Nomad Brunch

If breakfast is the most important meal of the day, then Sunday Brunch is the most important meal of the week. So we were delighted to accept an invitation to share a buffet brunch at Nomad with friends this weekend. The restaurant is on Place Du Marche St Honore where there are some other great restuarants which I will review at a later date, such as Little Georgette, Fuxia and Le Bistrot St Honore.



Nomad offers a good spread for the weekend brunch but the most impressive thing about it is the interior. For someone who is typically more interested in substance than style, I found myself surprisingly occupied by this when I should have been tucking into the buffet. It is a perfect setting for a weekend brunch, with a laid back feeling of a lakeside lodge. In the rear section, salvaged wood tables are surounded by deep back sofas and cowhide rugs are spread across the floor. The walls are covered with portraits and liberally filled bookcases which would not look out of place in someone's summer retreat.

In between the rear section and the front, there are two kooky corners which look like they could be very cosy dining spaces.

What about the food I hear you say...

There is the cooked food section with crispy bacon, scrambled eggs, spicy sausages, pancakes with maple syrup, warm potatoes. I found this to be fairly standard. The eggs were nice and soft, which is tricky when cooking in such large quantities. The pancakes and syrup kept one of my fellow diners happy: "the same as I get in Canada" was his comment. The spicy sausages didn't look too appetising but turned out to be very tasty. I was a bit disappointed with the potatoes though which were a touch soggy and could have been easily substituted for something like hash browns or crispy potato patties.

The salad selection and cold meats were my personal favourite. Deep bowls of pasta assortments, fresh salad leaves tossed with crispy bacon in a mustard dressing, grilled vegetables with balsamic dressing and pickled herrings as well.

There was of course a generous selection of breads and pastries but as a rule I don't take too many of these at buffets - it's a trick of the trade to fill you up, much as they do with soups and free fizzy drinks!

The girls were delighted with the dessert section: chocolate cake, chocolate brownies, red fruit tart, apple pie, and a variety of mousses and whipped creams. There's also a modest selection of cheeses and fresh fruits but by this time, I barley had space left.

Coffee, hot chocolate, teas and juices are also unlimited although I do have to agree with one review I read which complained that the orange juice was "industrial". I can only assume though that the French review was referring to the OJ as standard and not freshly pressed. Either that or he owns a small factory where the machines run on orange juice!

All in all it was a decent brunch albeit uninventive and somewhat pedestrian. Pretty much everything on offer was well prepared but there was nothing which stood out and made me think "I must go back there for that". The service was fairly good - but it's hard to give bad service at a buffet I suppose. It's a nice seting though and a pleasant place to spend Sunday afternoon but the sting in the tail came with the bill: 29 Euros per person seems a bit steep for what it was.