Portage Bay Cafe

391 Terry Ave N
Seattle, WA 98109

Occasion: Breakfast before we explore Seattle as tourists. On our list of places to try. 08.30.12

Harmony Chai Latte

Lemon Curd French Toast

Three slices of organic country white bread French toast, homemade lemony ricotta cheese, tart lemon curd sauce, organic blueberries 

Everything organic definitely tastes healthier.  The bread wasn't as fluffly as I'd wanted it to be.  It was decent, but it wasn't spectacular.  I suppose I haven't exactly learned how to appreciate the taste of organic food?

Dungeness Crab Cake Benedicts

Dungeness crab cakes, sauteed organic spinach, poached eggs and homemade hollandaise

Not your typical benedict.  Instead of english muffin or some starchy bread to support the poached egg, the crab cake acted as the bottom layer.  I love the idea of this healthier alternative, though the BF on the other hand did not feel the same.  I liked the idea and thought it was pretty good.

Brenda's French Soul Food

652 Polk St
San Francisco, CA 94102

Occasion: Brunch for 4 over great conversation and delicious food.  This is one of our favorite brunch places in the city!! You need to try their watermelon iced teas (comes with free refills). 07.21.12

Banana Foster French Toast 

Super decadant, filling and delicious.  They're very generous with the portions here and it's definitely more than enough for four of us girls to share.

Beignet Flight Plain, Chocolate, Apple and Crawfish 

Since the other three have never been here before, we all decided to get the flight.  I've never tried anything other than their crawfish beignet because it's probably my favorite thing to get there! After trying it for my first time, I've ordered it every time ever since.  It was a good change to get a variety to share with everyone.  The plain one is simple, but still good.  The apple was surprisingly really good and reminded me of apple pie.  Chocolate was way too rich and was able to have a bite of that.  The cheesy stuffed crawfish beignet did not disappoint and is still my favorite

Catfish Poboy 

Just mediocre and did not stand out that much. Perhaps I was really full already.

Chaya

132 The Embarcadero
San Francisco, CA 9410

Occasion: Double date brunch with my big sis! 07.22.2012

Sunday Angus Beef Burger 

Fried farm egg, bacon, avocado, grilled onion, lettuce, tomato, spicy aioli with blue cheese

Not only did it look amazing, I had also overheard some lady near me raving about the burger.  I don't usually order something so heavy and rich as my first meal, but the fat girl inside of me just had to order it!  The meat was juicy and the bun was slightly toasted. I love the idea of having all these ingredients in a burger, but it was just too sloppy to eat.  It's hard to keep everything together and enjoy everything all in one bite without the burger falling apart.  I've never been a big fan of eating with my hands especially for messy burgers, therefore I appreciate food that can be easily enjoyed with a fork and knife.  It was a very rich and filling entree especially with their fries on the side.  I was only able to finish half of this, but it was so good!

Chaya Brasserie

132 The Embarcadero
San Francisco, CA 9410

Occasion: Brunch with my kdphi fam bam! 07.08.12

Banana Bread

with whipped maple syrup
Their light airy whipped maple syrup complements the moist banana bread perfect.  I love how there are generous chunks of walnuts. It really is delicious.

Jalepeno-Bacon Cornbread

with white cheddar cheese scallions
One of the tastiest cornbread I have had. It has a rich buttery cheddar taste with chunks of jalepeno-bacon.  It's definitely something completely different than the banana bread.  Both were good.

Smoked Salmon Benedict.

Poached Eggs with spinach, hollandaise sauce and home fries
It was good, but nothing special.  I enjoyed it because everything else on the menu sounded to heavy for me. 

Warm Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding

with caramel ice cream
Seriously the best bread pudding I have ever had.  It's rich, it's decadent and  it's unforgettable.

Molten Valrhona Hazelnut Chocolate Cake

with Tahitian Vanilla Ice Cream and candied walnuts
Another amazingly delicious dessert. I seriously didn't have the stomach to eat any more, but the bite I did have was very very memorable. I will definitely be back for more.

Straw

203 Octavia Blvd
San Francisco, CA 9410

Occasion: Brunch double date with Phil and Fiah. Very cute somewhat hidden spot near Hayes Valley. Everything was carnival themed, which was pretty unique.  06.24.12

rocky mountain madame
egg-in-the-hole brioche toast/proscuitto/swiss/garlic ailoi/bechamel/hash browns 

I had ordered this because Henry got the chicken and waffle.  I really liked it, but it was a bit heavy to have as my first meal of the day.  There's a lot of bread going on, so if you're on a no carb diet; this would be a bad idea.

fried chicken-n-waffle monte christo
free range chicken breast/belgian waffle/rasberry jam/swiss/maple syrup/powdered suga

I love the idea of chicken an waffles.  These are fluffier belgian waffles, which I am a fan of.  I definitely enjoyed this more t han my own dish.  Simple carnival food.

Zazie

941 Cole St
San Francisco, CA 94117

Occasion: Brunch on a much needed Friday day off of work.  We were finally done with one quarter of classes, so we rewarded ourselves with some delicious brunch! 06.15.12

Pancake Sampler

It came with one buttermilk, one gingerbread, one lemon poppysee

I've had the gingerbread before and I remember it being really unique and tasty, I mean where else can you find gingerbread flavored pancakes. But when I went again this time around, I didn't feel the same way.  It was rather dry and lacked in flavor.  It was my least favorite of the three.  The buttermilk was my second favorite and the lemon poppyseed was my absolute favorite, as it was moist and perfectly sweet.  The lemon curd complemented very very well with it too. Next time, I'll screw the rest and just get the lemon poppyseed pancake.

Le Mer Benedict 

Crab Benedict with avocado.  You have a choice of ordering, one, two or three.   Henry said he was REALLY hungry so we got three. Two for him and one for me.  Benedicts are his thing, so he enjoyed them a lot.  However, I think Mama's crab benedicts are tastier, but also at a greater price.

Brenda's French Soul Food

652 Polk St
San Francisco, CA 94102

Occasion: Saturday brunch. 03.31.12

I've been here on numerous occasions and have enjoyed the food here every time.  I don't think I've had anything that I don't like here, just some more than others.

Sweet potato pancakes 

Moist, fluffy and DELICIOUS!  It was a special of the day and am so glad we got this!

Pulled pork Benedict with grits

A hearty dish. Glad that I shared this because it was rich!  Instead of your typical english muffin, they use biscuits here.  Pulled pork was flavorful and went really well with the poached egg.  Their grits were buttery goodness and is even better with shrimp and cheese on top (they have that on the menu).

Pork Store Cafe

1451 Haight St
San Francisco, CA 9411

Occasion: Saturday brunch with my boo thang! 03.17.12

On a mission to try a different brunch spot, I remembered my coworker talking about this place in the Haight.  Decided to give this place a try and the boo loved it.  My least favorite part was the fact that my clothes ended smelling like food the whole day.  Perhaps it was because we sat at the counter right near the grill.  Either way, we both enjoyed our morning brunch here before we hit the malls for some shopping.

Country fried steak

with scrambled eggs, biscuits and grits

For him. Grits were not what I expected.  The first time I had grits was at Brendas, where they mix in cheesy goodness. Not here though.  Pretty bland and plain.  I've decided, that perhaps I'm not that big of a fan for grits.  He loved the country fried streak a lot.

Chile Piquin Pork Sausage

spicy sausage prepared with parsley, garlic, green onions served with sunny side up eggs, hash and toast

Loved the sausage, though it was on the spicy side.  I think the added parsley made a big difference. The boo loved it.  Nothing special about the hash or the toast.

French Toast

Fluffy toast.  Not house made, but it was decent.  Wish we had gotten it with fresh fruits!

Dottie's True Blue Cafe

28 6th St
San Francisco, CA 94103

Occasion: Birthday brunch with my dad and sister. 03.10.12

Ridiculous! We waited about two hours to get seated, which is seriously absurd.  They had a super slow turnover rate and their staff were working on super slow snail mode.  We waited from 11:40am to about 1:30pm.  It really isn't that great of a brunch place to wait that long.  And the wait could have been shorter if their workers were more efficient.  I've never seen such a lazy group of workers serve breakfast/lunch.  Don't get me wrong they were nice...just not very efficient, which is frustrating!

Zuchinni Hash with poached eggs and potatoes

This was probably my favorite dish of the bunch.  Zucchini+ hash + runny poached eggs topped with some kind of a marinara sauce= delicious.

French Toast

topped with pecan

It was just mediocre.  I've definitely had better,  but I guess it was a great way to end the meal with something a little sweet.

Smoked Whiskey-Fennel Sausage, Mushroom and Baby Spinach Scramble

with grilled chili-cheddar corn bread and home fries

I usually like veggie scrambles, but the sausage definitely adds a great touch to it.  Loved it.  They're pretty known for their chili cheddar corn bread, which is just the way I last remember it.  Yum.

Mama's

1701 Stockton St
San Francisco, CA 94133

Occasion: Saturday morning brunch with the loverboy! 03.02.12

I've been to Mama's multiple times.  Each time it's been about an hour and a half wait.  This time it was probably a little less than that.  We arrived at around 9am and there were over 20 people ahead of us in line.  Luckily it was a sunny morning, so it made waiting a little more bearable.  If you're feeling hungry and want to snack on something, walk across the street and get some authentic focaccia bread from Liguria Bakery.

Monte Cristo

Breast of Turkey, Baked Ham, Cheddar and Havarti Cheese with Bread dipped in Egg and grilled, served with Homemade Jam

I know it looks like a simple sandwich, but the flavors are far beyond simple.  It's like a grilled cheese sandwich with turkey and ham, except the bread is dipped in egg, so it's kind of like french toast.  You dip it into the homemade jam and there's a nice balance of sweet and savory.  Make sure you eat it when it's fresh because the cheese oozes out.  I've enjoyed it every time I've had it. YUM!

Crab Benedict

Generous chunks of crab meat.  We were hungry and it was absolutely filling.  The hollandaise sauce was rich, creamy and tasty.  Definitely a filling dish, with so much protein and delicious crispy potatoes.

Brenda's French Soul Food

652 Polk St
San Francisco, CA 94102

Occasion: Saturday brunch with the boo thang! Haven't been back since about 1 year ago.  We know what we like, so we knew what to order. 02.04.12  

Pork Belly with Grits

It was one of their daily specials.  It wasn't what we had envisioned it to be, but it was still delicious.  Cheesy, flavorful, decadent and satisfied our taste buds.

Crawfish Beignets

I don't even bother with the other flavors because we know what we like.  It's seriously the best out of all the flavors they have, unless you have something against crawfish.  Filled with warm, cheesy crawfish wrapped around a fluffy deep fried bread.  It is not only a favorite of ours, but also a must get item when you dine here.

Plow

1299 18th St
San Francisco, CA 94107

Occasion: Brunch on a Sunday! Finally football season has ended. Definitely enjoyed going out for some brunch. 01.29.12

The Plow

two eggs, choice of Nueske bacon, house made pork sausage, or chicken apple sausage, two lemon ricotta pancakes, crispy potatoes

I opted for the chicken apple sausage since I'm not a big fan of bacon.  It was really hard deciding what to get, but in the end I decided on the plow.  I love that there's a variety of different foods, so I can fill up to different delicious tastes in my mouth.  I really wanted to try their lemon ricotta pancakes, but didn't want a whole order of it, so when I saw this on the menu, I knew this was what I wanted.  The pancakes were moist, creamy and delicious! Crispy potatoes were perfectly seasoned with salt and rosemary and were absolutely delicious.  I asked for my eggs to made over easy, as I like to have my yolk runny. Not only is there variety in this dish but a good balance of sweet and savory.  I finished just about everything on this plate.

Eggs Benedict 

two eggs poached, fennel pollen hollandaise, Fra'Mani ham

He wanted the cold salmon benedict, but they were out so he opted for their regular one.  I thought there was just too much ham and way too salty, but he loved it.  It came with some crispy potatoes which definitely helped in stuffing us.

Milbrae Pancake House

1301 El Camino Real Millbrae, CA 94030

Occasion: First brunch of the new year. 01.02.12!

Supreme Omelette 

Linguica, sausage, ham, mushrooms, onions and bell pepper topped with Spanish sauce and jack and cheddar cheese 

I love getting this because I get the best of both sweet and savory.  The omelette comes with hash as well as my choice of pancakes.  I usually prefer vegetarian omelets, but since I was there with the bf, he likes it with some meet so I chose this one instead.  It's definitely a place where you get your bang for your buck.  They give you a lot of food here!

Country fried steak and eggs

Not exactly sure what this was, since I didn't order it, but he enjoyed it, so that's all that matters.  It's definitely too heavy of a meal for my first meal, but if that's your style, then go for it.

Swedish Pancakes

It came with my omelette and it's my preferred choice here.  I'd much rather prefer this over the buttermilk pancakes because they're not as filling.  It like it thin and sweet and it reminds me of crepes.  Delicious.

Buttermilk pancakes

Fluffier than the swedish and more filling.

Jack N Joe

2498 S Figueroa St
Los Angeles, CA 90007

Occasion: Breakfast after we checked out. David had recommended this place to us to try.  Since brunch is practically my favorite meal that I don't often have the opportunity to have, I had to come here for some good ol' brunch.  We were also starving. 12. 07.11

Red velvet pancakes (their monthly special)

It was topped with cream cheese instead of the usual butter.

The name of the pancakes sounds very appealing and the fact that it was a monthly special definitely helped in deciding to order this as my breakfast entree.  It came in a generous serving and the pancakes were airy and kind of fluffy.  It wasn't as good as I had thought it would be and overhyped.  I've had better.

French toast Combo with hawaiian bread toast, scrambled eggs and Portuguese sausage

So delicious!  The french toast was made with hawaiian bread which was super fluffy and had a natural sweetness.  It's nice to have something sweet and savory on the same plate.  I'm not usually a fan of spice, but the heat on the portuguese sausage was bearable and actually quite tasty! Loved this!

Tea Time

542 Ramona St
Palo Alto, CA 94301

Occasion: Catch up session with Christine and Sandy with high tea! 12.05.11

Plate of two tea sandwiches and tea

My choice of tea was a pot of the pearl jasmine tea.  I think I'm just really asian and enjoy the more asian flavored tea leaves, less of the fusion types of tea.  As for my two choices of sandwiches I opted for the smoked salmon with cream cheese topped with caviar and the bay shrimp salad topped with avocado.  They were tiny, but delicious.  I liked both sandwiches, but I'd have to say I like the smoked salmon more.  I was actually a bit disappointed with their variety of brunch stuff.  At the tea houses I've been to in the city.  There are choices that include sandwiches, crumpets and scones.  I'm a type of girl who likes trying a variety of things, so knowing that I was limited was disappointing.  At least the food was pretty decent.

Ad Hoc

6476 Washington St
Yountville, CA 94599

 Occasion: Brunch with some of my favorite girls <3. Girls day out in Napa! 11.20.11

Salad of Little Gem and Citrus with dill cream dressing, toasted sunflower seeds, sliced radishes and shaved shallots 

I loved the chunks of grapefruit and oranges incorporated into the salad.  The grapefruit were juicy and bittersweet, but more on the sweet side and the oranges were juicy and sweet.  Not only do the pulpy fruits add a great texture, but also a very refreshing feel to the salad.  I love sunflower seeds in salads, its a cheaper alternative to pinenuts that tastes just as good.  It was an amazing salad!

 

Egg's Benedict with house cured ham, english muffin, poached hen egg, hollandaise

Look how gorgeous they are! I definitely underestimated my appetite because I almost finished two of these.  The english muffins were delicious especially drenched in the hollandaise sauce. It's usually so rich in flavor that I barely finish a whole serving.

  Sauteed Spinach

I love spinach, but they made it way too salty for my liking.  With something rich like egg's benedict, I feel that the veggies should have been more bland.  That's just my opinion though.

 

Cripsy Potatoes with melted onions

These were so delicious.  The potatoes were deep fried to a perfect crisp and the melted onions were addicting.  We all loved it.

My beautiful plate of food!

 

Rocky road sundae
chocolate ice cream with almonds and marshmallow cream

I was already so full, but I had to give this dessert a try!  The almonds were delicious and the wrinkles that you usually see on the nut were completely smooth.  It was a yummy dessert, but not one that I can have too much of!

Carmel Belle

Doud Craft Studios
Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA 93921

Occasion: Brunch before the car show and test drive down here in Carmel. 08.20.11

Truffled Egg Toast with melted fontina cheese and asparagus

Loved it. Not only was the presentation amazing, it tasted great.  It's actually a lot simpler than it looks.  Basically a big slice of bread topped with melted cheese with some truffle oil drizzled on top.  The asparagus were chopped up into small pieces and were nice and crunchy

Poached egg on toast with bacon

Salmon lox with boiled egg, capers and onions

I love lox!

Green eggs and ham

with two soft poached eggs on country toast, american prociutto an arugula herb puree

The arugula berb puree was super delicious! Something different, but good!

Open faced avocado sandwich with olive oil and sea salt

It's so simple, but so good.  I love avocado everything and anything, so I definitely enjoyed this.  The avocados were very ripe and fresh and with some salt to give it some extra flavor. yum!