![]() ![]() ![]() Le Mont Royal offers a trio of variations: a classic vodka-and-Clamato version the Vert, a tart mix of tequila, tomatillos and anchovy, which adds more umami than fishy flavors and the Jaune, which looks to Japan for inspiration and is made with shochu and kombu. Then there are the Caesars - a Canadian take on the bloody mary that adds clam broth to the tomato juice. Prefer your sparkling beverage to be a refreshingly bitter house sbagliato instead of a mimosa? Want to wake up with the Polar Express, an espresso martini fueled by cold brew, amaro and a maple-vanilla foam reminiscent of pancakes? Not a problem. At Le Mont Royal, the disco-ball-filled, Canadian-inspired bar and nightspot in Adams Morgan, bartenders make an offer that’s hard to refuse: Instead of paying $30 for unlimited mimosas, you can pay $50 for, well, just about anything for up to 90 minutes. The scene: The phrase “brunch drinks” conjures the sight and flavor of sticky-sweet, under-carbonated mimosas, or bloody marys thick as ketchup. And if all those buns still aren’t enough to make you fall back in love with brunch, don’t fret: At the Barracks Row location, there’s also an option for bottomless dim sum. If you’re missing sweet brunch options, try a purple egg yolk bun with an oozing center or a creamy taro coconut tapioca. Choose from a menu full of soup dumplings, filled with salty broth and a ball of ground pork, and crab meat or scallion dumplings, which you can’t get at the location on Barracks Row. The line to get a table can stretch out the door, but the service is fast and friendly once you’re seated. Its distinctive decor, including two full-size fake trees strung with Chinese lanterns, sets the mood. The Chinese restaurant, which opened last year - and has sister locations in McLean and on Capitol Hill - offers authentic dim sum dishes priced cheaply enough to order several. If you’re ready to switch things up, head to Han Palace-Woodley Park, where the only pancake option is filled with scallions and meant to be dipped in a ginger or soy sauce (options that are lined up in gorgeous ceramics for ease of use at every table). Even the lunch options that sometimes appear on brunch menus, like chicken sandwiches or salads, don’t always break you out of the rut. The scene: Traditional brunch is great, but some combination of eggs and meat on repeat every weekend can get stale. They come in varieties like “single ladies,” “bridezilla shooter” and “birthday blitz,” though a waiter couldn’t tell me which liquors constitute each drink - just that “they all have whipped cream.” Mimosas are the only drink included in the bottomless deal, but you can get $9 mimosas, bloody marys and “beermosas,” which are cheaper than bottomless if you don’t plan to have more than three drinks, or tag on a $10 shot. Unlike at some other local drag brunches, the menu is a la carte, and an ATM is provided in case you don’t have cash on hand for tips. Lip-syncing hits by Beyoncé, Pink and other icons, they collect dollars from diners who dance as best as they can between forkfuls of avocado toast and gravy-smothered “hangover pizza.” Expect audience interaction (read: don’t be shocked at the announcement of a twerking competition), especially at the end of the meal when guests are invited to a restaurant-wide dance party. Though it’s barely noon, the mimosas are already flowing as queens (including “RuPaul’s Drag Race” Season 2 star Tatianna) strut across the restaurant in sky-high heels and glittery outfits. The scene: “Is that an aperol spritz? Chug it.” That’s the order drag queen Crystal Edge gives to a patron in her introduction to City Tap’s drag brunch. There’s no room rental fee, but some spaces do come with a minimum - a perfect way to encourage plus-one invites to graduation gatherings, wedding after-parties, alumni events and corporate receptions. And on the second floor, six garage doors open to balconies. Mission Navy Yard has four bars, including one it claims is the largest in the city, measuring a whopping 150 feet. But you can also rent private rooms, or even the entire restaurant. That doesn’t happen at Mission Navy Yard, where there are eight (eight!) different event spaces available to rent - granted, some of these spaces are, literally, a nook between the edge of the bar and the wall. Then your crew arrives with a few too many tag-alongs, leaving waiters to scramble for extra chairs as everyone packs around a too-small table and the whole thing devolves into cramped, grumpy awkwardness. The scene: Imagine the nightmare brunch scenario: You have a date on the calendar, the evites are sent, the reservation is made, the outfits are picked. ![]()
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