Valentine's Day Brunch at Perilla
Valentines Day fell on a Sunday this year and although Mr. T and I usually stay home on this stupid holiday we decided to go out and enjoy a meal. I knew places would be crazy for dinner but I assumed brunch would be somewhat subdued. When Harold Dieterle opened his NYC restaurant after Top Chef it was on the top of my list to try. Somehow I just never got around to it. So this past Sunday, Valentines Day, it finally seemed like the right time. I got a reservation for brunch at 1:15 and the restaurant was certainly doing a good business. All of the tables were full and most of the bar seats were filled as well. I’m not sure if it was Valentines Day or if this place is just always packed for brunch.
Since this was kind of a holiday I decided to celebrate a little with a glass of Cava Rose and Mr. T tried out the Harpoon Levitation IPA.
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They started us off with some wonderful little cranberry muffins. I’m not sure what they did to the cranberries but they tasted like candy. It was definitely a little sweet for the morning but completely enjoyable. I even thought about asking for more of these but I knew we had a lot more food coming our way.
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We decided to order three dishes and split everything. The main dish was the Spicy Duck Burger with jack cheese, avocado and spiced fries.
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I’d heard about this being the “do not miss dish” at Perilla and I have to say I agree. I’ve never tasted anything quite like it before. It didn’t taste like a regular burger but it didn’t taste like duck either. I have no idea how to describe it but it was incredibly good. I was worried it would be too spicy for me in the morning but the chili’s and shiracha were subtle and the jack cheese was so strong it really mellowed out the burger. The fries were decent- but nothing to write home about. They could have been a little more uniform as some were super crispy and some were soft, but they were okay. I tried the addition of avocado to the burger but I think it was better on it’s own.
Our second dish was more of a side item the Bibb Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette. The waitress told me the salad was going to be small but it ended up being quite a decent sized portion. Very minimally dressed with only the lemon vinaigrette, it was a simple yet refreshing dish.
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Our third order, which was basically our dessert, were the Vanilla Scented Doughnuts with Honey Crisp Apple Butter.
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First of all these things were huge! I was expecting something like a doughnut hole but these were easily three times that size. I thought these were pretty good. I enjoyed that they were piping hot and the honey apple butter was tasty. Honestly though we were both so full at this point from the burger we only got through two doughnuts.
The total cost of our Valentine’s day meal with two drinks and three dishes was $57. Not too bad considering how expensive Perilla is for dinner (and that my Cava was the most expensive item at $13).
I really enjoyed Perilla. The space was comfortable, the service was good and the duck burger was fantastic. I would definitely return again for that. Mr. T and I finished our Valentine’s day with some excellent beers around the corner at Blind Tiger. And guess what I got as a gift! A home brewing kit from Brooklyn Brew Shop! I’m so excited. I can’t wait to start my first batch. Hopefully I don’t blow up our apartment in the process.
Perilla
Since this was kind of a holiday I decided to celebrate a little with a glass of Cava Rose and Mr. T tried out the Harpoon Levitation IPA.
.jpg)
They started us off with some wonderful little cranberry muffins. I’m not sure what they did to the cranberries but they tasted like candy. It was definitely a little sweet for the morning but completely enjoyable. I even thought about asking for more of these but I knew we had a lot more food coming our way.
.jpg)
We decided to order three dishes and split everything. The main dish was the Spicy Duck Burger with jack cheese, avocado and spiced fries.
.jpg)
I’d heard about this being the “do not miss dish” at Perilla and I have to say I agree. I’ve never tasted anything quite like it before. It didn’t taste like a regular burger but it didn’t taste like duck either. I have no idea how to describe it but it was incredibly good. I was worried it would be too spicy for me in the morning but the chili’s and shiracha were subtle and the jack cheese was so strong it really mellowed out the burger. The fries were decent- but nothing to write home about. They could have been a little more uniform as some were super crispy and some were soft, but they were okay. I tried the addition of avocado to the burger but I think it was better on it’s own.
Our second dish was more of a side item the Bibb Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette. The waitress told me the salad was going to be small but it ended up being quite a decent sized portion. Very minimally dressed with only the lemon vinaigrette, it was a simple yet refreshing dish.
.jpg)
Our third order, which was basically our dessert, were the Vanilla Scented Doughnuts with Honey Crisp Apple Butter.
.jpg)
First of all these things were huge! I was expecting something like a doughnut hole but these were easily three times that size. I thought these were pretty good. I enjoyed that they were piping hot and the honey apple butter was tasty. Honestly though we were both so full at this point from the burger we only got through two doughnuts.
The total cost of our Valentine’s day meal with two drinks and three dishes was $57. Not too bad considering how expensive Perilla is for dinner (and that my Cava was the most expensive item at $13).
I really enjoyed Perilla. The space was comfortable, the service was good and the duck burger was fantastic. I would definitely return again for that. Mr. T and I finished our Valentine’s day with some excellent beers around the corner at Blind Tiger. And guess what I got as a gift! A home brewing kit from Brooklyn Brew Shop! I’m so excited. I can’t wait to start my first batch. Hopefully I don’t blow up our apartment in the process.
Perilla
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