Brunch. Brunch is ‘the thing’ these days, apparently. Or maybe it’s just because Tika talks about brunch every single weekend then ends up sleeping in til’ I force her awake. (There’s a world out there to explore, people. Can’t waste time sleeping.) Personally, I’ve never seen the big deal about brunch, at least around here. Unlimited mimosas seem to be rare or non-existent. Waits are long. I’m often disappointed with the food (I can make my own spinach and feta omelette without spending $11 plus tax and tip. Shocking, I know.) (Tika’s note: No one wants your spinach feta omelette though.)
So when my mom and sister invited me to brunch last Sunday, mainly to grill me about the wedding, I begrudgingly said okay. Clearly, I’d rather be subject to an overpriced meal with family than sit around watching some crappy non-Patriots football game. They told me to meet them in the Tustin Marketplace at a place called Snooze OC, a name which aptly reminded me of how I feel about the whole brunch thing in general. As I was about to leave, my sister texted and said “hour and a half wait.” HAH. Stereotypes confirmed! (Tika’s note: I swear he’s a 50 year old trapped in a 31 year old’s body!) I putzed around my apartment for a bit longer, then eventually headed over once the table was ready while my mom and sister shopped.
I got there and took a quick look at the menu. It was filled with all sorts of stuff that would completely wreck the workouts I’d been doing over the past week. This included pot pies, sandwiches, eggs benedicts, a bunch of sugary-sounding pancakes, French toast literally stuffed with even more sugary and carby things…you get the idea.
My sister pointed out their ‘mix and match’ eggs benedict menu, which looked the most appealing, so I said sure, not expecting much. I got the Benny Goodman and Chile Verde eggs benedict combo, which came with a side of hash browns. And no, I didn’t pony up the $8 or whatever for a mimosa. Frugality! (Tika’s note: Live a little!) The Benny Goodman had lox salmon and cream cheese on top of rye (there was more, but this was the gist of it), while the Chile Verde obviously had…chile verde style pork (durr) with pico de gallo, etc. And eggs.
The food mercifully came, as I was being peppered with all sorts of wedding stuff that I probably didn’t answer adequately. I took my first bite, which was the Benny Goodman. Wait. This is good. What? I can taste the rye. The egg works well with the salmon and cream cheese and hollandaise. Weird, but..awesome! I take a bite of the Chili Verde. Holy crap. This is good too. These are amazing eggs benedict. WHAT IS HAPPENING? BRUNCH ISN’T SUPPOSED TO BE GOOD! (Tika’s note: Does that mean we can do brunch every weekend now?)
By the way. My mom complained that her French Toast was too sweet. Honestly, everything is too sweet for my mom (although I’m obviously the sweetest thing around in her life) (Tika’s note: Barf). In fairness to Snooze, she did order the French Toast topped with…mascarpone, vanilla crème, salted caramel, strawberries, and coconut. Yeah, mom. It’s probably going to be sweet. I gave her my hash browns, which I thought were decent, and ate half of her toast, which was good, and yes…sweet.
The bottom line is: Snooze has locations in a few states. If there’s one near you, I highly recommend going. Check out the menu here. Just don’t go when I go to Snooze OC, otherwise the wait will be even more miserable. Thanks.
Whatever my sister ordered (also some eggs benedict) along with her grapefruit mimosa (Tika’s Note: she knows how to do brunch right)
Mom’s French Toast
