PLATED: NEW AMERICAN FLAIR

Zeitgeist Brunch Redefines Contemporary Comfort Food

Story and photography by Dennis Kempton

Brunch. That delightful and quaint portmanteau that dresses up the weekend and makes it perfectly acceptable to get up late, probably after sleeping off a night of music, dancing and wine, and eat in the blurry zone between breakfast and lunch. And do it while drinking more alcohol.

Brunch is a big deal in the Zenith City. It’s become a culture unto itself up and down Superior Street and expanding out from its epicenter downtown. Once confined to special events like Easter or Mother’s Day and made up of tame fare not unlike what we already have on hand at home, brunch in Duluth has its own rich flavors, locally-sourced ingredients, and a vibe of granola — literally and figuratively — as well as a flair for original coolness.

Zeitgeist Arts Café, at 222 E. Superior St., is definitely a brunch destination. When the restaurant opened, it began to transform the downtown landscape. It was a restaurant with big-city looks and local appeal for young professionals and artists who had a gnawing hunger for something a little bit more. And they got it.

The brunch menu at Zeitgeist is one of my favorites in the city. It’s light and flavorful. And it features a contemporary twist on an old favorite of mine: rosemary or bacon cheddar biscuits and a sage-maple sausage gravy that’s so good, it’ll make you slap your grandma, as my southern relatives would say. But this time, I took a road less traveled. Since the restaurant just recently rolled out a new brunch menu, I decided on the Chorizo & Eggs. A lot on the brunch entrée menu has a Latin influence, which isn’t a bad thing.

Sunday at 11:30 in the morning seems to be peak brunch time in Duluth. The restaurant was full, and there was music on the main floor — nothing distracting, but a nice backdrop. I was taken upstairs and seated promptly. The interior of Zeitgeist is modern, bright and urban. Local art from featured artists brings to the tone a comfortable local temperature. It’s a far cry from the days when this was once the Red Lion — a rowdy bar that most definitely did not serve a Croque Monsieur Benedict.

My entrée was set before me within 20 minutes of arriving. Not bad for a full house populated with a diverse and hungry clientele: everyone from young parents with kids to 20-somethings in t-shirts and shorts laughing over last night’s adventures, to older sophisticates catching up with friends over drinks and plates of colorful food.

The chorizo, sourced from Northern Waters Smokehaus, was vibrant and smoky, with just enough spice to complement and give life to the rice and black beans. The rice was tender and each grain distinct. Rice is a staple food for billions of people in the world, but many of us struggle with cooking it. The rice and beans were joined by that hearty of Mexican cheeses, Cotija — a salty cheese popular in Mexican-American cuisine. It’s an ideal flavoring for rice and beans and tostadas. The pickled red onion balanced the spice and textures of the chorizo and beans with a much-needed sweetness.

Sunny-side up eggs are usually not a favorite of mine, usually because the whites can render a bit slimy and the yolks are runny and cool, since the tops of the eggs don’t directly touch the heat of a skillet. The trick is to cook the eggs slowly over medium heat so the whites set, and the yolks cook to a velvety consistency. That’s what I got at Zeitgeist — perhaps the best sunnyside up eggs I’ve had in a decade, gently cooked and topped with a Gruyere hollandaise, just enough hollandaise to satisfy and still leave me wanting a little more. Creamy avocado slices, another ingredient originating from Mexico, and micro cilantro pair with everything in this dish for a beautifully composed bite. All of this, by the way, is served atop a fried tostada for a satisfying salty crunch.

The rest of the brunch menu is filled with things that are familiar but with a New American twist, which means a heavy confluence of European and Latin notes — distinctly new America: braised Minnesota-raised pork belly with green chili sauce is on the same menu as Challah French Toast, and a Vegan Toastada features veracruz sauce, falafel and cumin tortilla chips. This is not your old-fashioned “ladieswho-brunch” fare, and it’s served at prices fair to the market and composed by executive chef Matthew Lyons with an eye toward expanding the palate as much as it is meant to be comfort food for a new generation of Duluthians. Zeitgeist Arts Café appeals to those who value innovation as much as they insist on a consistently excellent dining experience. When you can pull that together and pull in such a diverse group of people on a Sunday morning, you’ve got “it.” v