Monday, September 5, 2016

Brunch at MANNA


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This weekend was an anniversary in our house so we made time to go to MANNA the Kitchen for brunch. It's our first time for brunch there since the owners moved the menu from The Stoop to MANNA's sweet new digs. I was excited about eating brunch in front of the lovely new kitchen but not expecting anything new flavor wise. I figured we would show up and it would be more of the same (in a good way) in a new, fancier place.


Well, of course I was wrong and of course they wouldn't just stick with the same-old-same-old. That's just not who these chef's are. Not that brunch is totally different now, it's just better. With the larger kitchen came more space and the chance to use more modern cooking techniques that make their standard recipes even better.


One of they coolest new techniques they do is slow poach their eggs IN their shells. This results in every egg being perfectly, evenly cooked every time. They are also using the classic English muffin which didn't used to be available in Korea, but has now arrived and it makes a good benny even better. It's so simply and elegant, I recommend starting with the classic benny just to enjoy how perfectly it's done. These aren't the only changes, but I won't bore you with the tedious details. I'm just going to tell you they are good things.


In addition to the perfect eggs, we also ordered the brioche french toast. Generally I don't like to order things like waffles, pancakes and/or french toast because I can't handle all the sugar and hate the way I feel after I'm finished. However, my partner loves all things sugar so this is what I ordered for him. As it turned out, I think I ate more of it than he did because it WASN'T sickly sweet.  The thick cut brioche was perfectly matched with lightly candied walnuts and tasty bananas instead of loads of heavy syrup. The result was a "sweet" brunch dish that didn't weigh me down.


In my opinion, MANNA easily grabs the crown of  "best fancy brunch in town". Nothing really compares. I'm not saying I don't LOVE to eat breakfast at the other restaurants because I absolutely do. However, it's like comparing apples and oranges.  Plus, many of the other location only serve brunch items on the weekends. At MANNA brunch is available Monday - Saturday, making it easier to have brunch when you want it.