The Hart and The Hunter
Butter Biscuits, Pimento Cheese, Honey Butter, Black Berries
Corn bread and Honey Butter
Chicken Cracklins, fried Egg, Lettuce, Tomato, Avocado Sandwich
Shrimp and Grits, Bacon, Mushroom, Scallion
Barbequed Lobster with Soft Scrambled Eggs and Toast
Warm Apple Dumpling & Hook’s White Cheddar
Pecan Praline Pancakes, Maple Syrup, Butter
Located in the Palihotel on Melrose and full of the intentionally disheveled and chic it would be easy to overlook Brian Dunsmoor’s Hart and the Hunter as another trendy hotel restaurant focusing on a recent food fad – Southern Cuisine – but to do so would be quite foolish, in my opinion, because despite the mismatched chairs, shabby chic stylings, and rustic plating there was not a single item that touched the table during our nearly two hour brunch that wasn’t excellent.
Featuring Stumptown coffee (no drip, just espresso/cappuccino and its variants) and a tidy menu both savory and sweet including items ranging from a $19 lobster to $5 cornbread each item featured interesting variations on classic dishes with great ingredients and equally impressive execution; the shrimp and grits taking an earthy turn with a ragu of mushrooms while a BLT-inspired sandwich replaced pork with chicken skin, bringing down the brine with the combination of a creamy egg and fresh avocado.
From the perfect biscuits to warm, toothsome cornbread and onto a sweet, snappy lobster paired with eggs with as much butter as yolk before finishing with thin flapjacks thick with maple syrup and brown sugar alongside what was easily the best dumpling I’ve ever tasted, complete with melted sharp cheddar my simple suggestions for visiting The Hart and The Hunter is that you do it, take someone with you, and order as much as you can.