Sunday Smorgasbord at Zed451

My friend Imran and I made an amazing brunch discovery today—Zed451. We were originally headed to Orange, but, after putting our names in for the 30-minute wait, he suggested we check out whether Zed451 (right across the street on Clark) has brunch—and, oh man, do they ever! We walked in and were greeted by an uber-friendly hostess, whom we asked about the brunch menu. She informed us that there is no brunch menu at Zed451, but then showed us something far better—the brunch buffet (or Harvest Table, as they call it). She took us past the fruit bar, the pastries, the breakfast salads, and the cheese station, and told us about the French toast and vanilla oatmeal at the fifth and final station. Imran and I were pretty much sold the second we saw the pastries (which, ironically, we didn’t even end up eating).

But wait, that wasn’t even all of it! In addition to five different breakfast bars, she starts to tell us that chefs from the kitchen bring food to your table as you’re eating. Then, when you set your stone (yes, stone) at the edge of the table, they come by with an amazing assortment of marinated meats and fish that, true to the Brazilian steakhouse that they are, the chefs carve right there at your table. Okay—we were completely sold. Better yet, there weren’t too many people there, so we were immediately shown to a table by the window (from which we could see the long lines at Orange).

We made our first (and only) trip to the buffet, where I filled up with couscous salad, marinated mushrooms, potato salad, roasted tomatoes, three different kinds of cheese (I can’t even remember which ones—there were so many from which to select), and vanilla oatmeal with dried cranberries, raspberries and shaved almonds. Imran and I both resolved to come back for the French toast later (but never made it!) As we started in on our plates of pure deliciousness, the chefs started to bring food to the table in small skillets. The first plates included hash browns and Cajun/maple-rubbed bacon. I’m not usually a big bacon person, but... Oh. My. Goodness. This wasn’t just any bacon: it was melt-in-your mouth bacon, and I wished I’d had room to eat more than just one strip of it!

The chef who continued to drop off food at our table showed up, after the bacon and hashbrowns, with fresh, hot cinnamon buns complete with warm, drippy icing. Soft, steamy and delicious, we tore through the first pair in minutes. After taking our empty dish, our chef showed up unexpectedly with two more. (What? Endless cinnamon rolls? Heaven…) He joked with us about how quickly we devoured the first helping, and all I could do was stare, wide-eyed, at the second batch, and wonder how I was going to make room for another of those gooey goodness-y cinnamon rolls in my already stuffed stomach. I had tried so earnestly to pace myself at the buffet, in order to save room for the meats, but those cinnamon rolls filled up every last inch of stomach I had left.

Needless to say, by the time they brought the meats around, Imran was the only one of us able to indulge. The beef looked amazing, with juicy marinade dripping from the meat as the chef carved it. The salmon looked amazing, too. I wasn’t sure about the maple-syrup-laden waffle with chicken on top that they brought to Imran, but he seemed to enjoy it. Our chef said it took him three months to try it, but once he did, he was hooked. I just kind of stared at it with skepticism, although I would have tried it if I weren’t already bursting at the seams.

Aside from the positively indulgent food experience, I have to mention that the wait staff and the chefs are the friendliest conglomeration of people I’ve ever encountered working in a restaurant. The chef visiting our table told us that he loved being able to bring the food to the customer and see them smile. Like everyone else working there, he seemed genuinely happy to be there and to be contributing to the satisfaction of many a stuffed customer. Our waiter was energetic and cheerful, too, as was our hostess.

Sunday brunch is still the best meal of the week. Zed451 made it that much better. Thanks, Imran, for having a nose for food. What a great way to start the week!