Brunch at Sugar & Olives in Norwalk, CT

Craving brunch on a Saturday, we headed to Sugar & Olives, a farm to table restaurant and cooking school, in Norwalk. The space has a beautiful interior with a gray and orange color scheme. There are several bookshelves filled with cookbooks of all cuisines. The first one I picked up was Fried Chicken and Champagne and that got my mouth watering while I waited for my meal to be prepared.

Off the Brunch Brigade menu, we both ordered the Swanky Bloody Mary which was served in a red glass and green straw. After all, how could you not have brunch without a bloody mary? Sweet. Spicy. Salty. So good. Though the recipe is a secret, I believe there is horseradish in it. Taste for yourself and let me know.

The brunch menu has many delicious items including chocolate bread french toast, egg white frittata, and broiled grapefruit. What caught my eye was the rolled eggs filled with your choice of three options: roasted tomato and womanchego, mushroom confit, or pea and leek puree. A tough choice, but I went with the first one. A beautiful presentation, but even more beautiful when you cut into the eggs. Dozens of perfectly roasted tomatoes sitting on top of a layer of slightly melted womanchego, a mild 3-4 month old cow’s milk cheese from Cato Corner Farm in Lebanon, CT. Each bite was savory and the ripe tomatoes popped with robust flavor.

My husband ordered the cast iron Weston eggs, a pair of perfectly cooked eggs topped with lime hollandaise served over a risotto cake and wilted greens. A gorgeous presentation. The silky hollandaise had hints of lime and complemented everything on the dish.

There are two choices of bacon: pork or duck. I’ve never had duck bacon so, of course, I ordered it. The duck bacon was delicious, rich and smoky (crispy too). It was hard not to eat it all in one shot.

 

At the end of the meal, we enjoyed a cup of French-pressed coffee from Gorilla Coffee in Brooklyn. Overall, a great brunch experience.  With my view of the counter, it was hard to resist getting a chocolate-covered doughnut at the end of the meal.

Aside from serving great meals, Sugar & Olives also has creative cooking classes for both kids and adults. On the spring semester schedule are a variety of courses from Gluten-free to Vegetarian to Grilling. You’re bound to find a class that will interest you. Learn more on their website. (I’m very interested in the Macaron Mania course.)

Sugar & Olives
21 Lois St
Norwalk, CT 06851
Tel: (203) 454-3663
sugarandolives.com

General Hours: Tuesday-Friday from 8am – 2.30pm
Thursday Evening Suppers: Dinner served from 5:30pm
Brunch: Saturdays + Sundays from 10am to 3pm