I rather enjoy brunch.
The proper brunch I mean – not the late rushed breakfast/lunch combo that you’re having because you got up late and are going to have to work through – or the early lunch you have because it’s now 11:30am and you’re starving.
I mean the American style brunch. It’s an event. It’s a Saturday or Sunday, you’re hungover and despite plying yourself with painkillers and juice all morning the little bugger isn’t shifting. So you don comfy clothes – preferably stylish ones to detract from the fact that you feel so bag-lady like, pop on your sunglasses (who actually cares if it’s actually sunny?) and hunt up good coffee, great breakfast foods and, most importantly, hair of the dog.
And it’s the last bit that’s important – at least for me. Great breakfast is one thing, coffee is required too, as is a big jug of iced water. But the thing that fixes you is the breakfast cocktail. Bloody Mary, rum punch, or my personal favourite Breakfast Martini. You need just a small hit of alcohol to kick that hangover into submission.
Afterwards your day is brighter, you no longer feel like you’ve been licking the hall carpet for the last four hours and you can quietly forget that your mate Sam’s boyfriend is looking at you funny, and you don’t know why you have a business card in your bra.
I’d like to say that the above state is how I ended up at Gusto in Cheadle Hulme. In truth I wasn’t hungover, and given it was a two bus journey to there from my flat, it was far further than a hungover me would have been able to cope with. Following bus journey one, hungover me would have been found sobbing into my cardigan at Stockport Bus Station at just the mere contemplation of bus journey two.
Instead, it was a day of laziness with my friend Katharine, that simply included a big breakfast, good coffee and booze before lunch.
The brunch menu is rather new to Gusto – lunch and dinner are old friends and I’ve often perched at the bar – their range of gins and cocktails are delicious. Brunch runs from 10am to 12:00pm giving you ample opportunity to fuel up, recover and start the day again. Some days we all need a bit of a run-up.
Settled into a booth with a cup of coffee each, we ogled the brunch options. If you’re feeling healthy, or like a little fruit and veg for breakfast there are plenty of smoothies to choose from. However, I’m an advocate of brunch being all about layers of calories – eggs are an essential for me, pork products – ham or bacon a very close second, then you need a layer of carbohydrate.
My personal breakfast selection was easy – Eggs Benedict. Classic soft bread muffin, ham soft poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. Soft egg and sauce to soak into the bread, ham to add saltiness and texture. There is nothing like it. And of course, the money shot:
Hmmm. Oh yeah.
Katharine went old school English breakfast. Again softly poached eggs for her, and even better separated beans. Personally I’m happy to let all the sauces mingle, but some like Katharine like to keep things compartmentalised.
She was a happy bruncher.
To accompany these, we of course hit the cocktail menu. There are five to choose from and, we must admit to having worked our way through all of them (between us).
All in the interests of research, of course.
We began at the beginning with a twist on one of my absolute favourite cocktails, the Sicilian Breakfast. Bombay Sapphire Gin is mixed with apricot liqueur, apricot conserve, and lemon, shaken, strained and served with a slice of brioche. Yes you should always get a bready garnish with your Breakfast Martini.
Katharine chose the Cherry & Thyme Mimosa – a mix of Pink grapefruit, cherry preserve, and thyme, topped with prosecco and lemonade. Light refreshing, perfect for chasing that hangover away.
The other cocktails were duly sampled.
Katharine’s favourite was the Cucumber ‘Cino – Hendricks gin, cucumber, lime, rose liqueur, shaken and strained, with a cucumber foam with a black pepper dust garnish. Sweet, almost syrupy texture the pepper stopped it from being overly so.
The Milanese Mary was a great twist on a Bloody Mary that would suit those who (like me) have issues with thick tomato juice, or even those who aren’t big Bloody Mary fans. Tomato juice, lemon juice, rosemary, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco and red wine are mixed with sweet vermouth and Hendricks, shaken and served over ice. Layered, savoury, with a tickle of spice.
Finally one for the rum lovers – Ginger Tea. Ginger tea, Bacardi Oro rum, apple liqueur, apple juice, lime and gomme is shaken and strained over ice. There’s a gentle ginger heat at the back of the throat for this fresh little number that I admit was probably my second favourite offering.
It was while sampling the second lot of cocktails that we considered that brunch was the melding of two meals into one and so one plate of food probably wasn’t doing it justice. In truth we really fancied bacon and waffles. And so we invented the brunch dessert.
That’s our excuse and we’re sticking to it.
So our dessert option were the soft sweet baked waffles topped with bacon and maple syrup. Oh they’re good. They’re very good. Think bacon and cake.
Yes, exactly.
So, this was brunch at Gusto. We highly recommend it. And we also recommend finding Anna and having her serve you. She will not judge you for having 5 cocktails and a two course brunch before 12pm.
We like her a lot.
This meal and accompanying drinks were supplied for free by Gusto. As ever, this doesn’t guarantee a positive review (if anything, I tend to be a harsher critic).
Brunch was great, the hollandaise isn’t as good as mine obviously (but then the only place I’ve found that’s close to my recipe is Splendid Kitchen), but the service was excellent and the cocktails a great addition to the menu. More booze before lunch please.