42 N. Lattitude (Lincoln Sq.) Mother's Day Brunch: mixed

In the year or so that we've been living around the corner on Western, Lattitude has established itself in our routine as a reliably acceptable, family-friendly place for a weekend breakfast or lunch after playing in the park. It's spacious, which makes dining with kids easier, and service is always amiable, if not impeccable, and they have a kids menu.Sort of an archetype of the decent neighborhood joint.
With all that in mind, we decided that the $19.95 brunch they were advertising would suit us just fine in our quest for a relaxing, not too fancy place to take Mrs. B. without dressing up, traveling, or worrying too, too much about Master Ben's handling of silverware.
All in all, we got both what we paid for, and what we hoped for, but with a couple of irritating exceptions that left me wondering if it was them or me.
First the good:
The event was entirely buffet style and largely confined to things that actually work well that way---with the notable exception of waffles which turn to worn out kitchen sponges steaming away inside the warmer. (It should be noted, however, that this did not deter Master B. who made those limp specimens the cornerstone of his meal.)
There were decent bagels, and [i]mirabile dictu[i] a little toaster right on the buffet so that one could not only toast them to subjective perfection, but then race them back to the table still butter-melting, salmon-warming hot. (So many places put out bagels with no apparent intention for them to be toasted at all, which to me is like putting out a plate of raw aspaaragus or a blob of uncooked pizza dough on a buffet.)
With the bagels were a log of mild goat cheese.
Among the baked goods were slices of very decent apple/walnut bread pudding.
There was also decent (though I wouldn't swear it was made in-house) hummos, red-pepper hummos, and spin./artichoke dip with pita triangles.
A platter of smoked salmon sprinkled with capers was refreshed regularly.
Somewhat surprisingly, well-browned roasted potatoes managed to retain some salty, potato-y integrity, even in the warmer.
The headliner of the event was "herb-crusted prime rib" and it was carved to order, perfectly rare, tender and tasty.
Roasted zucchini and yellow squach were done just right. A bit of marinade or dressing would have helped.
A green salad with a bit of orange or cranberry and a nicely done lemon/poppy dressing was quite nice.

No omelet station, sixty-five mayo based salads. But very decent variety and quality for $20.
The neutral:
Scambled eggs, bacon, sliced ham, and sausage patties were absolutely standard breakfast fare. Nothing wrong with 'em. Nothing special.
Muffins, cinnamon rolls, and danish were edible but gave every impression of the type brought in for a mid-level corporate breakfast meeting. Scones were a mite better than that, but I was a bit surprised they couldn't do the baking themselves and do it a bit better.
The platter of sliced turkey, ham, salami, and cheese, was pure avg. deli tray fare.
There were wedges of quiche or frittata served room temp. Didn't try them.
Next to the prime rib as some "roast tomato basil bisque." Didn't try it either.

The Curious:
Mostly little things---the smoked salmon would have been much improved with some lemon wedges to use. Also, a bit of chopped onion and sliced tomato would have helped without cutting into their margins too significantly, I don't think.
The prime rib had no optional saucing or jus of any kind. As I said, it was quite tasty, but a bit of horseradish, or jus would have been a nice touch. As would a warm vegetable; even some plain spinach.
The pasta salad with roasted veg. was rendered null and void by gummy penne. So easy to get right, but so often wrong.

The "is it me" Bit:
I could be all wrong in this, and look forward to being schooled, even rebuked by the community. But, here goes:
The brunch was prix fixe.
Upon being seated we were presented with a special (dated, titled "Mother's Day Cocktails"--or something similar) card with 5 special drinks listed. No prices were listed anywhere.
Many brunches--even on non-holidays--will include a mimosa or bloody for the price, so when I saw the card with no prices I assumed this was part of the deal.
When the waitress asked if I would like to specify a vodka for my bloody, I took this as a bit of perfectly unobjectionable, soft upselling.
I said, no to the premium vodka because my feeling is that whatever the subtle virtues of expensive vodkas may be (and I'm not all that convinced they exist), they are certain to be obliterated by the addition of tomato juice, worcestershire, tabasco, lime juice, and horseradish.
So I was under the impression that I had ordered a cocktail included in my tab and made with house pour spirits.
Needless to say, when the check arrived we were charged for our 2 cocktails. Mine was listed on the tab as being Ketel One.
Now, the price for a Ketel One bloody was by no means out of line. It's just that I hadn't ordered one. (A separate issue is that the drink itself tasted of absolutely nothing but water. I mean really. Not even tomato, let alone seasoning or alcohol.)
I didn't complain; I just wasn't in a complaining vein.
But it does seem to me that if you're doing a pre-fixe event, and you hand out a special, event-specific drinks menu with no prices on it, you are strongly conveying the impression that the cocktails are inclusive.
So, gentle readers, is it me?
The final small glitch was the feeling of being rushed, but for no good reason. After we had barely finished most of our first plates, the waitress came by and asked if we would like dessert plates. As if we couldn't possibly be going back for seconds. After we said, no, just more entree plates, and we had had a bit more, she asked if we wanted the check. All this time the room was never over 60% full. She wasn't rude, but it seemed a tad pushy.

mrbarolo wrote:Many brunches--even on non-holidays--will include a mimosa or bloody for the price, so when I saw the card with no prices I assumed this was part of the deal.

I am not really sure which brunches that you have gone to have this practice, but in my experience (at NoMi, Ritz Carlton, Seasons, Peninsula, etc.), unless it is specifically mentioned in the menu that coffee, juice, tea, or a mimosa or a glass of champagne are complimentary, then I assume the reverse- that you pay for your beverages. It's also my personal practice to ask or confirm my assumption that beverages are complimentary or not, prior to ordering anything with liquor in it. I think it's appropriate and the server should be able to give you an answer.

The brunches I'm referring to are definitely more in the mid-range than those you mention which I would say are about as upper end as it gets.
Certainly one can ask (the question has come up in other threads regarding specials that are unpriced), and I always feel that the restaurant ought not to put that on you. For any number of reasons I'd prefer to be able to consider the price of something without advertising it. It seems to me that if specials or part of a menu are not priced, the etsblishment is very consciously forcing you to either suck it up, or announce to the server and assembled party that in some way (either poverty or parsimony) you are price sensitive. That seems to me to be bad hospitality on the part of what they like to call the "hospitality industry."

In my experience, the only $20 buffet I can say offhand comes with a drink is the brunch buffet at Reza's, which comes with one kinda weak mimosa. Other than that, all drinks above and beyond that are extra. Also, I just noticed the other day that the $15 "all you can eat AND DRINK" brunch is back at Joey's Brickhouse, which is worth the price of admission for sure. It's not great, but it's the only other brunch that I can think where you can drink yourself stupid for prix fixe at noon.

Generally, unless it's expressly written or said that a drink or multiple drinks are included in the price, I always assume that alcohol is an upsell. Special menu or not. Was it an oversight to not include the prices on the drinks menu? Yeah, it was. They were certainly lending assumptions.

But I do like Latitudes. I think they do all right, with a lot of good beers on their list for a decent price. That's what I'm looking for when we go out on Friday and want something in walking distance. We generally decend on Latitudes with no complaints.

whiskeybent wrote:Generally, unless it's expressly written or said that a drink or multiple drinks are included in the price, I always assume that alcohol is an upsell. Special menu or not. Was it an oversight to not include the prices on the drinks menu? Yeah, it was.

whiskeybent wrote:But I do like Latitudes.

Based on brunch, I still miss Square Kitchen.

nsxtasy wrote:

whiskeybent wrote:Generally, unless it's expressly written or said that a drink or multiple drinks are included in the price, I always assume that alcohol is an upsell. Special menu or not. Was it an oversight to not include the prices on the drinks menu? Yeah, it was.

whiskeybent wrote:But I do like Latitudes.

Based on brunch, I still miss Square Kitchen.

I still miss Bransfield's.

whiskeybent wrote:Also, I just noticed the other day that the $15 "all you can eat AND DRINK" brunch is back at Joey's Brickhouse, which is worth the price of admission for sure. It's not great, but it's the only other brunch that I can think where you can drink yourself stupid for prix fixe at noon.

Good to know... This is a great brunch for those who have patience and understanding. I've been to Joey's Brickhouse multiple times for their AYCE brunch and it really is hit or miss. Service. Food. Background Eye Candy(On one visit, they had a DVD of the movie, "Old School" playing and the bare chested females were not well received by the adjacent tables with children). That being said, I've enjoyed every visit as long as I keep in mind that every dish does not knock it out of the park consistently and that the service at Joey's Brickhouse would be acceptable in many southern states, where the pace is a lot more relaxed. And the $12 AYCE brunch was a deal when you had to fork over $1 for each drink. When the $15 admission fee allows you the opportunity to get stupid drunk to start your day, it can't be denied. I'll definitely be back.