Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Best Breakfast in Atlanta - Sun In My Belly

Breakfast and particularly brunch are extremely popular in Atlanta. On any given weekend morning/early afternoon, it's completely the norm to see long waiting ques outside of popular pancake-slinging hot spots. Atlanta is overflowing with these weekend eateries that are doing quite well. To name a few: Gato Bizco, Highland Bakery, Social, Stone Soup Kitchen, Radial, Original Pancake House (not to be confused with IHOP), Ria's Bluebird, Thumb's Up Diner and Flying Biscuit. The Flying Biscuit is the perfect embodiment of what most Atlantans and tourists alike would consider an ideal weekend brunch stop and it's undeniable when one drives by on a Saturday morning. Lines practically flow out into the street and cause quite the scene like little lemmings lining up to jump off the breakfast cliff. It's so extremely popular, that in the last 2 years the Flying Biscuit has become franchised. But this eatery is far from Atlanta's best offering. They have pretty good food at the Biscuit, but it's not crave-worthy at all. In factm most Atlanta foodies find the actual biscuits for which the restaurant is named deplorable.

Enter: Sun In My Belly.




I had been wanting to try SIMB for a good year and a half after reading a review that mentioned their "Honey Bacon." While the location near Agnes Scott and Kirkwood isn't particularly convenient , we finally decided to hit it up one Saturday after some morning tennis. We got there at about 9 am and there wasn't a soul in sight! I'm not even slightly exaggerating about the waits at the aforementioned restaurants, so to come to a new one and not have to wait for breakfast was an unexpected and pleasant surprise.



The restaurant is comfortable and fairly pretty, for lack of a better term. There are streaming strips of paper dangling above the dining area in all different colors which is a simple, but appreciated element of their decorating. Side note: Kins pointed out that if you look at the paper abstractly it most certainly looks like a hamburger.



I started out with some OJ which is served in a mason jar and it was out of this world. I don't know if they squeeze it themselves, but if they don't, I want to know who their supplier is because it was simply the best orange juice I've ever had. For breakfast, I ended up ordering the Kirkwood which comes with, "Softly Scrambled Eggs with Herbed Boursin Cheese, Honey Glazed Bacon, and a Buttermilk Biscuit." I kind of chuckled to myself when I read that the eggs were "softly scrambled." I mean, how many ways can you scramble eggs? Last time I ever find comedy when I see a description of egg preparation on a menu. The eggs are so soft and tender and the boursin cheese is so subtly flavorful. It's egg perfection. The honey bacon is wonderful as well. In addition to being glazed in honey, it has a spice rub on it instead of the typical pepper that you'll normally find on a slice. While slightly dry on the exterior, the square biscuit was very tasty and a different rendition on what is commonplace in southern morning fare.

I tried some of Kins' potatoes that came with her BLT and following suit with the rest of the meal, they were phenomenal - SIMB uses onions and even red peppers which really add to the potatoes' flavor composition. This was the best breakfast I've had in recent memory. By the way, if you're ever in Charlotte Pewter Rose is a must!

Our experience wasn't perfect however. Kins' BLT's bread was stale. The service here was pretty atrocious. They were not crowded when we showed up. In fact, I think we were the only ones in the place. The waitress was friendly but just so unforgivably slow in all respects. She was trying to take care of the entire dining room before going back to the kitchen or cash register. Regardless, I really enjoyed my meal, but I know they have a reputation of poor service there and hopefully they can fix it because it is the best breakfast in Atlanta.

Sun in My Belly on Urbanspoon

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