Double-brunch in MB/Dogpatch!
t says: There was this curious little frontage called “the Lab” in Dogpatch – we’ve seen it on numerous ventures to Piccino. Each time we peered into the windows and read the posted flyers we were intrigued; we had stumbled upon one of the sites of “Feastly”, which is essentially an organization that conducts pop-ups all over the country. As far as the Dogpatch site, I would say that it is reminiscent of “Cook” in Philly, but less “instructional” (i.e. you’re not all up in the chef’s business the entire night), and more like a venue that is forever a pop-up restaurant. Each night (nearly every night), there’s a different chef and “theme”. Hoping to be one of the cool kids, I dipped my toe into the water by making a brunch reservation for a Saturday.
April 2016, Saturday Brunch, Party of 2. The space is pretty simple. The tables are simple. The chairs are simple. They aren’t going to win any awards for decor … but we got the feeling that that wasn’t the point. This was not a showcase for “the next super chef” or “chef that’s so hot right now” (even though that’s what the website is espousing), rather, this was a space for some chefs to share their independent creations with a bunch of random people. The theme for the morning: crepes.
There was an open kitchen adjacent to a dining room of about 20 seats among two communal tables. We arrived precisely on time and had the whole table to ourselves, but as you can see, by the time we left, it was getting full (lesson: early bird got the worm … with more elbow room)
It started with a savory crepe – this one featured mushrooms, onions, and egg, and it was amazing. The buckwheat added this grainy texture and savory, bittery flavor as a backdrop to the shrooms and sweet onions.
The ham and cheese was similarly awesome – I mean – yes, a saltier ham might have been nicer, but there was something about it that really brought me back to breakfasts with my family at Verona in Vineland. All smiles here.
And then there was a dessert crepe. Yours truly ventured the nutella crepe (above) while g ventured the salted caramel. They were both the homiest sweet hug that you could get in the morning. And because it was paper-thin, you were free to rationalize, “no, this is way better for me than eating a slice of cake for breakfast …”. Exceedingly complex? No. Mouthwateringly delicious? Absolutely.
Above is a single shot of the pancakes at Cafe Reveille. You read it here first: these are bite-for-bite as delicious as Plow’s pancakes. And there’s no line to wait through. ‘Nuff said …
after dinner sneeze 
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