When I was in elementary school, my dad often traveled for work. My sister and I whined and moaned about it, but there were two silver linings: 1. We’d each be getting new Beanie Babies, purchased at whichever airport he was flying out of, and 2. Our mom would make breakfast for dinner while he was gone.
At age eight, a morning meal consumed at night seemed subversive and luxurious. A decade later, being able to eat hash browns and waffles at 2 in the morning in any number of old-school diners was equally exciting. But lately I’ve fallen for a fancier kind of breakfast for dinner — complete with natural wines, cocktails and warm lighting — that just may interest you all, too.
Chocolate chip pancakes and ice cream
A few months ago, I stopped by Montague Diner in Brooklyn Heights for an early dinner after reading my friend Chris Crowley’s very compelling spring preview of the restaurant. Supposedly opened on a dare by a collective of first-time restaurant owners and the chefs at Margot in Fort Greene, Montague’s whole deal is “What if a diner were sexy?” What if it were more Edward Hopper than Norman Rockwell?
Before you roll your eyes at yet another aesthetic diner, the prices are surprisingly fair: Everything on the light breakfast section of the menu — steel cut oatmeal, yogurt and granola, a bagel with cream cheese — is $9 or less. And there’s an early bird special (served from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on weekdays) that includes eggs, bacon, toast, orange juice and coffee for $13.50. I went for the corned beef hash and eggs ($16), a glass of orange wine and the pancake split — a plate-size chocolate chip pancake smothered in syrup, chocolate sauce and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and whipped cream ($17). Which is all to say, you can make any visit to Montague as cheap or as expensive as you’d like.
The parishioner’s special (church not included)
If it’s breakfast for dinner in Manhattan you’re looking for, you’ll find a surprisingly worthy option at the Arlo NoMad hotel. Tucked at the back of the lobby since May, NoMad Diner is divided into two rooms: a brightly lit front dining room and a more darkly lit back dining room with a plant-covered ceiling. If I were to do it all again, I’d sit in the front room where I could both enjoy the Sade-heavy playlist and see the menu.
Dinner for breakfast here includes a French-style omelet, shrimp and grits (as well as a vegetarian version of the dish), and most important to me, the $20 parishioner’s breakfast, which was way better than expected. The problem with most breakfast platters is that one part always under-delivers: Either the eggs are overcooked or the potatoes are undercooked or the toast is sweaty and limp. Not so at NoMad Diner. The cheesy scrambled eggs were silky, melting right into my bacon-topped sourdough bread. And I’ll be dreaming about the tender breakfast potatoes for the next few months at least. Non-breakfasty options abound, like a lovingly prepared meatloaf and the newest entrant to the expensive hot dog category, this one covered with kewpie mayo, kimchi and fried shallots ($15). I’d order both.
Peppery fried chicken and pancakes
Restaurants come and go, especially in New York City. So I’ll highlight a much older bastion of breakfast for dinner: Bubby’s in the “up-and-coming” TriBeCa neighborhood. The 34-year-old restaurant has become so synonymous with brunch that people outside of the neighborhood may have forgotten that you can also stop by for syrup-soaked, fluffy pancakes (served on their own or under peppery fried chicken) and buttermilk biscuits at 8 p.m. And like breakfast for dinner, it’s only as special as how often you treat yourself to it. So save it for those days when a pick-me-up is in order.
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