So maybe I'm cheating a little on this one. I love living near Notting Hill because it reminds me of home. At home, every third weekend or so, Andrew and I would head out for brunch. Sometimes we would brunch with the oldies in Pyrmont. Sometimes we'd catch up with Annie and the boys at Bitton or Café Sofia in Erskineville. Sometimes it would be a fushie affair and we'd head to Succulent on King St, Newtown. We were spoiled for choice.

In March of this year, I was particularly homesick and depressed. It was mainly because of my horrible job. But maybe a tiny part of my malaise could have been attributed to the area we were living. Shepherds Bush has a distinct lack of restaurants and cafes. To be precise, we were not able to find a cafe at which we could eat brunch on the weekend. By brunch I mean fluffy poached eggs and crispy bacon. Not the greasy fried eggs and fatty bacon available at most greasy spoons.

Now that we're living near Notting Hill, all is changed. We don't have four cafes to pick from, but at least we have one good brunch spot. We have Tom's Deli which is only a 10 minute walk away. Tom's has a fantastic brunch menu. I order scrambled eggs, parma ham and roasted tomatoes and Andrew has the veggie breakfast. Their service is usually good, as long as they aren't too busy.

(Unfortunately, they are always busy. There is a reason why they are so popular. Tom's is good. It's also interesting to note that most of the wait staff are Aussies. Australians know good service.)

There really is nothing better than waking up on the weekend and wandering up Portobello road for brunch with my favourite boy. We eat a leisurely brekkie, drink coffee and catch up on the week. We stroll home, sometimes we browse the markets, sometimes we head home for a nap. It's the perfect start to a lazy day.

(I do still miss brunch with my family. I'll just have to wait until April next year when Mum and Dad can join in our London brunch routine.)


*G* this is a very dinky post, isn't it? Children are starving in Africa, global warming is going to destroy the earth and my state of mind is dependent on poached eggs. Shallow Jess! Must do something good for the world today to make up for this post.

What's the perfect antidote for a Sunday morning hangover? Brunch at Bitton and a cheeky smile from my nephew, Oscar.



(Hey Nat! Are these photos making you drool? Look at those fluffy, white poached eggs. I hope you got a fix of "Sydney-style" eggs before you headed back to the UK).

I think we can officially award the title of "Best Brunch in Erskineville" to Bitton on Copeland St. Although, it is tiny and it's pot luck on whether you'll actually get a table, their delicious brunch menu more than makes up for the wait for a table. The brunch menu regularly changes too, and it's always a delight to try the new dishes.

On Sunday, we brunched with Paddy, Annie and Oscar at Bitton. Annie is "in" with the owner, so we had a table specially booked and awaiting us when we arrived. I enjoyed a fluffy omelette with ham, mozarella and sun-dried tomato while Andrew wolfed down an omelette with chorizo, avocado and spanish onion. After my omelette, I shared some crepes with vanilla strawbery jam with Patrick. I'm drooling just thinking of about it!

David, the owner of Bitton, is often around taking orders and serving meals. He has a very unique sense of humour. When Paddy ordered the three cheese omelette he remarked "perfect heart attack material"... when Annie ordered the orange juice he exclaimed "fantastique! it cost me 93 cents, I charge you 4 dollars... orange juice for everyone?". Ask Annie to do her impression of David next time you see her.

Is there anything better than a Sunday brunch of fluffy poached eggs on crusty turkish toast, accompanied by smoked salmon or spinach, and creamy hollandaise sauce (on the side, of course). YES! A Sunday brunch of fluffy poached eggs on crusty turkish toast, smoked salmon AND spinach, with creamy hollandaise sauce.

A few Sundays ago (in a galaxy far, far away), Andrew and I brunched with the wrinklies and Paddy at Hennessys in Pyrmont. One of the options on their menu is Russian Eggs, the aforementioned perfect brunch combination. When I wondered out loud questioning how they came about their unusual name, my dad's answer was "Because they are in a hurry to get somewhere."... Yes, he definitely qualifies for Dad-dom.

However, the most impressive item on their menu was the Fairy Bread. Yes, you can actually order it for breakfast! I seriously considered ordering fairy bread, before I was swayed by the Russian eggs. Such an easy thing to make, but I'm sure it quells a few tantrums at the breakfast table.

Wow! What a busy weekend. I love long weekends but it's so hard to get up and go to work on the Tuesday :( . We had a great weekend with a very busy Sunday. Andrew had flying lessons and I made the most of the beautiful weather with a picnic brunch in the domain and lunch at an Irish pub. In the evening we attended Marty and Allerina's long weekend BBQ.

• Big Brunch in the Domain - We got to the domain early and set up our picnic blanket (well Davina and Brett's picnic blanket) underneath a shady tree. We then took turns to peruse the different food stalls and decide what yummy things we were going to have for breakfast. There was a variety of food stalls selling typical breakfast foods, coffee, fresh juices, gelato and cakes. Most of us opted for a traditional bacon and egg roll washed down with a glass of champagne. The weather was beautiful and it was very relaxing sitting in the sunshine, listening to the string quartet and watching the world go by. Highly recommended for next year.
  
  
• Oktoberfest at the Porterhouse - yes we're very strange, Oktoberfest at an Irish pub. This year on St. Patrick's day we were unable to get into any Irish pubs because they were all chockas. So we had our St Pat's celebrations at the Lowenbrau. It stands to reason then that Oktoberfest should be celebrated at an Irish pub. We selected the Porterhouse, a small, trendy pub in Surry Hills. Of course I was completely stuffed after my efforts at the big brunch (lunch after brunch? We're like hobbits) so I could only manage to squeeze in a salad but some of the others opted for the Lamb Shanks or the Steak. The food looked delicious! We spent the afternoon drinking beer (or cider in my case) and playing a few rounds of Henning's drinking game (very amusing). Lots of fun!
  
  
• Marty and Allerina's BBQ - a chance to check out Marty and Allerina's new apartment (very nice) and a chance for everyone to get drunk and very silly. Andrew spent a major portion of the evening wandering round with a pink pyjama bag on his head and Marty decided at 2am that making Zabaglione was a great idea (it was a little bit runny).

Check out the photos here.