Creative Food Review: Barrel DC
Sunday Brunch has become an institution, especially in DC. And its not brunch unless it features unlimited mimosas. In honor of tradition, and hoping to find some new flavor creations, I decided to try a place in Eastern Market in the District called Barrel, http://barreldc.com/
and I was not disappointed. Barrel is a bourbon and whiskey bar with both great cocktails and great food. It has a cool, calm, and relaxed atmosphere with a hint of sophistication. I got there for brunch at 11:30 AM, and I started with a Velvet Revolver. The name alone created images in my mind. The Velvet Revolver was made with Bulleit Bourbon, Patron XO Café, honey syrup, and orange bitters. It evoked so much emotion that I was almost sad when I was done. As for food, I had fried chicken with a biscuit covered in sausage gravy and a bell pepper jam with side of house cured bacon to round the meal out. I know this is going to sound cliche, but it was the best bacon that I’ve ever had. The bottomless mimosas kept the fun going all throughout brunch. Of course it came with the usual suspects, orange juice and cranberry juice, but there was a twist. The champagne also came with 2 syrups as mixers - one mint, and the other a strawberry syrup. Both syrups were awesome, and a welcome change to the bottomless mimosa that we are used to with brunch. I will be heading back to Barrel very soon, and I hope to experience just as much of the chef's creativity as I did this time.
Barrel DC is located at 613 Pennsylvania Ave SE Washington D.C.