Jane

The Ladies Who Brunch are looking into matching, monogrammed cardigans for their brunching. Let's hope this happens, we would be the most stylish brunch attendees. Ever.

This week, without matching cardigans, we convened at Jane on West Houston for brunch with friends. Thankfully I made reservations a week ago for our 12:30 brunch. I say this because people were spilling out onto the street and crammed around the hostess' stand. Eventually we were beckoned in to wait there a few moments. As we all stood there a plate of donuts was on it's way past us. We all eyed it and someone leaned over to someone else and said 'how do I get one?'. I dare not name who made this inquiry. Then like magic, the kind man stopped in front of us and offered us a donut. We all stared at him in disbelief. Armed with napkins, the waiter made his way outside with this plate trying to tide waiting guests over till they sat down, tempting them with what may lay within and praying they did not decide to leave for another brunch location.

Fortunately, we were not seated by the entrance but in the back corner in a booth away from everyone waiting. As one who enjoys brunch, this one is constantly plagued with the decision to go with a sweet or a savory meal. I have spoken with others about this and they too, suffer. I decided that at my last meal at Queen's Comfort I got french toast (AND their hot chocolate, yes I wanted to throw up too) so this time I went with Eggs Florentine with hash browns and my complementary mimosa. Everyone enjoyed their meal and had a good time. I have no breaking news or insane stories, just that gathering with friends for a meal continues to be my favorite pastime and will continue to be so in this new year.

3 

Aamanns Copenhagen

Wikipedia defines a Smorrebrod as: Smørrebrød (originally smør og brød; Danish for "butter and bread") usually consists of a piece of buttered rye bread (rugbrød), a dense, darkbrown bread. Pålæg (literally "on-lay"), the topping, then among others can refer to commercial or homemade cold cuts, pieces of meat or fish,cheese or spreads. This daily practice is the base on which the art of the famous Danish open sandwich, smørrebrød is created: A slice or two ofpålæg is placed on the buttered bread, and then pyntet (decorated) with the right accompaniments, to create a tasty and visually appealing food item.

Before this past Sunday I had never head of this open face sandwich until I stepped foot in the bright, open space of Aamanns Copenhagen. The quick steps from the street level lead to an open floor plan of light woods, white walls and very expensive light fixtures (as appraised by my designer roommates). Seated in the back of the space under a huge piece of art I was able to assess the airieness of the room and the calmness that it induced upon seating.

After all five of us sat down we determined the size of these pieces of bread and how many we should order from our super, oh-so-unhelpful waiter. After being ignored for a good ten minutes he finally arrived to take our WHOLE order. Eventually we all received our coffees, teas and freshly squeezed orange juice. The tea was served in a conical mug with a cute lid with an opening on the top allowing the tea bag string to peak through. As if a cuddly baby had been placed on the table we all wanted to play with it and awed when it moved.

Our glass boards arrived with what looked like mini pieces of art, almost too beautiful to eat. I ordered:
- “Gravad laks”: cured salmon with dill, foxy sauce, pickled onions, endive and rye breadcrumbs
- Danish roasted pork belly with crispy greaves, fried apples, and red cabbage glazed in orange and warm spices

Please don't ask me what foxy sauce is. Up until this point I thought it was an egg that was on my salmon and only realizing now, it was, in fact...foxy sauce. Sigh. I eat a lot, everyone knows that. And these two pieces of rye bread filled me up. The bread was dense and piled high was food. I saw some people pick their food up and attempt to eat it (fail). I elected the traditional 'fork' and 'knife' method which worked in my favor and allowed me to go back and forth between dishes.

B, as a vegetarian ordered a cheese plate. And for $17 we thought this would be an impressive display of the cheeses of Denmark. Not so, Obi Wan. All of us received our glass boards and sat, waiting for her dish to arrive. Some people dug in but I stand firm on waiting for other's dishes to arrive so we can all start our meal together. Enough time passed that I had to sneak a bite in out of pure hangover hunger. Eventually I made 'eyes' at our waiter and that set a light bulb off that, yes, someone was still waiting for their $17 dish. And as you might expect, this plate, in my humble opinion was worth $9. I'll just leave it at that. 

In a space that emptied as we finished, and really was not that big, one would expect their waiters to, I don't know, check in on them or perhaps clear their plates when the whole party is sitting their staring off into space. At first we considered the idea of dessert but after the interminable wait we decided that it was for the best that we did not or else WE WOULD NEVER LEAVE.

Eventually I made 'eyes' again and got the guy over to our table. I think we were putting our coats on before he brought the checks back to the table. When I started this meal I thought to myself, golly, this would be a cool place to bring a visiting friend or my parents, but alas at the conclusion, even though the food was tasty and filling, I would not want to put my guests through the pain of staring into one of those beautiful light fixtures just wondering if their waiter would ever return. 

2