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6 D.C. Restaurants With Super-Sized Brunch

Extended hours, bonus days, and boozy extras provide more opportunities to eat and drink

On Friday at Cafe Saint-Ex, find a fried green tomato benedict with ham or crab cake.
Cafe Saint-Ex [Official photo]

Boozy breakfasts are all the rage in D.C. on weekends, and diners have worked up such an appetite for the leisurely meal that some restaurants are tacking on additional days and later hours to satisfy cravings for more cocktail-friendly meals.

Here are six restaurants that believe more brunch is always better.


Baba

2901 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Va.

While all-you-can-eat dining reigns supreme on weekends at the sibling to Balkan-themed Ambar, Baba also serves a la carte brunch from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays. Featured offerings include assorted pastries, custom grain bowls, tiramisu oatmeal, shaved lamb-filled paninis, and more.

Busboys and Poets

Multiple locations

Restaurateur Andy Shallal lineup of restaurants now serve brunch earlier and every day of the week, from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends. Featured offerings include crab Benedicts, Iraqi-style corned beef hash, Moroccan bean soup, and more.

Cafe Saint-Ex

1847 14th Street NW

In addition to serving traditional weekend brunch from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, this 14th Street standby now offers brunch from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, uniting comfort foods and lunch dishes under its new chef Joel Hatton. Options include biscuits and sausage gravy with two eggs any style, a crispy brisket barbacoa with slow poached egg, grits, feta, pico de gallo, and crispy tortilla, and a Buffalo cauliflower po’boy sandwich. Add bottomless bacon to any brunch entree, salad, or sandwich for $10.

DC Harvest

517 H Street NE

This Atlas District eatery serves brunch from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Friday through Sunday, with the corresponding cocktail service (bloody marys, mimosas) extended until 3:45 p.m. Featured dishes include scrambled eggs with lamb sausage, kampachi poke, and smoked bacon-asiago “doughnuts” with Creole mustard.

Halfsmoke

651 Florida Avenue NW

A new all-day weekend brunch menu is available from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, and from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Sunday. Expect playful takes on brunch classics including gourmet grilled cheese with beer-spiked brioche bread; Cinnamon Toast Crunch French toast with bourbon syrup; and Butterfinger-crusted banana pancakes with jelly.

Pearl Dive

1612 14th Street NW

Restaurateur Jeff Black’s spot along the bustling 14th Street corridor serves brunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Highlights include freshly shucked oysters, ricotta beignets, a Cajun skillet with boudin blanc and cayenne grits, and an egg-topped fried catfish po’boy.

DC Harvest

517 H Street Northeast, , DC 20002 (202) 629-3296 Visit Website

Busboys and Poets

2004 Martin Luther King Junior Avenue Southeast, , DC 20020 (202) 889-1374 Visit Website

BABA

2901 Wilson Boulevard, , VA 22201 (703) 312-7978 Visit Website

Cafe Saint-Ex

1847 14th Street Northwest, , DC 20009 (202) 265-7839 Visit Website

Pearl Dive Oyster Palace

1612 14th Street Northwest, , DC 20009 (202) 319-1612 Visit Website

Halfsmoke

7101 Democracy Boulevard, , MD 20817 Visit Website

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