I’m a bit of a brunch addict. So I, had to make a stop at E2 one Saturday,
not too long ago, to see if the hype I'd heard was warranted.
In my experience, if you’re serving up a killer brunch menu,
there will indefinitely be a line of hungry folks waiting for your door to
open. This is why I was peeved at the hubby
because he had hit the alarm too many times.
So rather than being sensibly early for the 9 am opening, we were obnoxiously
late…pulling in to a parking spot at (gasp!) 9:01 am. I noticed a group of 5 or 6 people
approaching E2 which caused me to power walk to the front step. To my surprise, however, the group kept on
walking. Still feeling triumphant
none-the-less (I would’ve beat them) we were greeted outside by the host.
He brought us into the empty,
dimly lit dining area and sat us at one of the 10 or so tables. We were handed a menu that contained several
choices of donuts and ooooo beignets!
While my sweet tooth was delighted, my stomach was wondering where to
find the “real food”? I soon noticed a
chalkboard with the brunch entrees listed in various colors. Some of the colored chalk was hard to read
but we managed to discover some yummy sounding selections. I was torn between trying the French Toast with
Nectarine and Raspberry Jam and the Egg Sammy.
To ease my decision, I had to ask the tough question: What kind of bread
is the French Toast made from? Our
waiter (also the host) was unsure and had to ask the kitchen. As I awaited his answer, I crossed my fingers
and hoped that he wasn’t going to tell me Texas Toast*. I was soon informed it
was sourdough from Breadworks. Yeah for
local goods! I was sold. The hubby ordered the omelet, which came with
potatoes and salad.
We enjoyed some good strong coffee while we waited for our
eats to come out. It wasn’t much of a
wait considering we were only one of three occupied tables. In no time at all, I was taking in the
presentation and smells of my fancy French Toast. Three thin slices of golden pieces of
sourdough were the stage for a generous cascade of jam. Atop it all, was a delicate dollop of
mascarpone cheese. Hello! It looked picturesque but would my eyes and
taste buds agree? Fork to mouth…absolutely! The toast was perfectly crisp on the outside
and tender on the inside. The jam,
although not deseeded, was some of the best I’ve ever eaten with a perfect
balance of acidity and sweetness. And
the mascarpone was a genius addition to this dish. It’s light creaminess slowly melted over the
hot jam. It was down right sexy.
Now if my dish was sexy like George Clooney, then my hubby’s
dish was more like Phillip Seymour Hoffman…in Twister. The omelet was dense
and rather flat, not light and fluffy. The
mozzarella inside wasn’t melted either, although the egg itself was
overcooked. The potatoes could’ve been
awesome-should’ve been awesome! They
were red potatoes, probably left over from the previous night’s dinner service
as they should be and they were…absolute mush.
Why not fry them up a bit before serving them? Breakfast potatoes should be crispy! (It says so right here, on pg. 39 of the Breakfast Potatoes Bible.) And the salad, which looked the best of all
that was plated, was coated in black pepper and salt. It was literally as if the S&P were
spooned on top of the greens.
After finishing my entrée, I wanted to try their beignets
for dessert. Being in the south from
time to time, I know a good beignet and the thought of being able to eat a scrumptious
fritter so close to home seemed too good to be true…and it was. They actually compared their
beignets to CAFÉ DU MONDE! I guess the
chef is banking on the fact that most people have never been
there? Two of the beignets were almost burnt and all of them tasted of old frying oil. And they were not square as is tradition in
NOLA; they looked more like snow-capped hush puppies. Total
let down.
I give E2: 2.5/5 forks
Will I return? Maybe. There are a lot of awesome
brunch spots in the Burgh so I don’t know if it’s worth the risk. The French Toast was awesomely good,
though. Stay tuned for a dinner review.
E2
5904 Bryant St
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
E2
5904 Bryant St
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
*I enjoy Texas Toast when patronizing diners. If I’m paying $11 for French Toast, it better
be a little more gourmet than that.
