posted by Archana on American, Bread, Breakfast, Brunch, Lunch, Nolita, Vegging Out

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I had been going through a string of weekend in the new year where I was very anti-brunch for so many reasons: It saves money, it doesn’t kill the entire day waiting in line and it’s usually healthier. But last weekend, I couldn’t bare to eat another egg, cheese and salsa sandwich, which I had been eating four weeks and counting. (It was delish though!) It was time for a change. Plus, I live in New York, and not going to brunch is as unnatural as not going to Central Park the first weekend it’s warm.

My boyfriend and I wanted something different, so we opted for Public in Nolita. The menu had me at hello:

What’s in it for you: Granola, yogurt, manuka honey and summer berries; tropical fruit salad with rosewater and sweet tahini; Turkish eggs (poached over Greek yogurt and biber butter); watermelon, feta and basil salad with toasted pumpkin seeds

What’s in it for them: Tea-smoked salmon, spinach and poached eggs on toasted sourdough; grilled venison burger on miso bun with tomato chili jam and cassava chips; roast boudin noir and sherry-braised onion sandwich with fennel and green apple slaw

What a hard decision! The watermelon-basil-feta salad was what drew me to the restaurant, but ultimately we decided it was better suited for a summer day, rather than the bone-cold day it happened to be.

But first thing’s first; we got apricot scones to munch on before our meals came out. If I ever work at a restaurant, I’m definitely giving a bread basket or something similar at brunch. Why should free snacks be limited (mostly) to dinner?

Post-intense selection process, we chose the salad of herby lentils, coconut pancakes with fresh ricotta and vanilla brioche French toast.

Before we got our food, I was making a big fuss about how awesome the coconut pancakes sounded, and as it often happens, they weren’t as good as I expected. My suggestion: Swap out the ginger in the syrup (or at least reduce the amount) for a less tangy topping. Seriously, it was like throwing some Sour Patch Kids on my pancakes. Obviously, it was a bit more gourmet than movie theater candy, but you catch my drift.

The lentil salad and French toast were the all-stars of this brunch. Now, I know herby lentil salad doesn’t sound like classic brunch food but it was so light and delicious, not to mention a good way to get protein since we didn’t order eggs.

The lychee on the French toast is what took it from the standard bread and maple syrup to a work of art. Is there anything this miracle fruit can’t do? Drinks, dessert and now brunch. Paired with the mascarpone, it was one of the fanciest French toasts I’ve ever had, and I know there are plenty of wanna-bes out there.

In an effort to leave brunch not incapacitated for once, we declined the scrumptious-looking table of scones, muffins:

The space itself is pretty large, almost like a warehouse, and the indoor trees give it an L.A. vibe, which was much appreciated considering how obnoxiously cold it was outside. In warmer weather, they open Public’s garage door-like front, which would make for some seriously awesome al fresco dining.

We didn’t have to wait at all for a table (woo hoo!) and my friends tell me that there usually isn’t much of a wait given the big space. Exotic brunch options + no wait = the best thing ever?

Public
210 Elizabeth St. (between Prince and Spring)
212.343.7011
6 to Spring St.
F, V to 2nd Ave.