Gerald S.
Yelp
I had a great breakfast at The Peasant Grill in Hopewell, NJ, this week. I knew next to nothing about the place, beyond a few reviews on Yelp, and the name gave me visions of rural subsistence making do on fruit windfall and potatoes dug from the earth. Needless to say, I was way off base. Although farm to table local produce may be part of the story, from my stool at the granite counter, sipping micro roast coffee, their only clarity was that The Peasant Grill was a magnet for community conversation (almost exclusively women) who used it as a meeting place. The deuce tables near the glass walled front of house were ideal for long looks at old trees and passing cars during the silent moments between spoken words. In short, the place was well designed, appointed and quite cozy.
The deal here is to order at the cashier and be handed a playing card to take back to your seat, where it is found by a server delivering you meal. A coffee station near the door provides self service java, a bottomless white mug for $2.75. As I settled in with my joe to await the challah french toast I ordered, I could feel the cool aesthetic vibe overtake me. Brief exchanges with the people working behind the counter were pleasant as they both gave me some of the history of the establishment. They clearly had a strong interest in its success.
The white ceramic plate carried by another helper arrived with two thick slices of well turned and fried challah that had been dipped in an egg/sugar/cinnamon/nutmeg mix, absorbed to its core and caramelized by hot steel to a wonderful crisp edge. A small stainless cup of maple syrup and a garnish of blueberries, raspberries & blackberries completed the colorful presentation.
It was an excellent breakfast. Between the french toast, coffee and berries it hit all the right notes. A third slice of F. T., and perhaps a little melted butter with the syrup, would have made it nearly perfect.
