Five Points

31 Great Jones Street
New York, NY 10012
(212) 253-5700
website

Unlike many other brunch places- particularly highly recommended ones- Five Points takes reservations.  That is definitely one of their good points- and they have many more than just 5.  I know I’m corny but oh well.  The odd thing is though… this place is not in or near Five Points (so if you’ve seen Gangs of New York, calm down, I’m guessing it’s not related). 

  
 
top – 3 eggs baked in a crock; lemon ricotta pancakes; french toast over almond custard
bottom – pulled chicken with poached eggs; eggs benedict, Five Points-style

Honestly, I didn’t pay attention to anyone else’s food- just my own- because I was so consumed with eating it.  I had the eggs benedict, Five Points-style (which was not the name on the menu, but that’s what it equated to)… so freaking yummy.  Apparently, Five Points makes all of its own sausage, so my lemon-sage-rosemary sausage (patty) underneath poached eggs, a special sauce, on top of a homemade biscuit, was really delicious.  The potatoes were not crispy, but super flavorful and soft, with just the right bite from chopped onions interspersed throughout. 

I do point out here that since I’ve made my own sausage before I was not at all impressed that they’d made a sausage patty for me… but then I noticed I was the only one who had sausage patties as part of my dish.  Everyone else had links, so if they make that, that’s pretty cool (since I’ve watched that being made on TV, and it looks a bit harder, well, labor intensive and time consuming than just making patties). 

I heard nothing but good things when we went around the table and described our dishes; most, if not all of us, would definitely go back.  Drinks were a little pricy at about $8 a cocktail, but yummy nonetheless.  I love the fact that they take reservations as well, since brunch places tend to be packed (this place was busy and full, though not that many people waiting, but perhaps because they’d made reservations?) and the wait can be extremely tiresome (I’m already waking up early to eat brunch in the city, now I have to wait on top of it? = one grumpy girl).  The atmosphere was a bit loud, but normal for a brunch place in the city; the waterfall/trough running in the middle of the restaurant, ending in a spout that poured off (see picture, left), was a very nice touch. 

Yvo says: Try it.  Like it.  Enjoy it.  It’s good, yummy food for a decent price (main dishes ran around $10-12), and a sunny atrium in the back where you can watch them cook while you sit and enjoy your food, the sun… or sit out front, and people watch… any way you slice it, you’ll like this place. 
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