Thursday, February 22, 2007

brunchgang iii: Abbraccio, 11 a.m., Sun., March 4


Abbraccio, 820 S 47th St., 215-727-8247

Where it's at.

Brunchgangers:
  • Brian Howard
  • Gabrielle Mosquera
  • DJ Pancake
  • Michael Pelusi
  • Upma Singh
  • Jon Solomon
  • Sean Jon's Friend


10 comments:

Jon Solomon said...

Ok, people...

Six of us had the brunch buffet, but I flipped the menu over to the "blunch" side and opted for a veggie burger with fries. The burger was decent enough, with some water chestnuts in the mix and a piece of provolone melted on top. A slice of tomato, some red onion and a cross-section of pickle later, capped with squeezes of ketchup and mustard and I was pleased.

The adjoining fries were of an odd, crispy-but-not-fried quality, with an aftertaste of Chinese food. They reminded me of the evening my friend Eric almost burned down our apartment by preparing Krinkle Fries while extremely intoxicated.

Complementary coffee and orange juice were pleasant surprises.

My sandwich was held up to a nearby table mid-bite so the customer who could not get an answer from the wait staff about the availability of "blunch" was inspired to follow suit.

Post-meal DJ Pancake and I went to the ICA, where there was a large record swap in progress.

While tempted to cap my afternoon with a $100 Zero Boys album, I kept my wallet closed.

Jon

Ps. Warning: Google Maps directions to Abbraccio nearly sent us to Valley Forge and back.

Pps. Is all turkey bacon that color?

brian g howard said...

i was one of the buffet six, and as far as buffets go, this one was pretty ace.

i sampled the following:

-two options for scrambled eggs (with vegetables and without; i went with the "without")
-non-fried home-style potatoes
-french toast with the much bandied about maple/walnut topping
-a vat of bacon and sausage
-another vat of oddly pinkish turkey bacon
-creamed chipped beef an toast
-polenta with red sauce

while the french toast served en-masse was a bit dry, it was perked up by the maple topping.

the eggs were yeoman.

the bacon was crisp and tasty (though the turkey bacon was, as noted around the table, plastic-y).

the chipped beef was very enjoyable, especially since it's a dish i've not really thought about in ages.

though nothing from the buffet stood out, in my mind, as mind-blowing, the variety was much appreciated.

i do wish i'd have sampled the work of the guest waffle chef, though i think i'd have been more inclined to do so had the guest waffle chef been standing at the waffle station making said waffles. (did anyone actually see the guest waffle chef?)

brunch was made somewhat surreal by the strange photo of the mimes in a pile of bricks hung over our table. it was made enjoyable by the hamantaschen/mummenschanz and paintball/lasertag discussions.

brunch was topped off nicely by dj pancake's misshapen but very delicious hamantaschen which were distributed in the parking lot afterward.

not sure if the brunch buffet is to blame for the general feeling of logey malaise i felt for the rest of the day.

Jon Solomon said...

To your last point, Brian: Perhaps we were all tired, or perhaps without Ed/Betsy there was an uncertainness among Brunchgangers in how to proceed.

I'll let DJ Pancake tell you about her post-ICA purchase of running shoes herself.

Happy Purim, everyone.

Beth Noel said...

today while you guys brunched and blunched, the Saint Joseph's Women's Basketball Team defeated the no. 8 ranked George Washington Women's Basketball Team.

holla!

Jon Solomon said...

Neither the Hawk or Brunchgang will ever die.

If you win on Monday, please rush to half court and do the Brunchgang handshake. I'll set the DVR just in case...

brian g howard said...

further proof that good things happen when brunchgang happens — though that axiom might not necessarily hold for GW fans.

Mike said...

I had three cups of coffee, a glass of orange juice, scrambled eggs, home fries, a waffle and (for my second course) two slices of french toast. Everything was good, except the food was a little too lukewarm for my tastes; but I suppose that is part of the whole buffet deal.

Later in the day, I went to see Zodiac, which was excellent. A damn fine police procedural, says I.

upma said...

I drank two cups of coffee, two glasses of OJ, the plain scrambled eggs, two pieces of French Toast adorned with sugary goodness, one piece real bacon, one roasted tomato with cheese and herbs, a spoon of pasta salad, and a spoon of fresh fruit salad.

I enjoyed my meal pretty well, I agree with Mike that everything was a little too lukewarm. I don't think I noticed it at the time, (execpt for the oddly cool temp of my roasted tomato).

Jon, as we were exiting, I did see the guest waffle chef. She didn't seem very excited.

After brunchgang I went home and finished cleaning/organizing my apt., and watched Carolina trounce Duke. Go Heels! (and Hokies too!)

upma said...

ps. the hamantaschen were excellent!

brian g howard said...

in a strange bit of serendipity, i was just handed a hamantaschen.