Thursday, August 11, 2011

In search of the Holy Grail, aka Best Breakfast in Austin

The next stop on our Austin food tour took us to Kerbey Lane on Monday, August 1. Again, the trip was spurred by the gift card provided by Brandi and Tim and the promise that it is the best breakfast in Austin. Although we failed to make it out of the door in time for actual breakfast hour, our luck was that this 24 hour restaurant serves their breakfast menu all day. Point of order: I love breakfast! Any establishment that allows me to enjoy these treats any time I want gets extra points. The decor takes you back to the era of the Kerbey Lane’s establishment, with the twist of interesting local art on the walls. After a little research on their website, I found that the owners are dedicated to keeping it local community oriented. I love any place that takes pride in its heritage and customer-base. The servers added to the relaxed and welcoming atmosphere.

The breakfast menu consisted of a lot of traditional fare, but with a lot of vegan and alternative diet options, such as gluten-free. Off the summer seasonal menu, I ordered the Squash Benedict which consisted of two squash patties (think zucchini fritters, almost), two poached eggs, roasted heirloom cherry tomatoes, and hollandaise sauce. I also opted to add prosciutto. My dish came with a side, of which I chose home fries. (NOTE: if you don’t know me, I will always choose a side that consist of a potato. It just seems like logic to me.)



This dish was SPECTACULAR! The egg: perfectly cooked. The squash patties: slightly starchy and full of great flavor. The hollandaise: creamy, smooth, tangy and absolutely delicious. The tomatoes: unbelievably smoky and sweet. The prosciutto: precisely salty and crispy. Every element had its place and they worked together harmoniously to excite my tastebuds.

The home fires. Here is some matter of contention. It is my thought that there is really 3 schools when it comes to breakfast potatoes. First, there is the hashbrown faction. There are people who like their potatoes on the crispy-fried side. Next there is the home fries group which prefer a baked option. Then there is my group, who simply loves all potatoes. These were of the baked variety and were a great complement to the Benedict.



Steve ordered the Harvest Omelet. Omelets filled with veggies are a favorite of his and this one did not disappoint. The egg was fluffy and flavorful and the veggies were perfect. His sides were a whole grain toast and mixed fruit which were also very good.



Now, again, for those of you who are not personally acquainted with us, we also love to mix our salty and sweet for breakfast. Although, really, who doesn’t?? Our sweet was the signature Kerbey Lane Gingerbread Pancake. I don’t even know what to say about this other than delightful. I am usually not a huge ginger fan and really only will eat gingerbread cookies if coated generously in frosting for the little men. However, in these pancakes, the ginger was definitely the main player, but not too strong. It was was also my favorite texture of pancake with the right balance of cakey-ness and fluff. (Side note: you can buy the mix for this and other Kerbey Lane pancakes at local grocers, such as H.E.B and Whole Foods so that you can enjoy these amazing treats at home... future post??)


It may be impossible to top Kerbey Lane as far as breakfast goes, making it deserve the  title of best breakfast in Austin. I will definitely keep looking, but will also make many future visits to this new favorite!

1 comment:

  1. YAY! Add this to the list! I am inspired by the squash benedict... I will benedict just about anything and this sounds amazing!!! I give... two woots! Woot, Woot!

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