New Year's Brunch - St Francis

It's finally 2017!!! I know many people that had a wonderful 2016, but mine was pretty frustrating and stressful. So I was excited to ring in 2017 as quickly as possible.

I made plans for a New Year's Day brunch with Nate at a little restaurant we found in uptown Phoenix.
St Francis located at 111 E. Camelback Road in Phoenix mixes the modern and mid-century feel that I've come to expect from Phoenix. (It feels like Phoenix discovered the 60's and 70's and decided they were happy and not going to change their Aesthetic much.)

Phoenix rocks the 70's aesthetic pretty well and St Francis mixes the old and new very well.

The architecture aside, the restaurant in warm and inviting. It's on the smaller side, which makes it feel much more intimate. Always something we look for.

The facade is a glass retractable door that opens are nice days to expose the bar area. The door was closed today due to the New Year's drizzle we had this morning, but we've seen it open before and it creates a fun view of Uptown Plaza. (We were there right before Christmas and they had it open. One of the perks of living in the valley of the sun is patio weather in December)

We were shown to our table in the upstairs loft area over looking the main dining area and the jazz band playing. I was pleasantly surprised as usually sitting that close to live music makes it difficult to carry on a conversation. But the music was a wonderful addition and not overpowering in volume. It was also a very talented local jazz band which I hope will be there again next time. I didn't get a chance to get their names but I wish I had.

As I'm addicted to all things carb-y. We ordered the Baker's Board.

A was a delicious array of pastries and bread with fresh butter , cream and jam.

It included a St Francis baguette, Oat and carrot muffin, banana bread muffin and a banana scone. (I think. Some come with a cinnamon roll, but I mentioned I don't like cinnamon rolls so I believe they left it off because of that. Which is great as the smell of cinnamon rolls gives me a headache. However, if you ARE a fan. They were impressively huge rolls)

All of it was divine and quite filling on itself. I think we could have easily made this a nice meal with some drinks.

All of these items are fresh made from the Phoenix Public Market. Which is definitely something we are going to check out as soon as possible. Because I may need to buy my weight in those muffins.

Since we're gluttons for punishment and forgot to add the "Stop gorging ourselves" to our list of 2017 resolutions, we both ordered entrees on top of the Baker's Board.

Nate ordered the Chorizo Scramble (chorizo, spinach, jack cheese, salsa, and toast for $10)

He loved it. The chorizo was spicy and the salsa had a surprising kick to it. Which even living in Arizona, not always a given when it comes to restaurant standard salsas. The toast was the same bread as the baguette on the baker's board. This bread is amazing and cooked in house. The serving size was impressive for the price and he barely finished it after eating our weight in baked goods.

I ordered the Farmer's Market Frittata (seasonal vegetables, cheddar, arugula for $10)

One thing I love about this place is how they use seasonal fresh and local vegetables and ingredients whenever possible.

My frittata was amazing. I was expecting a lot of egg, with a few pieces of vegetable tossed in and a sprinkle of cheese.

I was so so wrong.

Topped with Brussels sprouts, red peppers, arugula, broccolini, cherry tomatoes, purple and orange cauliflower and some sort of winter squash with a white flesh.

The cauliflower was an interesting twist. the purple cauliflower had a nutty flavor to it, while the orange cauliflower had a slightly sweet taste.

All of the vegetables were fresh and ripe. The seasoning was light so you were able to really taste the different vegetables. It was vegetarian and gluten free.

The menu denotes which items are vegan, vegetarian, dairy free and gluten free. There was a large number of vegetarian items and a couple vegan items.

Something else to enjoy? Kids 12 and under eat free. We didn't take Sami with us, but there is plenty on the kids menu that she would enjoy.

With drinks and food, we paid about $38 before tip.

Service was phenomenal and our server was friendly attentive and able to answer questions about the menu.

Their Happy Hour menu is also impressive and includes the forbidden rice bowl (vegan), Morrocan meatballs, baked goat cheese and

pumpkin soup.

If you're in Phoenix, check it out http://stfrancisaz.com/ Their menu changes seasonally (In order to use the freshest local ingredients) and please. Eat a Baker's Board for me!