A Boozy Brunch at Building on Bond

How's that title for alliteration? I think my 7th grade English teacher would be proud. Or mortified - I'm not really sure. Either way, I'm excited to be writing about one of my favorite restaurants in the neighborhood this week, . A little off the beaten Smith Street path, this is one not to miss.

The decor inside is a little rustic, a little chic and part of what makes the restaurant so special - which makes sense, given that it's owned and was designed and built by Hecho Inc., a design and construction firm that also operates out of the building. As I ate outside this time ("enjoying" the Memorial Day heat), I don't have pictures of the interior, but check out a great gallery on their website to get a feel for it.

Whether you dine inside or out, Building on Bond offers plenty of seating, with outdoor tables wrapping around the quiet corner it occupies. And - of course - the same excellent menu. I've had dinner here several times, and highly recommend their burger (it has CHORIZO in it, it's amazing!), but this was the first time I'd been for brunch.

Since it was Memorial Day, drinks seemed to be in order first, so we first ordered a round of Bloody Marys (the waitress clued us in that they can be made with horseradish-infused vodka!). But I then saw the Pussy Galore drink on the menu, and had to make a quick change - I can't resist a good St. Germain cocktail, and this one turned out to be excellent (prosecco + St. Germain + bitters + lemon). Sadly, the Bloody Mary was just OK - a pepper vodka may have been better than the horseradish version....I expected a little more.

But, the food more than made up with it. We quickly decided that someone had to try the BBQ Pork Hash Benedict (topped with chipotle Hollandaise sauce), so got one of those and one egg white sandwich. Both were, simply, excellent. And it's hard to make an egg white sandwich excellent - I thought I was making a taste/health tradeoff, but was very pleasantly surprised. The egg whites were perfectly cooked, and served on a delicious but reasonably sized Challah-type roll with pico de gallo (and can come with bacon and cheese). The Pork Benedict was equally well-prepared -- every element was perfect. That said...very well executed, but as much as I love pulled pork and Eggs Benedict, I think I prefer them separately - the pork is so good and so well seasoned that it took away from the eggs.

Don't get me wrong - this was an excellent meal. Everything, as usual, was perfectly prepared and the service was casual and extremely friendly - again, as it always has been. I definitely won this round with the cocktail and egg whites, versus the Bloody and benedict, but I will definitely be back to taste the rest of the brunch menu. With pretty much everything under $10, this is a very affordable indulgence - and a great way to break the Smith Street habit.