Sunday Brunch at Sustain

     Miami is seriously beginning to step up its brunch game with some of my favorite restaurants all around town tossing their hat into the the ring.  Each Sunday had become a game of eeny, meeny, miny, mo, as I struggle to decide between Tudor House and Michael's Genuine, and more recent choices like the Federal, the Local, Eating House and Sustain.  Each has their own merits, and I won't try to persuade you any one is really better than another.  However, this post is about Sustain, an eco-friendly restaurant that already managed to capture my heart with their unique approach to quality food and drink made using fresh local ingredients.
    Come Sundays, their lovely restaurant transforms from relaxed and sophisticated to energetic and fun, with a DJ playing an assortment of tunes in the corner.  As with the regular menu, the brunch menu is ever changing, so some items may not be permanent fixtures.  The morning we came in we decided to chose an assortment of sweet and savory items, along with El Fugitivo, a cocktail combining Milagro Silver tequila, Cynar, lime, agave and Angostura.

    El Fugitivo arrived, a bit smaller than I expected considering the $12 price tag.  Depending on your perspective, the glass was either half empty or half full.  Redolent of citrus, it tasted pretty much like you'd expect with tequila, lime, and bitters, both acidic and very smooth.  It was potent though, which meant that it was not a cocktail for downing quickly, rather something to savor and let linger on the palate.

     Our waitress kindly split our order up so our table wouldn't become inundated with plates.  So first up was the bread basket and the duck poutine.  Now when my friend enthusiastically recommended the bread basket, I will admit a huge amount of skepticism.  I mean I know I'm the oddball that isn't very into bread, but in my opinion, why would anyone go to a nice restaurant to pay for a heaping portion of the stuff most places give you for free anyways.  I assumed it would be generic white bread that was well made, but certainly nothing so interesting as to waste valuable stomach space on.  Then we got to Sustain and I actually read what they were offering: Zucchini bread, corn muffin, carrot cake, berry compote and lavender-honey butter.  Seriously I could not have been more excited for a bread basket, and when it arrived I was not disappointed.  The butter was floral with a tinge of sweetness, and the berry compote was fruity and dulcet.  Mixing and matching each for the three "breads" was pure bliss.  Each option was exceptional, both moist and flavorful.  I'd also like to note that they follow my cardinal corn muffin rule, of including actual corn in the muffin for extra bursts of texture and more corn flavor.  They earn serious bonus points for that in my book!

     Next up was the duck poutine.  I wasn't quite sure what  a "poutine" actually was, but thanks to my dining partner I can now share that it's a dish indigenous to Canada comprised of fries, cheese, and a brown gravy.  On previous occasions, I had enjoyed Sustain's bone marrow fries, and I found the poutine was simply a hedonistic step up from the original.  Perfect strips of potato made soft from a bath in rich bone marrow gravy, they came with generous amounts of duck meat and feta.  We also chose to make it more of a breakfast friendly dish with the addition of a 63 degree egg.  An umami explosion, it was both flavorful and filling, a decadent take on poutine.

      Moving onwards we finally breached sweet territory with the Foie Gras and Pancakes.  Soft little discs of buckwheat pancakes came drenched in maple syrup, which was then topped with crisp slices of bacon and a huge piece of creamy foie, the flan of the savory world.  Thankfully the dish was not nearly as cloying as I had imagined, surprisingly well balanced, and very enjoyable.

     For the final selection, we went with a scotch egg, a dish considered traditional English fare.  Typically, this dish consists of a hardboiled egg that is wrapped in sausage meat, coated in breadcrumbs and then is deep fried.  While the London department store Fortnum and Mason claims credit for inventing them for wealthy coach travellers back in 1738, other reports claim that the scotch egg is actually a derivative of an Indian dish, Margisi Kofta.  Whichever you believe, at Sustain you get the usual version amped up with a zesty jalapeno-cheddar sauce and pickled vegetable salad.  With the combination of flavors and textures, it is a superb rendition of a classic English treat.

     Each item was absolutely delicious and I ended up being full for the remainder of the day.  What a tasty way to start my Sunday!  I may need to work out for an entire week afterward, but it was totally worth it.  Check out brunch at Sustain for yourself!   You can follow them on twitter @SustainMIA for their latest specials, or just come on in:


3252 Northeast 1st Avenue, Suite #107  Miami, FL 33137