Cheap and cheerful New Year’s Day Brunches
By Emily Ranager
Special to amNewYork
After the ball drops and the party’s over, it’s likely you’ll awake to 2009 feeling the aftereffects of your revelry, in mind, body and wallet. Skip the white linen tablecloths and enjoy these New Year’s Day brunches, that are cheap, cheerful and sure to cure whatever ails you.
Cure your post-New Year's Eve hangover with a dish from Agave. Credit: Lorenzo Poli
Agave
140 Seventh Ave. S.,
212-989-2100
Kick off the New Year in Southwestern style and dine among cacti and cow skulls. For $13.95, Agave’s prix-fixe brunch includes a margarita, mimosa or wine, and regionally-inspired egg specialties like huevos rancheros, or a la carte dishes like the grilled adobo chicken, Chile and cheese quesadilla ($11).
The bar also boasts more than 80 different types of tequila, so you can keep the New Year’s party going if you’ve got the energy.
Choice Kitchen and Cocktails
380 Third Ave.,
212-779-1380
Drag yourself out of bed and sit down at this warm Gramercy brunch spot, where $14.95 will get you an entrée and two cocktails. Choose from classic breakfast dishes like blueberry pancakes and eggs benedict or lunch fare like burgers and salads.
Cup
35-01 36th St., Queens,
718-937-2322
This Astoria diner serves up heaping portions of greasy-spoon staples and classic dishes with a twist. Get your morning-after fix with Caribbean French toast, which is coconut crusted and topped with berries, bananas and whipped cream ($7.50) or try the Turbo Omelette with chicken, spinach and fresh mozzarella ($7.95). Cup also offers tons of burgers, sandwiches, salads, pastas and desserts.
Egg
135 N. 5 St., Brooklyn,
718-302-5151
This southern-style Williamsburg diner serves up breakfast classics with ingredients sourced from local farms. The menu is short, but the prices are sweet: try the eggs Rothko, an easy-cooked egg in a slice of brioche topped with cheddar and a side of tomatoes and bacon ($6.50) or organic pancakes with Vermont maple syrup ($6).
Egg is BYOB., so come with your own booze to help with your hangover.
Good Enough to Eat
483 Amsterdam Ave.,
212-496-0163
Since opening in 1981, this Upper West Side eatery has been a favorite among neighborhood locals for its extensive menu and its homey atmosphere.
Try pumpkin French toast made with the restaurant’s homemade pumpkin bread and topped with a cranberry and pear compote ($10.25), or opt for the apple pancake topped with apple-raisin compote, sour cream and cinnamon sugar ($10.25).
Be warned: weekend brunch lines can be more than an hour.
Schiller’s Liquor Bar
131 Rivington St.,
212-260-4555
Lower East Side partiers won’t have far to go for their post-revelry brunch fix. Schiller’s offers satisfying a la carte options like a sour cream and hazelnut waffle ($9) or eggs hussard poached with ham, tomatoes, mushrooms, bordelaise and hollandaise sauce ($12). Indulge in one of their brunch cocktails like Pimm’s Cup, a blend of gin, lemonade, mint and fresh fruit ($10).
202
75 Ninth Ave.,
646-638-1173
Housed within designer Nicole Farhi’s Chelsea boutique, 202 will help you kick off 2009 with a full stomach and fashion-forward apparel. It’s a mostly British-inspired menu, like the traditional English breakfast of bacon, sausage, tomatoes, mushrooms and poached eggs ($13) and buttermilk pancakes with blackberry compote and crème fraîche ($11).
