Birch and Barley Boozy Brunch, Sunday, February 6, 2011

As soon as I saw the article in Bacon Today about the toffee bacon donut at Birch and Barley, I knew that I had to have it, and soon.  It's only served during Sunday brunch, so I made reservations immediately, and had an easy time convincing three friends to come with me.  

The toffee bacon donut comes as part of an order of three donuts (though apparently it is really two donuts and one donut hole) -- toffee bacon, lemon poppyseed, and chocolate ($6).  They are made to order, and come out looking beautiful, as you can see.

Verdict: the toffee bacon donut was good, but it didn't blow my mind.  I think I wanted a bit more toffee to soak into the brioche dough (which was quite tasty), or perhaps even more bacon on top.  It was certainly decadent, and it tasted good, but I wanted it to be a taste explosion in my mouth rather than a good novelty donut.  The lemon poppyseed donut, on the other hand, was excellent, and the lemony flavor had soaked into the dough in a most pleasing way.  The chocolate donut hole didn't hold a candle to either of the other two.

My three friends all ordered the Boozy Brunch ($30) which included 3 donut holes in the aforementioned flavors, two cocktails, an entree, and bottomless iced tea or coffee.  I simply got the Chicken and Waffles ($15).  The chicken was boneless, included dark meat (yay!), and the batter was super peppery.  Waffles were decent, but I allocated my remaining stomach space to the chicken.

My companions were all extremely happy with their meals, which were the Spinach Artichoke Flatbread (regularly $14), the Whiskey French Toast (regularly $14), and the SOS (also regularly $14).

 

I'd been excited to try the Optimal Wit, which sadly for me was ultimately not my style of beer, but the Brunch Punch ($6) was delicious -- refreshing and pretty to look at, too.  

I can definitely see myself going to Birch and Barley for brunch again, and I'd like to try their non-brunch menu as well (hello, charcuterie, I'm lookin' at you). Overall, a very enjoyable meal I was quite pleased with.