brunch review: clyde’s;
This weekend had all the plans and then they all fell through! Repeatedly. But we made it better by hiking with the pup, and going out to brunch! If you’ve never been to a Clyde’s, it’s a restaurant chain throughout the greater DC area, and they all have different themes. Their rooms are are themed as well–for example, the one we were in this past weekend was bird-themed so every painting on the wall had some sort of bird as the focus. It’s kinda fun to explore and see where you get seated.
We decided to splurge and do brunch right after our morning hike on the Maryland side of Great Falls, and ordered a few drinks to start. I went with the blood orange mimosa and Tyler went with the Festive sangria. The blood orange mimosa was amazing, but I’ve established that I really love blood orange flavored drinks (*cough mike’s hard cough*). Tyler’s sangria was okay, but tasted heavily of nutmeg and cloves. It might have been better if it was colder out, but it was a gorgeous day and I wasn’t really in the mood for “cozy”, so it could have been better.
They start you off with complimentary coffee cake, which was warm and crumbly. I toss this in the same category as the sangria, mostly average. It was nothing stellar, but since it’s complimentary, I won’t complain!
Tyler went with the lobster shepard’s pie. It intrigued both of us, and we expected this full and luxurious dish. The idea was good, but execution a little lackluster. There was basically an entire lobster tail in the dish, which was great, until we tried some and found it on the rubbery side. Unfortunate, and I think Tyler will go back to what he tried last time: the Chesapeake eggs benedict–with crab! I think they’re about the same price, and he raved about the chesapeake benedict last time.
However. However. The redeeming factor of this entire meal was the “Fat Boy” sandwich! It was a last minute decision for me. Up until the waiter came to take our order, I was fixated on a burger, but then I read the description and was swayed. From the menu: “Smoked BBQ brisket, bacon, B&B pickles, pickled fresno chilies, cheddar cheese, crispy onions, chipotle aioli, pretzel bun”. After I ordered, I started second guessing my choice, but it turned out sensational. The brisket was tender and flavorful, and I ate my entire meal so fast the waiter even commented. (Well I was hungry.) Cleaned my plate and all!
Overall, I give Clyde’s a 3 out of 5 chips (read: stars). It’s a solid go-to, and they have some creative and tasty dishes. However, there are also mediocre dishes sprinkled in, so there’s somewhat of a guessing game built in.
Clyde’s
Clyde’s Website
8332 Leesburg Pike
Vienna, VA 22182
