Dirty Bones, Carnaby, London

There's something so decadent about brunch. It implies shameless lingering in bed, only rising to indulge in a calorie-laden feast and a cheeky cocktail or two.  And that's why I love it. It makes no apologies for being neither breakfast nor lunch and instead, let's you choose to enjoy whatever you so desire.

Today, I desired Dirty Bones, a laidback restaurant nestled in Kingly Court, Soho, renowned for serving American comfort food at its best.  I made the pilgrimage to Dirty Bones to try the recently launched weekend brunch menu, which includes a mains and bottomless Prosecco and coffee for £15 (every Sat & Sun until 5pm - for those who are really lazy).

Belt busting entrees on offer include: The MacDaddy, (a 6 oz. aged steak burger smothered in mac-n-cheese and pulled beef short rib in Dirty Bones' barbeque sauce and served in a brioche bun); the Benedict Burger (6oz house burger, topped with poached egg and black treacle bacon, smothered in Dirty Bones hollandaise sauce); Steak & Eggs (a 30-day aged flat iron steak, chargrilled and served with two free range fried eggs and Dirty Bones smoked ketchup); and Short rib & cheese toastie (a triple stack toastie of beef rib, charred gherkin, English mustard, taleggio and cheddar on sourdough).  

The MacDaddy definitely lived up to its hype. The burger was ridiculously juicy and the mac-n-cheese was sinfully decadent. As a food combination it shouldn't work, but the macaroni added a whole other level of sheer gluttonous pleasure. I reckon it's quite possibly the best cure for a hangover, making it an ideal choice for those suffering from pre-Christmas over indulgence. Needless to say, the burger was quickly (and shamelessly) devoured.

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Sides were the Breakfast Fries (skinny American fries drizzled with smoked ketchup and served with two free range fried eggs) and the Chopped Salad (a salad with sliced radishes and cherry tomatoes in a vinaigrette), which was a bit dull, but let's be honest, you don't come to a place like this to nibble on lettuce.

​My friend opted for a more traditional chicken sandwich, which boasted a breast so large, it must have been the Pamela Anderson of the chicken world. In fact, she had to tackle it with a knife and fork just to conquer it.  ​

As one would expect from any fabulous brunch offering, the brunch included bottomless Prosecco and coffee, which really helped perk us up and add a bit of cheer to our afternoon.

One thing that struck us during or visit was how genuinely friendly all of the staff members were, which really added to our overall experience. The atmosphere was really positive and everyone seemed to enjoy getting stuck into the Prosecco and copious amounts of comfort food. 

Although we weren't going to indulge in dessert, the manager recommended the Milk and Frosties dessert, a panna cotta made with the milk from a bowl of Frosties soaked overnight. The panna cotta was quite thick in consistency and the Frosties provided a pleasant crunch, but overall, it didn't blow us away. After finishing our dessert, we experienced serious dessert envy when we caught a glimpse of the couple next to us enjoying the Banana Toblerone-Tella waffles, a seriously sinful dessert featuring caramelised banana, Toberlone-Tella, blueberry jam and peanut butter gelato. All I know is that it looked like the love child of a waffle and a banana split. Now if you ask me, that's the perfect way to end any day...

www.dirty-bones.com
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Food and drink: ★★★
Ambience: ★★★
Staff attentiveness/friendliness: ★★★★

A.A. Miln