Joie De Vivre NYC

Stuffed French toast

I was in San Diego for the weekend to celebrate my nephew's first  birthday and my cousin had time off to take me to one of her favorite brunch places which was The Cottages located in La Jolla.

When we arrived, there was a 25 minute waiting time which I found relatively easy to tolerate considering my friends and I have waited two hours for brunch at several NYC spots.  When my cousin heard that I waited two hours for brunch in NYC, she was shocked and said she would never wait that long for food.

When our table was ready, we were asked to be seated outdoors, since San Diego, as always was beautiful.

My cousin ordered the stuffed french toast which consisted of brioche, strawberry compote, and mascarpone cheese topped with powdered sugar.

She also recommended I order the polenta benedicts which was a spin on eggs benedict but instead of eggs, polenta was used.

I'm normally not a fan of french toast or polenta because I've eaten them in a traditional sense but the polenta benedicts was a nice spin on the recipe.

Goat cheese, kale pesto and tomato relish were used and it was a light, fresh meal for a sunny day.

Polenta benedicts The Cottage was a nice brunch place to spend the morning with my cousin.  The vibe is very laid back but it's also a very trendy place with a mix of locals  and tourists.

The leaves have turned red orange and the air was crisp.  Autumn has arrived in New York and what better way to spend the morning than savoring some comfort food at Clinton Street Bakery!

Hot Buttered Cider

Despite its opening in 2001, it is still one of the most popular places to brunch in New York.  I tried bringing out of town friends here on a weekend for their famous pancakes but that was a 2 hour wait.

This time, May - Mei recommended we show up at 10am to see if we can snag some seats.  I arrived 15 minutes late and when I met up with May - Mei who was waiting outside in the cold, she explained to me that there would be a 40 minute wait!

Despite being a Friday morning, the line began to snake around the block and my fingers began to numb.  After 30 minutes of waiting outside, May - Mei and I succumbed to the cold and went inside to pretend to look at the desserts.

Luckily, after 10 minutes, May-Mei's name was called and we were seated by the window.

Spanish Scramble

May - Mei and I tend to share family style so I was thrilled when she chose the buttermilk biscuit sandwich since I was craving that dish when I looked over the menu online the night before.  I like eggs benedict but not many brunch places can get the hollandaise right so May - Mei suggested I opt for the Spanish scramble.

Buttermilk Biscuit Sandwich

I also like cheese grits so we agreed to split a side in addition to ordering some hot drinks to warm us up from the cold weather.  May - Mei ordered a hot buttered cider that was topped with cinnamon while I ordered a house blend hot chocolate.

House blend hot chocolate and cheese grits

My friends usually tend to pick the better items off the menu so her hot buttered cider was much better than my hot chocolate despite the luxurious whip cream on top.

The hot buttered cider was tart but not overwhelming and perfect for the cold weather.

May - Mei shared some of her buttermilk biscuit with me and the biscuit was flaky and delicious. It reminded me a bit like a buttery croissant that melts in your mouth.

Unfortunately, the spanish scramble was not memorable and neither were the cheese grits.  Southern comfort food tends to be the popular theme for many brunch places but Clinton Street Bakery is best known for their pancakes and their fried chicken so someday when May - Mei have a little more patience, we'll come back for fried chicken (dinner) or pancakes (February is pancake month).