Brunch has been going strong for a few years now. Perhaps it’s because it gives millennials easier access to their (our) avocado toast or maybe it’s because it’s produced some delicious and creative takes on traditional breakfast and lunch dishes. Whatever the reason, St. Augustine is way on board with the trend. You’ll be able to find plenty of restaurants in the city where you can dine on a lazy Sunday mid-morning, but we’ve collected a few that acknowledge brunch as it’s own special meal. So the next time you wake up on the weekend, craving a mimosa and some hollandaise, you’ll know where to go.
La Cocina International Restaurant
Served 2nd Sunday of every month, 9am-3pm
A new addition to the Sunday brunch family, La Cocina is setting the bar high with their brunch buffet. Sure, they’ve got the traditional avocado toast, poached eggs, and delicious pastries, but the spread doesn’t end there. Salmon with lemon caper sauce and Beef Wellington and Seafood Paella sit center stage with the entrees. Plus there’s dessert. And though the buffet menu will rotate weekly, we’re pretty sure that’s a promising start. The restaurant hosts Sunday brunch once per month, so best to call ahead to make a reservation for the next weekend available.
www.lacocinarestaurants.com
Preserved Restaurant
Served Saturdays and Sundays, 10am-2:30pm
Set in a gorgeous blue house on Bridge Street and boasting a spacious porch, it’s hard to imagine a better brunch spot. And Preserved clearly knows their aesthetic advantage because their brunch is deliciously decadent. Biscuits & Gravy, roasted oysters as well as Mayport Shrimp & Grits give a hearty nod to the Southern heritage upon which the restaurant relies, but the traditional fare isn’t their only menu option. They’ll have something for every palate – from Duck & Potato Hash to Banana Nut French Toast.
www.preservedrestaurant.com
Ice Plant Bar
Served Saturdays and Sundays, 10am-2pm
The swanky 1940s-esque bar is known for their cocktails, so you can rest assured your drink needs will be taken care of. But while you’re sipping from your oh-so-fancy coupe glass, you’ll need a meal that’s going to delight just as much. Thankfully, Ice Plant keeps their brunch menu small and seasonal so that they can get creative and perfect every dish. Fig parfaits, shrimp and grits, even smoked local fish kick brunch up a notch.
www.iceplantbar.com
Brunch at the Casablanca Inn
Weekly, 7:30am-3pm
If “Brunch” is their name, how could they not be on the list? Especially since they have one of the most substantial brunch menus in the city. You can go sweet – blueberry pancakes, peach cobbler french toast – or traditional – biscuits and gravy, eggs and bacon – or eggs benedict and omelets any way you could imagine – with lemon béchamel, smoked salmon, spinach pesto. And you can nosh on burgers, sandwiches, and salads if you happen to not be a breakfast food kind of person.
www.restaurantbrunch.com
Barley Republic Public House
Served Sundays, 11am-4pm
The menu might be small, but the flavor is pretty mighty. The Irish pub is a great place to treat yourself to a traditional Irish breakfast – two eggs over easy with Irish Rasher bacon, sausage, black pudding, crisp potato and mushrooms on rye toast – or something a little different, like Pork Belly & Eggs. They’re even ready to serve you if your Saturday night took a crazy turn (we’re talking the Hangover Burger, a 10 oz. burger with bacon, eggs, and hash browns).
www.barleyrepublic.com
Raintree Restaurant
Served 9:30am-1:30pm
Start the meal with the best way to start any brunch – bubbles. After you’re set with your mimosa, poinsettia, or peach bellini, the delicious food is just icing on the cake. Besides the continental brunch buffet, they have eggs, crepes, and croques as well as more hearty entrees (like Seafood Thermidor, Kobe Beef Burgers, and Meatloaf Sandwiches). This is the place to go if your brunch squad is picky and you’re trying to please everyone. The bubbles will help.
www.raintreerestaurant.com
O.C. White’s Seafood & Spirits
Served Sundays, beginning 9:30am
With a Hibiscus in hand and a view of the Intracoastal from your outdoor table, the rest is secondary. But thankfully, the secondary is pretty solid anyways. They’ll serve up shrimp and spinach omelets, eggs benedict (classic or with salmon), pancakes, and seafood – Shrimp and Grits as well as Hickory Smoked Salmon. It’s not too dolled up or decked out, but it’s a solid and delightful choice for a classic brunch.
www.ocwhitesrestaurant.com
Gypsy Cab Company
Served Sundays, 10:30am-4pm
The Gypsy Cab Co. brunch features many of the well-known and much-loved menu options that you can find on the lunch/dinner menu and – trust us – that’s not a bad thing. But if you do want to get something a little different and a little more “brunch-y,” they’ll dish out some delicious huevos rancheros, frittatas, omelets, and lox for your Sunday mid-morning delight.
www.gypsycab.com
The Reef Restaurant
Sundays, 10:30am-2pm
A carving station, fresh omelets, crab legs with drawn butter, peel and eat shrimp, domestic and imported cheese, homemade waffles, smoked salmon, desserts–the list goes on and on, but we’re running out of breath. If all these (and more) delicious dining options weren’t enough, the brunch includes complimentary champagne. Where can we sign up? Brunch is $37.50 and $15 for children 12 and under.
www.thereefstaugustine.com
You can find more delicious St. Augustine restaurants by visiting www.staugustinesocial.com/restaurants.
