Brunch has been on the rise in recent years. Whether it’s to celebrate Mother’s Day or Easter or just a way to spend the morning with friends, going out for brunch has become a common activity for many diners. And restaurants are seeing the results of this surge of interest: according to the 2023 Restaurant Industry Report from Square, Saturday brunch has become the busiest part of the week for restaurants, dethroning the Friday lunch rush.
Breakfast food fiends are spoiled for choice when it comes to brunch options in Montgomery County. We spoke with the owners of some of the area’s most popular brunch spots to learn what goes into planning a brunch menu, how they manage the brunch
rush and more.
Barrel and Crow – Bethesda
While Barrel and Crow adds a bit of Southern flair to its brunch menu, featuring dishes like Spiced Shrimp & Grits and Fried Amish Chicken & Waffles with collard greens, the Bethesda eatery has deep ties to Montgomery County’s agricultural community. Ever since the restaurant opened 11 years ago, Barrel and Crow has partnered with local farmers to source vegetables and proteins for their dishes.
Because its menu relies so heavily on these ingredients, it’s not uncommon for its brunch offerings to change throughout the year depending on what’s in season.
“We consider what’s available and what’s in abundance during that time of year when planning our menus,” says Laura Houlihan, Barrel and Crow’s owner. “It’s about taking what you can get seasonally and creating dishes around that.”
Barrel and Crow’s brunch menu is fairly small, but intentionally so—consisting of tried-and-true fan favorites and seasonal experiments. This ensures that there are no extraneous items and no food wasted.
Since brunch can be such a busy and stressful time for restaurant employees, Barrel and Crow’s brunch menu is also designed to not put too much stress on one part of the kitchen.
“With a well-rounded menu, you can make sure that one part of your kitchen isn’t getting bombarded all at once,” Houlihan explains. “If everything on your menu is fried, your frying station will be hit hard, and you’ll have to wait longer for food to come out. … It’s about maintaining a smaller menu so we can offer a better product.”
Notably, Barrel and Crow adds a fun touch to its brunch by giving diners a basket of beignets when they sit down rather than a traditional bread basket. This adds some extra sweetness to the meal while also serving a more pragmatic function.
“It’s like having donuts on a Sunday morning,” Houlihan adds. “And it eases up the flow [of customers], because they’re not sitting around ordering dessert since so many of our brunch items are sweet.”
Café Sophie – Gaithersburg
Café Sophie offers one of the most unique brunch experiences in the Montgomery County area. This humble European-style cafe operates in the Montgomery County Airpark, so diners can see planes take off and land while they eat.
But it’s far from a typical airport restaurant. According to co-owner Sandy Poe, the majority of Café Sophie’s business comes from MoCo residents rather than airpark customers waiting for their flight. Poe’s father and grandfather built the Montgomery County Airpark in the 1960s, so she has deep family ties to the area.
The idea to serve up Scandinavian brunch cuisine came from Poe’s boyfriend and business partner, Tom, a former professional pilot from Norway.
“We have a lot of customers who have been to Norway and want to come in and try things they had when they’d been to Norway, and they seem very pleased with that,” Poe says.
Over the years, Café Sophie has also grown into a market for European food, stocking treats from Sweden, Denmark, France, Germany and most recently Turkey.
Since Café Sophie is primarily a breakfast and lunch restaurant, its brunch menu is not especially different from its regular offerings, but the restaurant’s chef creates unique special items every week. These creations often incorporate French toast, which is very popular among diners. Another fan favorite is Pannekaker—Norwegian rolled pancakes filled with fruit.
What really makes Café Sophie stand out as a brunch restaurant is its unique atmosphere. Poe notes that it’s especially popular among families with children, who love to watch the planes take off as they eat. The restaurant’s namesake, Sophie the goldendoodle, often makes appearances.
“She usually stays in my office, but we have people who want to see her, so she’ll come down to say hi to everyone,” Poe says. “It’s fun, because she loves everyone that comes here, and people really like to come see her. We get phone calls asking if she’s in today. She’s a big part of the cafe, too.”
