Dining Out

What defines “Brunch”?

According to Wikipedia: Brunch is a combination of breakfast and lunch, and regularly has some form of alcoholic drink (most usually champagne or a cocktail) served with it. It is usually served any time before 2 o’clock in the afternoon. The word is a portmanteau of breakfast and lunch. Brunch originated in England in the late 19th century and became popular in the United States in the 1930s.

To Brunch or to Dine?

This is the question that I posed to all of my Facebook friends out there who are Mothers. While we were pondering about what eating establishment we should feature in this column this month and keep with the Mother’s Day theme we decided that we couldn’t pick just one place. Our advertisers and most all of the other fine dining establishments in the area all have good things to offer on this day. We also pondered whether it would be better to feature brunch or dinner and that is where the survey came in.

Ultimately Sunday Brunch won out by a fairly large margin. It seems that the Mom’s in my realm like to linger over a nice, leisurely midday meal with a Bloody Mary or Mimosa in hand. As you can see from the information in the sidebar to this column, brunch has some parameters. I will be the first to admit that I have had brunch well after 2 pm over the years. We did find that most establishments that serve brunch in the area have it available between 11 am and 3:30 pm so there is a decent window for making a reservation. Speaking of which, if you are looking at snagging a table outside or on the waterfront anywhere in the area, it would behoove you to make that reservation immediately. With some of the pandemic protocols and some people’s reluctance to dine indoors still at the forefront, these tables will fill up fast. This is also dependent on Mother Nature so you may want to keep your options open.

Let’s talk about our favorite part of brunch (besides the Mimosa) – brunch food! Eggs Benedict isn’t something you make every day for breakfast and neither is French toast or quiche. Most of us don’t serve peeled shrimp and carvings of prime rib and honey baked ham at lunch either. Brunch is when you can choose from either category no matter the time of day. The days of the buffet are slowly coming back but we aren’t aware of any places that are putting out Brunch Buffet for Mother’s Day. Personally, I am not a fan of a buffet. For some reason when I go through the line with my plate(s) I feel compelled to take some of everything. If you are the person following me in the line you would think that I was preparing for my last meal. I just want a few really nice choices that some nice expeditor puts together on my plate served to me at the table.

For those Moms who prefer to be taken for a nice dinner, you also have many great places to choose from and many of them are offering special Mother’s Day Dinner menus. These special menus are normally very extensive and well worth the money. If you are still hesitant about dining out, the majority of the restaurants are offering their special menu for delivery, takeout or curbside pickup.

The beauty of living in the area we do is that we can dress to the nines or wear our best spring casuals and still be treated to a great meal. There are places with an atmosphere for every taste – white table cloth to bar stool. There are places that will have sports on for Mom and then there are places that will have nice music and a rose waiting for her. No matter which meal you choose to treat Mom to, we encourage you to consider our restaurant advertisers when making your selection. In addition to these fine establishments, there are many other options here in Old Town and metro Alexandria. There are some new faces on the waterfront and in the North End. Check out the Dining Guide for some suggestions.

On a parting note….there is always the option of cooking for Mom at her house or yours. Keep in mind, however, this means that you do the cleaning up as well! Have a fabulous Mother’s Day!