dozen buffet items follow, most of which are fairly original and well-prepared. Their homemade frittata with tomatoes, rapini, and mozzarella and their inventive pizza with prosciutto, apples, and sauteed onions were highlights. Most of their other hot dishes were made with interesting ingredients to distinguish them from ordinary buffet items. The scrambled eggs were combined with a touch of cream and applewood smoked bacon. The potato gratin had broccoli and sharp white cheddar. And there is a carving station with roasted turkey and pork loin with assorted gravies (the turkey is recommended).

For the cold dishes, I was immediately impressed by their Irish smoked salmon, which had a good amount of accompaniments. The salmon was fresh, though a little salty. They have assorted homemade breads and cakes -- my favorite was a cranberry pound cake with walnuts, which produced a really nice salty-sweet combination. And they have a few forgettable pasta salads.

Perhaps the biggest draw is there dessert buffet, featuring a large selection of vintage candy, such as whoppers milk balls, bit-o-honey, neccos, dots, and my personal favorite Mike and Ikes. That was complemented by a homemade shoofly pie which was sweet and delicious.

The coffee, which is not included in the buffet price, comes in a very elaborate presentation. It features a 3-serving french press with an hourglass that informs you when it is time to press the coffee. The resulting brew is nice and rich with a flavorful aroma.

Contact information after the jump. Continue reading.



Liberty Tavern
3195 Wilson Boulevard
Arlington, VA 22201
(703)465-9360
Sample brunch menu.



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