Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Lamberts' Brunch Buffet


One of my friends had talked about the Lamberts brunch buffet many times before and when it came time for her birthday she decided that’s where she wanted to celebrate. I immediately searched for the menu online and began to dream about what I would eat. I planned to try as much of the food as possible – for review purposes, of course – so I went in with an empty stomach and thoughts of calorie counting pushed aside.

Included in the buffet are some items – like French toast, pancakes and eggs Benedict – that you can order and do not sit on the buffet line. Our group of five ordered a few things off the menu when we first sat down including: the petite omelet, French toast, and the hangar steak eggs Benedict.
Yum.

We were then presented a plate of blueberry muffins, chocolate chip muffins and petite lemon scones. We all grabbed one then took a few bites and even though everyone agreed their choice was delicious, realized there was no point in wasting stomach space on bread. That was not an effective approach to buffet-ing.

My usual approach to a buffet is to first get a small amount of everything I want to try, if my stomach allows, go back for seconds of the things I really like.

More deliciousness.
My first plate included: potato salad, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, poblano cheese grits, some fruit (mostly out of guilt), 2 strips of bacon, and then 1 small slice of brisket, 1 small slice of prime rib and 1 small rib (the chopping block guy kind of gave me a strange look when I asked for the smallest pieces of each). My friends all had varying approaches as seen in the accompanying pictures. 

My favorite things from this plate were the potato salad and mac and cheese. The potato salad was very traditional homemade style and the macaroni was thick and creamy with layers of cheese flavor (pretty sure I tasted goat cheese in there).
Deee-licious!

The ribs were called “the best ribs I’ve ever had” by a friend at the other end of the table. I was not that impressed but it may have been because when I asked for a small rib, I got one from the fatty end of the slab. The small brisket piece I had was flavorful and lean. The prime rib was so tender and not as fatty as I usually expect with prime rib. The bacon was not as crispy as I usually like my bacon.

The poblano grits lost in my competition of mac and cheese vs grits. They were good, but if I would only get seconds of one of the two, it would be the mac and cheese.

Amazing French toast.
When our ordered plates arrived I was immediately excited by the French toast. It was an inch and a half thick slice of brioche in a pool of syrup and topped with strawberry butter. I think I could have eaten the whole slice, but I cut it into pieces and shared. Everyone enjoyed the French toast. I think this was my favorite menu item of the day.

The hangar steak Benedict with tobasco [how it was spelled on the menu] hollandaise was also good. My one complaint was that the English muffin was harder to slice than the actual flank steak. The hollandaise was flavorful but I am glad I ordered it on the side because too much would’ve just been well, too much. The egg was a little overcooked for traditional poached eggs but I do like my eggs medium so it worked out for me.

I was able to try the petite omelet and the caramelized onions goat cheese mixture inside was scrumptious – if you like onions.

For dessert they had: fried apple pies, mini red velvet cupcakes, honey pots (tiny tiny tarts filled with honey and pine nuts) and coconut cream puffs. Everyone’s favorite were the honey pots because they were something different, reminded us of Winnie the Pooh, and were yummy.

The buffet is $30 a person. I think it is worth it for a special occasion. Make sure you go on a very empty stomach and with time set aside for your eventual food coma.

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