Central Kitchen
French Press
Bacon Mission Fig Sticky Bun with Walnuts
Green Eggs and Ham, Summer Squash, Bread, Pickled Chanterelle
French Toast, Berries, Vanilla
Largely unaware of Central Kitchen until my server at Flour + Water brought it to my attention I quickly made Sunday Brunch reservations via smartphone while dining at Commonwealth; admittedly the brunch menu did not excite me as much as the options at dinner but with limited time and extensive dining plans between that time and my departure I figured any restaurant touting to be “of, by and for the neighborhood” couldn’t be a bad choice and if brunch were successful a future dinner could definitely be planned. A modestly sized industrial space with an attached market and wood plus concrete aplenty plus a small well culled menu service was thorough but somewhat stretched as the restaurant filled quite quickly on opening but with coffee via individual French Press and water refills timely I was never left for want as I progressed at a nice pace from pastry to savory to ‘dessert.’ Energetic but not at all ‘loud,’ and seemingly as accessible for families as for the standard Mission Hipster my meal began with the signature Sticky Bun and while I tend to think the bacon-everything story is played out there is no doubt the smoky salinity helped to balance the sweetness of the figs and caramel while, taking a different approach, the green eggs and ham opted to use the cured pork and house pickled mushrooms as a backdrop to vibrant basil hollandaise and tender, sweet squash. Rounding out a great meal the last plate to arrive resembled a single piece of bread resting in a shallow pool of vanilla cream and garnished with fresh berries but in reality the dish was more like creamy custard baked till just set – a flan with a light yeastiness and a touch more texture that I’d have gladly eaten at least a few more of…
