Sunday brunch at home — start of August, phase 2 reopening in full effect, but the weekend home brunch had become so locked-in that nothing was going to break the rotation.

Today’s plate:

Hot rice base
Fried egg (sunny-side)
Stir-fried vegetables
Pan-seared protein
Chilli sauce on the side

The Sunday brunch routine had its own steady gravity now. We’d run it through circuit breaker, through phase 2 reopening, and into the second half of the year. The plate was almost identical across the months; the small variations were the protein-of-the-day or the green-vegetable swap.

Hot rice base was the standard fluffy jasmine.

Fried egg was the M-style sunny-side standard. Crispy white edges, runny golden yolk.

Stir-fried vegetables today were cabbage and carrot shreds with garlic and a splash of soy.

Pan-seared protein was a small portion of sausage rounds — sliced Bratwurst, hit in its rendered fat.

Chilli sauce on the side as always.

We sat at the kitchen table, drank coffee from the V60, and ate slow. The August Sunday morning had the same quiet rhythm as every other Sunday morning this year — no commitments, no plans, just the slow assembly of the day around the small ritual of breakfast.

The home weekend brunch had become one of the small reliable joys of 2020. Pre-pandemic this slot was filled with queueing at cafes, navigating brunch reservations, and dealing with all the small annoyances of mid-morning city eating. Lockdown forced us into the kitchen, and we’d stayed there because it was actually better.

Phase 2 had restored the option of going back to cafes, but the home routine had proven itself. Some habits earn their permanence.

Overall: 4.3 / 5. 😋👍🏼 Reliable Sunday brunch — keeping the routine.

Original IG post