As part of my Monday Munchies series, I will feature a different eatery for a review on the first and third Monday of every month. Hope you enjoy!
____________________
I learned a very valuable lesson when it comes to having brunch at Highland Kitchen in Somerville, MA. When you read that brunch opens at 11am don’t just think “Hey! We’ll get there at 11 and won’t have a wait. Sweet!” Nope, no, no no. Wrong. Completely wrong. We pulled up at 11.04 and the line was insane. CRAP. We tried to come up with alternatives but knew that if Highland Kitchen looked like this we would have this problem elsewhere, plus the additional driving time to get to those places. So, we braved it out and waited 50 minutes instead. Oh, boy.
It was lame and annoyed but worth it. Oh, damn that was a good brunch. Such a good brunch. We had a blast while we enjoyed amazing food.
As we stood around outside (my mom walked Autumn all over in her stroller to kill the time) we peered through the opened windows and to check out what others had ordered. We saw several ordered of Beignets ($4.95) so we knew we had to get some ourselves. The order came to our table piping hot and covered with powder sugar. They were really light and fluffy but they did seem a tiny bit under cooked in the center, hardly noticeable.
I really think you can’t beat freshly fried Beignets and fresh brewed coffee. Plus, it doesn’t hurt to have an attentive waitress who keeps your cup of coffee freshly topped off!
Autumn even enjoyed herself during brunch. She tried everything we ordered and loved everything she tried. She also enjoyed throwing that lid on the floor about a hundred times. And of course, I picked it up and wiped it off every time. Babies…
Price and my mom enjoyed the Deviled Eggs ($3.50) and Bloody Mary’s. I’m just not a fan of deviled eggs, but they are so they each enjoyed halves that were loaded up with creamy, yolky goodness. We even gave Autumn some and she enjoyed it too.
Price thought that the Bloody Mary was good but very spicy with a lot of Horseradish. It was served with a wedge of lemon and a pickled string bean. The Blood Mary wasn’t very lemony but you could adjust that yourself, as you prefered. Sometimes we come across Blood Mary’s that are really thick and chunky, but it was very smooth. Price did think that it was quite weak and wished that he could have tasted more vodka.
My mom saw an order of Huevos Rancheros ($9.95) on another table and decided that she needed to try it. The serving was very generous and quiet tasty. The plate was really loaded up with its 3 fried eggs, large serving of refried black beans, scoop of rice, corn tortillas & queso fresco. It was all topped of with a ‘rojo’ sauce that had a bit of zip.
Typically, Price and I don’t order the same thing for brunch so that we can share but we each read the description of the Dirty Bird ($10.95) and we each decided to get it. No sharing. Ha! (I was debating ordering the Dirty Bird or the Shrimp and Grits ($10.95)… I’ll have to try the grits next time.)
This couldn’t have been called “The Napper” since you really would want a nap after enjoying this.
Holy Cow! or Holy Chicken. Or Holy Pig. I dunno. There were so much going on with this plate. You might just need to brace yourself when reading the components… get ready… Half of a buttermilk biscuit, topped with a fried chicken breast, a few slices of applewood smoked bacon, and a fried egg. That stack is topped off with the biscuit and the sausage gravy. It’s indulgent, rich, and breathtaking. This will take your breath away once it’s put in front of you, but once you take a bit you will be blown away. The chicken breast is juicy with a crunchy exterior and the biscuit is tender with a dense crumb to it. The gravy was thick and filled with sausage and was great with a bite of chicken, egg, of biscuit.
And this last picture is just to remind me that Autumn is just about as delicious as anything I could ever order. I could just gobble up those cheeks.
Get over to Highland Kitchen if you know what’s good for you! And be sure to get there EARLY so you don’t have to wait. Really, I swear, get there early because they don’t take reservations and there will be a line because the brunch is da-bomb.
Highland Kitchen
150 Highland Ave
Somerville, MA 02143
617 625 1131
Brunch 11am-2.30pm