Meet & Talk
Good for: Late risers; hiding in plain sight 
Surprise, surprise, Fumin Lu—our Walk of Fame for overpriced, mediocre food—just got a bougie new cafe. Surprise, surprise, the food's not bad. Well, at least the breakfast offerings are solid. The place does all-day breakfast sets like egg-in-the-hole (62rmb)—basically a grilled Cheddar cheese sandwich with a layer of eggs—alongside an herby chicken sausage of admirable girth, a slice of smoked ham, a small side of home fries and yogurt. There's also a British-style breakfast plate (58rmb), with eggs, Cumberland sausages, bacon, tomatoes, mushrooms, toast and baked beans. The eggs Florentine (52rmb), pictured above, is nicely done, too. Only complaint is that they're using good quality bacon but under-frying it. Maybe ask to get yours done on the crispier side. Anyway, Meet & Talk's got the sweet stuff, too—waffles, French toast and pancakes paired with eggs, sausages or bacon, plus home fries (52rmb each). Keep in mind that it's done Asian-style, though, which means a lot less sugar and fat than you might be used to. The coffee here is better than a lot of the half-assed stuff you'd find elsewhere in town, plus they've got some special flavors like "Crispy Caramel Latte" (38rmb) and "Earl Grey Latte" (36rmb). We'd suggest giving the Signature Lemon Tea (36rmb) a try, too. Meet & Talk's space isn't very big—they've got about eight small tables, and it's a quiet spot on a busy street. The crowd tends to be low-key and relaxed, which makes it a good Wagas alternative for freelancing or hungover types. Daily: 10am-10pm For a full brunch listing, click here.
Shanghai City Bistro
Yeah, the thought of walking through People's Square on a Sunday morning sounds exceptionally unappealing to us, too. Marriott's City Bistro is doing a new brunch that might make elbowing through a sea of clumsily-handled DSLRs worth it, though. It's an all-you-can-eat affair with a few enticements that we haven't seen at the other hotel brunches in town, like a tempura bar from Inagiku, and a three-meter crab and oyster po'boy sandwich. OK, so the latter is admittedly gimmicky, but it's still a cool sight. Anyway, this brunch also has sushi, seafood (including oysters shucked on the spot), cold cuts and salad spreads, as well as live cooking stations for Indian, Cantonese and Malaysian food. That means you can get a bowl of laksa as spicy as you'd like it, plus naan made to order. There aren't menus laid out at the stations, though, which necessitates chatting up the cooks behind the counter to see what they can make for you. We'd suggest sticking with that instead of the dim sum, sushi, and other stationary objects waiting for salvation that just won't come. The exception—the barbecued pork ribs, which actually stay tender and tasty. There's also an extensive dessert bar with a chocolate fountain and a fresh juice bar, though those juices will cost you extra at 10rmb each. We hear they'll be rolling out a live cookie and pizza-making station for kids soon, too. All of this will run you 368rmb a person, which includes soft drinks and coffee. Pretty steep, but it's a fair price for everything that's on offer. Sunday: noon-3pm For a full brunch listing, click here.
La Petanque
La Petanque, that sister restaurant to Saleya and Cafe des Stagiaires on tranquil Tai'an Lu started serving brunch last month. The menu is simple, home-style stuff with a focus on the flavors of the South of France. None of it is terribly remarkable. We're talking starters like thin slices of roast eggplant, fanned out and drizzled with a non-descript (presumably) tomato-based sauce—Provencal-style, according to the menu. We also tried a very basic dish of leeks with vinaigrette, which fared only slightly better. For mains, there are bistro standards like a Nicoise salad with greens, beans, eggs, and tuna, or course. They also do mussels in a thick, almost pasty cream sauce with a side of fries, which isn't too bad. At least it's better than the deflated vegetable lasagna. Dessert options are typical French sweets like pear clafoutis, creme brulee, or chocolate fondant. We tried the brulee. It was passable. Fortunately, in spite of its mediocrity, La Petanque's brunch isn't a huge splurge. For 118rmb you get two courses. Add 20 kuai and you get three. That's actually a reasonable enough price to give the place another try to see if they've ironed out some of the wrinkles. Sat–Sun: 11.30am–2.30pm For a full brunch listing, click here.
Notting Hill
This recently opened British-themed restaurant isn't far from La Petanque, but its brunch shows far better. It's a smallish selection—six mains and a choice of about eight sides—but they make up for it by making it available all day, every day. And while a British purist may scoff—not an ounce of black pudding in the house, for instance—these guys still do a pretty solid brunch. There is, of course, the requisite English breakfast (88rmb), comprising two eggs, sausage, baked beans, mushrooms, tomatoes, hash browns, and toast. They throw an unorthodox salad, too. You can get even more of the same with a larger portion for 128rmb. They also offer a couple of Benedicts, one with smoked salmon and spinach or their signature version that comes with Iberico ham, you'd do well to choose the former. For something more toward the lunch end of the spectrum, there is always bangers and mash with green peas and a caramelized onion glaze (78rmb). Or should you wish to wander well out of brunch territory with something like fish and chips (98rmb). Daily: open–close For a full brunch listing, click here.
