Brunchable

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When you hear about Spitzer’s Corner, people are generally talking about their extensive (we are talking huge) list of beers on tap. The wall behind the bar is literally crowded with pull handles brandishing logos from across the globe. It also turns out that they have a delicious brunch, complete with their in-house take on the Bloody Mary.

Seating is done “community style” on large wooden benches that span the room, and bar style seating around their large (typically open) windows. I recommend the window seats as they provide excellent people watching opportunities. Needless to say, the corner of Ludlow and Rivington is frequented by interesting personalities.

First things first: the booze:
Natasha ordered a Mimosa while I, too stubborn to stray from my tastes, boldly ordered their Bloody Mary even after they told me that it was “very different” and “might not be what I expect.” It turns out, they weren’t lying. If you are looking for a thick, tomato-y beverage with tons of veggies, look elsewhere. But if you are open to a drink more closely aligned with a margarita, full of heirloom tomato pulp and and spice (and a splash of strong vodka), then I recommend this one highly. This drink would be particularly tasty on a warm summer Sunday morning. After letting it sit in my stomach for a bit, I decided it was even worth a second round. Be warned that if you are like me and don’t appreciate an excessively salty drink, request that they not salt the rim. Oh, and Natasha said the Mimosa was tasty. Women.

After cruising the food menu (which is about a 1/3 the size of the drink menu), I decided on the Southern Omelette, featuring home fries and avocado. Being an omelette fan, the concept of avocado and egg seemed like a daring choice, but if done right, potentially very tasty. Boy was I wrong. I guess I was anticipating a garnish of avocado on top of the eggs, but the chef choose to cook them inside the dish. What resulted was a sulfurous heap of conflicting flavor that I was unable to finish. If you’ve produced a dish that even -I- won’t finish, you’ve got problems.

Luckily, Natasha has a stomach the size of a ping-pong ball, and I was able to swoop in and steal her Blueberry Pancake left-overs. I’m not a huge pancake fan because I tend to find them too “bready” and thick, forcing me to chug a lot of liquid to keep my mouth from drying out. Spitzer’s pancakes have caused me to re-evaluate everything I think I know about the dish. These were soft and fluffy, not overly sweet, prepared with fresh fruit, and some of the best authentic maple syrup I think I’ve ever had. Two major thumbs up.

Although not the trend on Brunchable, I actually returned to this restaurant for a second brunch before finishing this article. I had the same Bloody Mary (which was still wildly different yet very tasty), but decided to mix up the dish.

This time I went with the Smoked Salmon platter. Instead of the typical “tomato, red onion and cream cheese,” Spitzer’s Salmon dish comes with creme fraiche, slices of golden and purple beets, a sprig of dill and two lemon slices. The capers were true to custom, but instead of a bagel, they provide with you 3 slices of brown whole wheat bread.

All in all, it was a successful execution. The creme fraiche was light, and didn’t conflict with the beets. The three separate slices of bread prevented the need to pile everything onto one half of a bagel and make a mess as you try to get it into your mouth. If I had to criticize one part of dish, it would be that the Salmon was particularly flavorful. I wasn’t able to tell if this was because it wasn’t particularly fresh, or if it had been smoked for xx amount of time longer, but it had an almost overwhelming flavor.

The verdict? Stay away from the eggs, experience the Bloody Mary, and be prepared for strong flavors. 4 out of 5 brunchables.