It’s been quiet ’round these parts lately. We’ve been eating out a lot less in an effort to save calories and money, and travel has been nonexistent (though that changes this weekend, hooray!) so material has been lacking. I actually have a lot of other things that I want to write about, and changes I want to make to this blog, but it’s been a slow and steady march in that direction.
We did make it out once last week (which might be a record low for me) to try brunch at barrel in Eastern Market.
This place used to be the somewhat divey 18th Amendment bar, but it’s cleaned up a bit since it became barrel. The structure is similar, but there’s a fun upscale rustic decor theme that definitely made the space feel updated.
The food is a lot different as well, though an 18th Amendment breakfast burrito did damn near save my life one fateful day in 2011. Long story.
We walked over from Navy Yard (a good thing, as this is not a diet friendly brunch situation) and arrived right as the restaurant opened on Saturday morning at 10:30, hoping to squeeze in a quick breakfast before college football started for the day. I think the staff was slightly surprised when we burst through the doors immediately after they were unlocked ready to rock and roll, but they accommodated us quickly and were very helpful from start to finish.
We had one round of spicy bloody Marys, which were good but a bit chunky for my taste. Our kind server had warned us that this was the case, so we only had ourselves to blame. Next time I think I’ll try the bottomless mimosas, although I always say that and never do it because Prosecco headaches are ugly. They also offer barrels of old fashions, for a minimum of four people, for those with a taste for the brown water.
Since we were on a tight schedule, we got right down to business. While I was very curious about the pancake with basil and pop rocks(!), I knew it wouldn’t be filling enough for a day of heart breaking football watching. Instead, I ordered the fonduta stuffed gnocchi with poached eggs and chard.
This was rich and garlicky and delicious, but a tad on the small side for my Saturday morning hanger. I ended up ordering a biscuit to sop up the egg yolks and sauce. Yum.
Tom, with his ability to order the most fattening thing on the menu and never gain weight, went with the fried chicken and biscuit with sausage gravy and blood orange jam.
This was an excellent dish. The chicken was all dark meat (which I don’t typically like, but enjoyed thoroughly here) covered in a thick and crispy breading that seemed to be infused with barbecue sauce flavor. The biscuit was coated in the sticky orange jam, making for a nice contract to the savory chicken. The sausage gravy was smoky with a little spice, much different from the milky white gravy I was picturing.
Tom remarked that is was in the top echelon of fried chicken dishes he’s tried in the district. And the man eats a lot of fried chicken. He also said that despite its robust appearance, it was on the “lighter” side compared to the chicken and waffles he’s prone to ordering, stating that he didn’t feel sick to his stomach after eating them for a change. Oh, to be a tall and metabolically gifted man…
Though quick and to the point, this was definitely an enjoyable, laid back brunch that has me curious to taste some of barrel’s dinner offerings. There’s a burger with truffled cheese and pop rocks in the carrots y’all.
Your dish sounds amazing. I’ve never even heard of anything like it!
And just out of curiosity, how was your Bloody Mary chunky?
Mainly it was chunks of horseradish, of which I am NOT a fan, and also some black pepper. It wasn’t terrible, but kind of distracting, haha.
I agree with you: Prosecco headaches are horrible. I like to get a chaser of orange juice as added insurance against them but maybe, by having your fill early in the morning it wouldn’t be so bad the following day?
That’s a good point! Although when I do imbibe at brunch, the rest of the day is usually a wash 😉