Brunch Gang NYC

Place: Barrio 47

Neighborhood: West Village, 47 8th Ave. (between Jane St. and W. 4th St.)

Mimosa Rating:

The scoop: We were lucky enough to get invited to check out the brunch scene at Barrio 47  (Thank you, Alex!). We met for brunch at Barrio on a Saturday afternoon around 12.

Inside Barrio’s back dining room

At this time, the restaurant was on the empty side, and it was also pretty cold inside. Granted, it was cold outside, too, but we expected it to be warmer indoors. The inside of Barrio is very narrow (think railroad style).  We were seated in an uncomfortable area in the middle of the restaurant, which was right near the oven and where the chefs prepare the food. We love seeing open kitchens because we like to know that a restaurant doesn’t have anything to hide, but we almost felt like we were too close for comfort. We did see the chef making each batch of truffle fries and seasoning them. That was pretty cool.

The service was decent at Barrio. Since the restaurant wasn’t very full yet, the servers were just standing around chatting. Ours recommended getting cocktails, but we just didn’t feel like drinking on this particular day. It’s too bad because they looked yummy.

Bottoms up: Barrio 47 offers a brunch special that includes one entrée and three champagne cocktails for $29.  The champagne cocktails consist of a mimosa, kir royal, bellini, blood orange, the Passionate, which is made with fresh passion fruit purée, and the Eva, made from housemade hibiscus extract. Although the Gang didn’t have any cocktails, we heard from an outside source that the drinks are of quality.

Chew on this:

Merguez Sausage Hash $15 / Poached eggs, jalapenos, butternut squash

Merguez Sausage Hash

Out of all three dishes, luckily for me I had the best one. The merguez was extremely flavorful and there were a lot of chunks throughout the entire dish. My only complaint was that the eggs were not properly poached. It could be disappointing when you don’t get what you expect, however, the unpoached eggs didn’t ruin the dish because there was a lot going on and the dish was moist from all the fresh ingredients. Toast was served on the side, and I used it to scoop up the tasty butternut squash mixture.  

Grilled Cheese Panini $12 / Manchego & gruyere cheese, baby spinach, roasted tomatoes

Grilled Cheese Panini

I chose the Grilled Cheese Panini because with manchego and gruyere it sounded more appealing than your average grilled cheese sandwich. The cheese was gooey and melted well. The bread had a buttery top and a nice crunch. I think there were mushrooms in the panini, even though the menu didn’t state that in the dish description. The roasted tomatoes were more like the sun-dried tomatoes that were included in the side salad. I gave up fried foods for Lent, so instead of their truffle French fries, which sounded good, I asked for more salad (the dish was already supposed to come with greens). I thought I would get more salad than I did since I wasn’t getting fries. The salad had a peppery bite, which was likely from the light dressing tossed over the top. This sandwich wasn’t bad, but I felt like it was missing something. It could have used more mushrooms, or even meat.

Eggs Benedict $14 / Black truffle & sage hollandaise, English muffin, fries (choice of prosciutto, smoked salmon or baby spinach)

Eggs Benedict

They had me at truffle, but I was sadly disappointed. There were about 2–4 miniature truffles and they did not provide that truffle flavor I was looking for. Although the truffle flavor wasn’t what I thought it would be, the prosciutto was delicious and a good alternative to the usual ham on an eggs Benedict. I did not really taste any sage, and the side salad were just OK. After eating at Blue Ribbon, it’s going to be difficult to find an eggs Benedict that is as delicious.

Outside Barrio 47

The final bite: Brunch at Barrio 47 wasn’t bad. The food was OK, but we think we may have missed out without cocktails. If we go again, we’d order drinks.

Reviewed by: Brunch Gang

Place: Barraca

Location: West Village, 81 Greenwich Ave. (at Bank St.)

Mimosa Rating:

The scoop: Brunch Gang was invited to try brunch at Barraca (thank you, Kylene!). We have brunched at Barraca’s sister restaurants, Rayuela and Macondo, so we were excited to check out this new tapas restaurant in the West Village.

Busy brunch at Barraca

We went to Barraca on a Saturday after a snowstorm. A little snow can’t stop us from brunching! When we arrived around 1:30 p.m., there were a few other patrons in the restaurant, which quickly filled up after we sat down. Barraca’s atmosphere was cozy and comfy. There is a small bar near the entrance of the restaurant. There were small groups of two and larger groups of six scattered about at the various size tables. We sat comfortably at a corner table, with an open table next to us. Barraca’s decor is pretty simple. There is light-colored exposed brick on one wall and white Christmas lights hang from the ceiling and windows.

The wait staff was extremely friendly and were very attentive. Our waiter was well versed with the dishes, and he excitedly offered numerous suggestions and informed us of his favorites. The manager even checked up on us numerous times and discussed the sangria with us.

Bottoms up:

Mimosas

Grapefruit mimosas

Mimosa $3

A $3 mimosa is a steal in the city. Not only were the mimosas reasonably priced, they were pretty decent and made with freshly squeezed orange and grapefruit juices. We each had one regular and one grapefruit. Stephanie doesn’t like actual grapefruit, but she preferred the grapefruit mimosa. It was light and fruity. 

Sangria Rioja $10 / Rioja red wine, Aperol, guindilla pepper, cherry heering liquor

I love sangria, however, I am always skeptical about ordering it because a bad sangria is an undrinkable sangria. Luckily, the Sangria Rioja was probably one of the best sangrias I have ever tried. That says a lot for somebody who loves sangria I initially thought about trying the sake sangria, but the waiter said the rioja was his favorite because of the extra kick. I was sold with the thought of it being spicy. Although the drink was not spicy, it was extremely flavorful and fresh tasting, and the bartender didn’t skimp with the alcohol. This would make a perfect summer drink, and I look forward to going back just for the sangria. 

Sangria!

Sangria Penedes $12 / Sparkling cava Penedés, peaches, lavender

This sangria was very different from any sangria I had ever had. It was almost like an infused elderflower cocktail. It was served in a flute and did not have any fruit, much like what you would get with your regular sangria (description has peaches listed, but it may have just been a flavor). All in all, it was pretty delicious if you are into Champagne.  

Sangria de la Mancha $10 / Saffron infused passion fruit, Verdejo white wine, Clementine, Don Q Limon rum

I had a hard time deciding on which sangria to order. I didn’t want to order the same as Victoria and Erica because we wanted to try a variety. The server said Sangria de la Mancha was sweet, but I was hoping it wasn’t overly sweet. Sometimes white sangria can be too sweet. I was happy when I took my first sip. It was like drinking liquid fruit. This sangria was absolutely delicious. It was a refreshing taste of summer in February. I can’t wait to go back and sip my sangria while sitting outdoors.

Chew on this:

Croquettes

Croquets de Setas y Pollo $9 / Chicken and oyster mushroom croquettes

The waiter recommended the croquette as an appetizer. We were served four long and round croquettes. The outside of the croquettes were crispy and the inside was soft and warm. We could taste both chicken and mushroom flavors as neither overpowered the dish. We all liked this starter.

Huevos al Plato

Huevos al Plato $12 / Baked eggs, picadillo de chorizo, scallions, fresh English peas

The baked egg dish was a little smaller than I expected and I would say it was more tapas size. The dish was served with two eggs on top and flavorful tiny bits of tasty chorizo and peas below the eggs. I liked the mixture of the ingredients, however, it would have been a complete meal with a small side salad and potatoes. After finishing the dish, I wanted something more. 

Huevos Rotos con Tocino

Huevos Rotos con Tocino $13 / “Broken eggs” served with crispy potatoes, pork belly, fried green peppers and Teilla cheese

This dish was much smaller than I expected. I think there was only one egg in the whole dish, and there were only a few pieces of pork belly. I was not expecting the “crispy potatoes” to be French fries, but that’s actually what was in the dish. I thought the fried green peppers would provide a spicy flavor, but I was wrong. Overall, I was not happy with my dish. Thankfully, we had decent appetizers and drinks. 

Huevos Revueltos

Huevos Revueltos $10 / Scrambled eggs with onion marmalade, raisins, Manchego cheese, piquillo peppers

We knew Barraca served tapas-style dishes going in, so we asked the waiter if there were any larger plates that would be good for one person. He recommended the huevos dishes. The scrambled eggs stood out on the menu because of its combination of interesting ingredients. When we got our food, we all thought the servings were on the small side. The eggs were very soft in my dish, which I liked. I like raisins, but I don’t eat them often, so I was surprised by how well the mix of regular and golden raisins went with the onion, peppers and cheese. The raisins actually made this dish better than it would have been without them. The waiter had asked us if we wanted bread at the beginning of our brunch and we declined. We took him up on his offer during our meals. I couldn’t imagine having this dish without any bread to soak up the juice left behind. Overall, the Huevos Revueltos had good flavor but was missing something. I think it could have used some type of meat. 

Dessert

Bunuelos de Viento  $9 / Crispy dough bites served with hot chocolate and cream

We all had room for dessert, and the Bunuelos de Viento was calling our names. The bunuelos were served on top of the hot chocolate. They reminded us of zeppoles without the powdered sugar (which they actually needed). The dish wasn’t sweet enough. A little bit of powdered sugar would have went a long way. Victoria thought the dessert would have been more complete with ice cream. 

Outside Barraca

The final bite: We were impressed with the service and drinks during brunch at Barraca, but the food left us wanting something more. We are looking forward to returning for sangria in the summer.

Reviewed by: Brunch Gang