Saturday Afternoon During the New York City Wine & Food Festival Calls for Brunch @ Bobby's
After two days of late-night bashes and a seemingly endless supply of all manner of pizza and burgers at the New York City Wine & Food Festival, it was time for a little weekend reprieve, and for that, festival guests looked to Bobby Flay. The longtime lover of brunch hosted the wake-up-worthy Brunch @ Bobby's, which featured a sweet and savory spread of bites from his just-released cookbook of the same name. "I always say that brunch is really my favorite meal of the week," Bobby told the sold-out crowd inside the opulently adorned Capitale in downtown Manhattan. "It's still laid-back, it's casual; everybody's in a good mood," he said.
Just as Bobby looks forward to this relaxing weekend meal, many of his fans do too. It's no secret that brunch has taken the world by storm recently, with late-morning and early-afternoon restaurant reservations and at-home gatherings alike often becoming the sole goal of the weekend. "I think the millennials are actually making it more popular than it's ever been," Bobby told us recently. "Let's face it: Brunch is a party. It starts with a cocktail. And so I think that the younger generations are really making brunch more and more innovative and more popular." At his event today, Bobby was sure to deliver on the cocktails, from rosé and beer to bubbly brut and tequila-spiked cocktails.
But of course it wasn't just a drinks-only brunch. Awaiting each guest at his or her seat was an individual Yogurt Creme Brulee featuring layers of softened, sweetened berries, granola for texture and a vanilla-scented yogurt topping. (If it sounds to you like a must-try item — and we think it is — check out the recipe for it here.)
True to his Big Apple roots, Bobby served bagel halves topped with what he called "very New York" white fish salad, plus pickled red onions for welcome bite.
Bobby showed off his penchant for bold flavors by spicing up a duo of egg dishes. His baked eggs (pictured above), resting atop a bed of rich polenta, were finished with a squeeze of chili oil, while his Calabrian chile-laced scrambled eggs were piled atop bruschetta smeared with jalapeno pesto.
While pepper biscuits are a brunch staple, in true Flay form, Bobby dressed up a classic. He turned them into a next-level sandwich, splitting them open, topping the bottom half with a tart tangerine marmalade and piling on the freshly sliced baked ham.
Of course no brunch is complete without a few sweet-tooth-satisfying bites, and Bobby's Bananas Foster Bread Pudding and Carrot Cake Pancakes (pictured above) surely filled the bill.
Keep coming back to FN Dish all weekend long for more insider coverage of the New York City Wine & Food Festival.
