Lavo
Illy Coffee
Balsamica – Rum, Rhubarb, Basil, Strawberry
Pastry Basket – Everything Bagel, Focaccia, Oreo Scone, Cronut with Chocolate Hazelnut, Strawberry, and Crème Anglaise Dip
Breakfast Mac & Cheese – Two Fried Eggs, Truffled Shells, Pancetta
Almond Crusted French Toast – Cinnamon Panettone, Fresh Berry, Banana
Chicken and Waffles – Cap’n Crunch Crusted Chicken, Bourbon Maple Syrup, Spiced Pecans
Warm Chocolate Bread Pudding – Vanilla Ice Cream, Duce de Leche Sauce
A favorite of friends for their signature meatballs, thumping bass, and eye candy I’d never paid much attention to Lavo until I heard rumor that a “proper” Sunday brunch had been introduced – an interesting menu, beautiful strip views, and proximity to both Bouchon and Ferragamo making it a worthy destination for 2pm brunch on my mother’s last day in town. An ornate space clearly befitting its trendy nightclub roots with friendly, though somewhat cocktail-pushy service and excessive hyperbole (no, your chef did not ‘create’ the cronut, nor was he the first to coat chicken with the cap’n) it was with the aforementioned bread basket, freely refilled coffee, and a cocktail that our meal began and with the basket particularly impressive given its complimentary nature it was much to my delight that the rest of the cuisine followed suit; substantial delay due to our waiter flirting with two tables full of sorority girls notwithstanding. Electing to sample two sweets and two savories it was with a trio of selections and the smooth, dense, and semi-molten-centered bread pudding to follow that our meal progressed and attempting to abstain from exaggeration I will simply say that if I returned I’d be hard pressed not to order the exact same thing, the French Toast harkening a fruit infused Bostock and the pasta a peerless example of knowing how to use truffle oil with restraint, the end result a dish warranting an extra slice of focaccia to sop up every drop of the eggy aromatic cheese.
