The Brunchy Bunch

For many years I have envisioned what my perfect brunch would look like, what I would serve, who I would invite and even what I would wear. My brunch would be the height of fifties entertaining; the food would be delicious, the hostess charming, and everyone would be properly turned out in their Sunday best.

Yesterday, my dream came to fruition. Perhaps it was not the dream I had when I was thirteen and picked up a copy of my mom's "Best Brunch" cookbook, but in many ways it was much better.

The Sunday Brunch is one of the most sophisticated meals in many ways. Not quite breakfast, not quite lunch, brunch is a carte blanche of cuisine. Want a scrambled egg? You got it. Feeling more like a shrimp cocktail? That's fine too. Unlike breakfast (or even lunch for that matter), drinking is never frowned upon. In fact, the delectable mimosa and the savory bloody mary are best served at this time of day.

Because of the range of options with the Sunday brunch, it can almost seem daunting to create a menu. What does one make in a short amount of time, still hot and in this case catering to vegetarian diets as well? For me, it was not an easy answer.

Since my brunch fantasies began many years ago, I have accumulated a library of brunch cookbooks to assist me in this possible best case scenario. Crepes, waffles, pancakes and scones seemed like the most likely options for the palates of my animal friendly guests, but to be honest, it didn't sound very tempting to those of us who need a little more protein to start the day off right.

I spent hours doing research on my beloved Williams Sonoma website, I poured over my Culinary Institute "Breakfasts and Brunch" cookbook. Entertaining books, Betty Crocker, Bon Apetit and even Food and Wine magazine ensued, and still no menu.

Agonizing over the menu didn't seem to help me further along, so I finally decided that I would just make what I knew I could do best and leave it at that.

My guests were invited via Evite, a modern concept that would have Ms. Post rolling over in her grave, but it's the modern girls guide to realistic etiquette. With invites set out, menu finalized and guests confirmed, the big B day arrived quickly and with much anticipation.

The purpose for our reunion yesterday was to bring budding friendships together and progress a series of promises to get together soon and get to know each other betters.

My best friend, Kristi was at my house the weekend of said brunch, having celebrated a friends' wedding the previous night at the beautiful Presidio in San Francisco. Together, Kristi and I attacked the mountain of tasks that needed to be completed under Top Chef-like timelines. Expecting to have the brunch ready by the time our guests arrived at ten a.m., we were surprised to see that it was already ten after ten and only the first dish had been started.

In my original fantasies of yore, I would have been wearing a bouffant and my mothers' pearls, the spread would have already been laid out in such a way that Martha would be proud, and my guests would marvel at what a great hostess I am.

The reality went something like this: no time for make-up, so I'm going "natural". Not wanting to wear heels or a dress, since I had already worn that garb dancing the night away the night before. Food ready? Not a chance. Table beautifully adorned? Try having to ask my guests to help so that the food could be served only forty minutes after everyone arrived, instead of two hours after.

To her credit, Kristi kept me very calm in what could only have been described as a potential nuclear meltdown situation. She jumped in where needed, took on any task that was delegated and acted as my charming co-host to help put the guests at ease. And you know what? It actually went better than expected BECAUSE of the hiccups, not in spite of them.

The formality that can sometimes cripple a new social situation was diminished because of assigning everyone a task, and as a result everyone felt easy and natural with each other.

The menu was simple but tasty and consisted of homemade biscuits, homemade honey butter to accompany, apricot-orange marmalade, raspberry jam, roasted potatoes, heavily seasoned with spices and garlic, scrambled eggs, honey smoked bacon and roasted tomatoes, not to mention a fresh fruit platter of sliced cantaloupe, sliced at the peak of freshness, pineapple, blueberries and strawberries. To drink we had guava and mango mimosas, coffee, milk and tea.

During the meal, easy conversation ensued and all was falling into place. One of my guests, Aronn, suggested we play a fun guessing game where the intention is to guess the anonymous answers of others and simultaneously demonstrate memory skills.

It's funny what you discover about people once the velvet ropes have been lifted. We learned things about each other that you might not normally learn until late night drinks have been had and yet it was only midday.

What ultimately made the brunch a success wasn't the food, the decor or even the dress code. It was about following up on a promise to see each other soon and making good on the promise to get to know each other better.