Back when I opened my first restaurant, Bills, all those years ago, I wasn’t a morning person. Things changed very quickly! Because of the licence I had for the café, I could only open for breakfast and lunch, so no evenings; quite a shock for a 22-year-old used to going out after midnight.
But from the moment I walked into that pretty corner room, with sun streaming through large windows and bouncing off the light oak floor, I knew it was made for breakfast, brunch and lunch.
Those early days at Bills were very basic – just one other chef and me. We would prepare and cook breakfast and lunch for about 200 people, in a space that seated 35. To get through it, we simplified things as much as we could, cut out long preparation times, and used seasonal ingredients, simply prepared. This seems so straightforward and common now, but back then, it was not the norm.
The old cliché rings true: I believe that breakfast is the most important meal of the day
It’s those lessons that I learnt in the Bills kitchen that I have carried through to my home kitchen. Rather than doing eggs every way, we did them one way. We let fruit speak for itself by cutting it to order and making sure it was ripe and delectable. These lessons are so important for the home cook: keep it simple, be brutal, pare back your menu, let your ingredients shine and spend your time with one or two dishes – and, more
importantly, with your guests!
The old cliché rings true: I believe that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. While basic breakfasts in our house might just be quick bowls of muesli, yogurt and gorgeous summer berries or stone fruit, sometimes they’re slightly more lavish, but equally simple. I’ll lay out platters of mozzarella, basil leaves, perfect summer tomatoes, prosciutto and chewy sourdough bread. Don’t be afraid just to assemble, rather than cook, a breakfast or brunch. When you have the time, try baking banana and chocolate loaves, or making a breakfast crisp with summer fruit. If you have fresh eggs, crack them over breadcrumbs and rocket, for an all-in-one fry-up that’s fresher than the standard full English.
Brunch always feels like less of a commitment than entertaining in the evening
While I don’t tend to serve wine at brunch, some drinks were just made for it. Anything with champagne is good; or anything with bubbles, in fact. Prosecco is perfect, and nothing fits the bill quite like a classic white peach bellini. Or anything with juice; my favourite is a classic bloody mary, livened
up with a little horseradish.
For some reason, having people over for brunch always feel like less of a commitment than evening entertaining. Compared to a dinner party – where the expectations and preparation can seem so much greater (almost overwhelming, sometimes) – brunch feels like a breeze. It’s just quicker and easier: things can be pulled together quickly, usually in the morning, without any extra preparation or too much forward-planning on your part – for example, it’s pretty straightforward adding pancetta and caramelised onions to plain old scrambled eggs. Brunch is like that: all it takes is a quick run to the shops for a few embellishments, if you feel so inspired.
Brunch is the new lunch! It’s fresher, earlier, simpler, sunnier and perfectly suited to summer. So swing open the doors and enjoy your friends and family. Relaxing in the warmth, without watching the clock, you might find, like I do, that weekend brunches can morph into afternoon tea and baking a quick batch of scones!