Usually when Rob and I get the mail if it’s not a bill, wedding invitation, or Nordstroms catalog- it goes right in the trash, but this one we thought we’d hang on to. It was a flyer advertising Mangrove’s new brunch menu. Never ones to shy away from a new brunch place, we thought we’d give it a whirl.
We had only ever been to Mangrove’s at night, and it’s usually at the end of the night if we make it there at all. Let’s be honest- no girl in heels, at the end of a long night, with a few drinks in her- wants to be climbing those stairs just to get to the dance floor. I’ll stay on the first floor and dance by myself thank you very much. But when we walked in, it was like a totally different world. The atmosphere was almost swanky in a way and the scene was much different in the light. Since it was a gorgeous Tampa morning we sat outside. Once our party got themselves together from the night before and made it to the restaurant we were ready to hear what the server had in store for us.
First things first… drinks. They have $5 Bloody Mary’s as well as $5 mimosas. But for the low low price of $10 (and if you are in the service industry) you can get your all you can drink on. Since we were such good customers, and partly because it seemed like the server wanted to get us toasted, he gave us all the deal. I’m gonna be honest with you here folks- unless you are trying to hang out for like 2 or 3 hours, or drink like Reese Witherspoon and her husband before their DUI, it’s not worth it.
With our drinks on the table, it was time to order our meals. I went with the classic, Eggs Benedict. Other’s went with Eggs Florentine, Chicken Sandwich, and a Huevos Rancheros. It didn’t take long for the food to come, but then again there wasn’t really anyone else in restaurant. I will give them this though, we went right at 11 when the brunch begins, and at the end of brunch it seemed to be filling up. Once the food came we were ready to dig in. I’ll give my meal a 6, I mean, it’s not that hard to screw up that breakfast staple. As far as the others…. let’s just say, one didn’t finish her meal, another’s was runny and the third was just so so . One thing we could all agree on- the sweet potato hash was amazeballs. If I could have had a bowl of that I would have been set.
Now I don’t know if they were trying to make up for their less than stellar morning meals, but we got ourselves some free cookies. They weren’t great either. Too hard for our liking but it’s a cookie- so who’s gonna say no to that. After the cookies were devoured it was time to hit the road. All in all it was a great morning catching up with friends and throwing back a few drinks, but next time I think the flyer will go in the trash.
Happy Brunch Hunting -Allison
NHIE Guys 