Last weekend, Brad and I and a friend went to Perennial Virant, a cute little restaurant that is right up the street from us and, shockingly, we’ve never made it around to. Not only does the food always look delicious, but the head chef, Paul Virant, was awarded Food and Wine’s Best New Chef award in 2007 AND has been on Iron Chef America (vs. Morimoto, the coolest dude, no less). Again, why haven’t we been there yet? Finally, after the billionth time I’ve walked by during weekend brunch hours and been overcome with immense food envy, I decided the time had come to try it.

The menu is short and sweet, which I always prefer, and pretty much everything sounded delicious.  We started with some coffee and, of course, some bevvies. Brad got a traditional Bloody Mary, and I had to go for their “seasonal” mimosa, which was a rhubarb mimosa. The Bloody Mary had a little too much garlic/horseradish for our tastes, and was also really dainty and small. Sorry, but I want my Bloody Mary served in a pint glass. Actually, I’m not sorry. That’s the way the world should be. The rhubarb mimosa, on the other hand, was delicious – sweeter than a traditional mimosa, but with a really unique and spring-y flavor that only rhubarb can provide.

For our meal, I ended up deciding on the House-Made Sausage (don’t tell me you’re surprised), which came with two eggs and a side of fried potatoes with cheese curds…uh, what? Yes, the only way to make fried potatoes better is to add cheese curds. It’s a fact.  The sausage was absolutely delicious – spicy, meaty, and thick-cut, the way the best sausage always is. The potatoes and cheese curds were a perfect accompaniment, along with the brown bread and blueberry jam. I ate my whole plate clean. It was that good.

Brad got the Biscuits and Gravy, which was my favorite thing we tried. It came in a big bowl, pretty much a thick gravy soup with chicken sausage, biscuits, and sunny-side up eggs just hangin’ out in the midst of all the delicious gravy. Brad pretty much never gets excited about any food, so when he said “oh, wow” as soon as he took a bite, I knew it was going to be good. The gravy was nicely spiced and the perfect thickness, with moist biscuits and runny egg making everything even more delicious. #1 recommendation, for sure.

Overall, Perennial Virant is a definite do. Especially if you can sit outside during the summer. And don’t mind spending $40 on brunch. Which I would totally do for another round of that Biscuits and Gravy any day.

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