974 Palmer Alley., NW
Chef Amy Brandwein serves the first Sunday brunch this weekend at her CityCenterDC Italian market/restaurant. Seasonal dishes include a Calabrese breakfast sandwich with fried eggs and nduja salami, cinnamon-sugar bomboloni (doughnuts), and fresh-squeezed orange juice mimosas.
When: Sundays, 9:30 to 1:30
1501 Ninth St., NW
Brunch gets a Japanese twist at this Shaw spot, which serves breakfast ramen with a poached egg and bacon. Drinkers can pick between half-price frozen cocktails from the bar, or fancy mimosas made with Veuve Clicquot and a choice of three fresh juices.
When: Saturday and Sunday, noon to 4
934 Palmer Alley, NW
This stylish Mediterranean newcomer to CityCenter begins brunch this weekend. The kitchen trades butter for olive oil and tends to keep things light, creating dishes like a chilled cucumber soup with pink peppercorns, and truffled scrambled eggs with fontina cheese. A peach liquor-spiked bellini sounds like the perfect patio drink.
When: Saturday and Sunday, 11 to 4
Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab
750 15th St., NW
Half-price cocktails, wines, and beers are good incentives to check out Joe’s during their new brunch. Pad the stomach with hearty dishes such as strawberry-rhubarb waffles and poached eggs Oscar with Alaskan crab, asparagus, and hollandaise.
When: Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 to 2:30
201 Upshur St., NW
Petworth’s new punk-inspired burger bar just poured its first whiskey on Thursday, but they’re ready to dive into Sunday brunch this weekend. Details are still in the works, but co-owner Gordon Banks says the format may be similar to sibling restaurant Bar Charley: bottomless brunch cocktails and the choice of a main course from the regular menu (exact price TBD, but it’ll be in the low $20’s).
When: Sunday, noon to 8
319 Pennsylvania Ave., SE
We’ve heard of long-running brunches, but Stanton’s new offering may be the lengthiest: 11 am to 9 pm. The kitchen creates a few novelties—chorizo sausages dunked in pancake batter, fried, and drizzled with blueberry syrup—as well as crowd-pleasers like pork belly hash. New brunch cocktails like a mix of coffee liqueur and whiskey join the classic bloodies and mimosas.
When: Sunday, 11 to 9
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
