Where to Have Easter Brunch Around the Bay Area
by Anna Volpicelli
Easter is an excellent excuse to have a big brunch and bottomless mimosas.
Make this year's meal a melting pot of flavors with a range of dishes — from Spanish tortilla to French omelette to coconut curry—at these Bay Area restaurants.
Easter Brunches in San Francisco
The Commissary
101 Montgomery St. (The Presidio)
11am-3pm
Website
Reservations are available through OpenTable
Executive chef Eric Minnich will homage the holiday with an a la carte menu with a Spanish twist—think poached eggs with Spanish potato hash, chorizo, and brava sauce; and avocado toast with Serrano ham. Sweet tooth? Go for the pain perdu with maple syrup, chantilly cream, and macerated berries.
4505 Burgers & BBQ
705 Divisadero St. (NoPa)
10:30am-11pm, April 19-21
Website
If you grew up anywhere near the south, you might be accustomed to having an Easter ham. Get in sando form 4505 style: pork legs—split, brined, and smoked in house—and stacked with bread and butter pickles, gruyere cheese, and crispy onions on an Acme pan de mie roll.
Bluestem Brasserie
1 Yerba Buena Ln. (SoMa)
11am-3pm
Website
Hop over to Bluestem for a hoppy and sweet pairing: The restaurant is offering is a bright lager or IPA to pair with a massive cinnamon roll with brown butter cream cheese frosting or king pancakes with bacon, peanut butter, and bananas.
Magnolia Brewing Co.
1398 Haight St. (Haight-Ashbury)
10am-10pm
Website
Chefs Roque Mendoza and Laurance Gordon will be serving huevos rancheros, side salads, and fried egg and sausage sandwiches. Wash it all down with a light pilsener or a Billy's Sunday Bitter.
Campton Place
340 Stockton St. (Union Square)
11:30am-1:30 pm
$98/person, $65/wine pairings
Website
Celebrate the day with a sophisticated Indian touch. Executive chef Srijith Gopinathan has designed a four-course meal of French toast with fresh berries; butter-poached Maine lobster with coconut curry; seared Angus beef fillet with black truffle and potato mousse; and a dessert of mango, avocado, and white chocolate.
Easter Brunches in Oakland
Lake Chalet
1520 Lakeside Dr. (Oakland)
10am-3pm
Website
After the Easter egg hunt at Lake Merritt, chow specials including slow-cooked lamb shoulder and pan-roasted striped bass at this waterfront restaurant, which will also has a bountiful raw bar.
Duende Restaurant + Bodega
468 19th St. (Oakland)
11am-2pm
Website
Open for brunch especially for Easter, Duende will serve a family-style meal of Catalan toasts; spicy pork rillettes; avocado montaditos; grilled pork belly with slow cooked egg and spring vegetables; and tortilla de papas.
Easter Brunches in Marin
Cavallo Point
Two seatings (10am-noon, and 12:30-2:30pm) are available for the buffet at 601 Tidewater and Surfbird
Pre-Fixe Brunch will be served from 9am-2pm at the restaurant Murray Circle, 601 Murray Circle (Sausalito)
Reservations can be made by calling 415-339-4700
Website
You can always count on a fancy hotel to go all out. At Sausalito's Cavallo Point, there are two options: the Grand Brunch Buffet ($110/adults, $55/kids ) with multiple stations for classic brunch fare, seafood, and more; and the Prix-Fixe Brunch ($58/adults, $22/kids), which starts with an array of appetizers (think artisanal charcuterie and pastries) followed by a main course, such as honey ham Benedict or smoked whitefish hash, and a series of desserts.
PS: Prefer to do your major dining at night? Murray Circle is also serving a five-course Easter dinner ($95/person, $48/wine pairings).
Copita Tequileria y Comida
739 Bridgeway (Sausalito)
11am-2pm
Website
Make it festive with lamb birriaquiles or huevos Rancheros and a new spin on the Violetta cocktail (tequila, creme de violet, creme de pampelmousse, lime and grapefruit).
Easter Brunches in Wine Country
La Toque
The Westin Verasa Napa, 1314 Mckinstry St. (Napa)
12pm-2pm
For reservations, call 707-257-5157
Website
See Michelin stars at chef Ken Frank's celebrated Napa restaurant, which will be serving a three-course, contemporary French brunch ($48/person, $24/wine pairings). Refined palates will love a lobster omelet with tender leeks, potato, and fontina cheese; Alaskan halibut tempura; and grilled hanger steak with bone marrow and pickled shallots.
Farm at Carneros
Carneros Resort
4048 Sonoma Hwy
10am-4pm
Website
This multi-course, family-style meal ($85/adults, $42/kids) celebrates the season with avocado toast; seared scallop with trumpet mushroom "bacon"; and mixed chicory salad with duck confit. There's also a special menu for kids.
Easter Brunches in the South Bay
Madera
Madera at Rosewood Sand Hill Hotel
2825 San Hill Rd. (Menlo Park)
10am-3pm
Website
The Easter menu ($120/person, beverages not included) at this Michelin-starred restaurant is designed to be shared. Start with chilled pea soup with pancetta and mint or smoked salmon flatbread; entrees include honey-glazed ham and roasted leg of lamb.
Verge Restaurant
Toll House Hotel
140 Santa Cruz Ave. (Los Gatos)
$75/adults, $32/kids age 6-12
Website
First thing to know: unlimited mimosas. Have your fill and then fuel up at the buffet stocked with herb roasted prime rib, oysters Rockefeller, eggs Benedict, and more.
This article originally appeared on 7x7 Bay Area.