Robust, at its new, second location downtown at 7th and Washington, has taken a bold step forward. They've started doing weekend brunch. Clearly, it's something they should have been doing a long time ago at the Webster site, if the food is any indication.
Located in the MX building, with entrances both on Washington and via the lobby of the Embassy Suites on 7th, Robust offers its sit-down brunch on both Saturday and Sunday The menu seems to lean rather more toward lunch than breakfast, until you notice the profusion of eggs, often in spots where they wouldn't have been a few years ago. For example, consider the tartines.
Tartines, when I first visited France – that would have been during the reign of Clovis I, I think – were lengths of bread split, perhaps toasted, and spread with butter or jam or, for a bit of luxury, topped with cheese, served with breakfast coffee at budget-priced establishments. In the last decade or so, they've evolved (over there, too) to open-faced sandwiches that serve as a light entree for lunch. Two of the three tartines on the menu are topped with a fried egg. A lightly grilled slab of sourdough was the base for several thick pieces of moist, beefy brisket, which was topped with caramelized onions, arugula and a fried egg, and to up the ante, the bread had been anointed with some of the meat juices. A hearty knife-and-fork sandwich, it was a great combination, full of flavor and textures.
Forget the cliches about quiche. The spinach and gruyere one was remarkable, even the bottom of the crust crispy-tender, the balance of spinach and cheese in good harmony, a fine specimen of the dish. Alongside, a green salad wore a light tickle of a feta-laced vinaigrette, a good contrast to the creamy quiche.
Still, the star of the table was a side dish. What the menu terms baked potato hash turned out to be a tangle of thick potato shreds, at least partly pan-fried with the resultant occasional browned bits, mixed with a generous amount of more caramelized onions, the whole topped with sour cream, chopped green onions, and bacon – which we requested on the side, as my pal is vegetarian. Yes, good, thick lardons of bacon, but the dish was absolutely complete without them. Finally, breakfast potatoes with enough onions. This plus a couple of fried eggs would be simple and perfect. I can't imagine ever having brunch here without these guys.
Good coffee, reasonably strong and showing evidence that the elves that scour coffee pots have been hard at work. Untried but alluring is a flight of brunch drinks, the way Robust offers flights of wine for trying. In this case, the small servings are of the house bloody Mary and mimosa, and a michelada, a beer cocktail. next time.
Service managed to be both attentive and easy-going, exactly what is needed at brunch.
But be warned: Street parking this close to the Convention Center and Dome is practically nonexistent. The easiest thing to do is to use the valet parking at the Embassy Suites and be sure, emphasis, be absolutely positive to give the restaurant waitstaff your parking ticket. It'll cost $3. If you pay the hotel rates, it's $14. Even with the tip, you're way ahead of the game, especially if you order the potatoes.
Robust
635 Washington Ave.
314-287-6300
Brunch Sat.-Sun.
Credit cards: Yes
Wheelchair access: Fair
Smoking: No
Entrees:$8-$13