Another day... Another Brunch of course 😀
Last Sunday, my friend and I decided to give a try to the famous Braun Notes Coffee that I was seeing on every Instagram page. What really caught my eye on the first place was the really unique presentation of the granola inside of a coconut. Moreover, the pictures were really appetizing so we decided to brunch there on Sunday.
The place is located nearby the Saint Lazare Train Station, a district which tend to be really dead on the weekends since most of the shops are closed, and since it's quite a shopping and business oriented area, Parisians don't really go to there to have a walk on the weekends.
Despite that, I find it quite nice to be able to brunch in this area, because the neighbourhood has a pretty architecture, with a direct view on the Church of Holy Trinity and not far from the Notre Dame de Lorette neighbourhood which is really worth seeing. Not to mention it's on the way to go to the Sacré Cœur.
And if you want to please your shopping addiction (like I do 😜), Galeries Lafayette and Printemps department stores are now open on Sundays !
But let's focus on our experience on the Brunch, because that's why you are reading this (I suppose haha) after all, shall we ?
The restaurant is quite small, but I was expecting it to be even smaller since some places in Paris can
be very tiny, so I was pleasently surprised.
They have about 4 tables for 2 people each on the terrasse outside, and inside, they have a variation of small bar style tables and a big table in the center.
We arrived at 11:00 AM (quite early for us to brunch), since the place is not very spacious, and we did well because when we left, people were queuing outside waiting for a free table.
This place offers two brunch menus as you can see below :
My friend and I chose the fullest menu : Le Brunch Gourmand at 18€ (around £17 and $21)
- The Hot Drinks
We both decided to order a flat white. My friend ordered a classic one and I ordered a Soy milk one. As I'm kind of intolerant to milk, I always ask for the vegan option on the menu.
I know for a fact that the pretty drawing baristas make on your lattes can't be done on a vegan latte because vegan milk has a lot less fat in it, which doesn't allow the foam to form properly, and I'm completely ok with that.
When the waitress brought us our coffees, I was quite surprised by the fact my flat white was looking exactly like the one my friend ordered (with traditional milk). So I asked the waitress and she told me it was not vegan.. And brought me another one. I was quite disappointed by this, because, imagine my intolerance to milk was really really bad, and that I wasn't aware of the milk drawing thing, I could have been sick..
When the waitress came back with my vegan latte, the foam was still there, and was getting dryer and thicker as time went by. It really looked like to me that the barista had kept the foam on top of my old latte to put it on top of the new soy milk one, and honestly, I found that strange.
- The Juices
My friend wanted to order a lemon juice but the staff told her it was actually a lemonade with sugar in it. Since she doesn't like sugary drinks, we both went for the Orange Juice option, which was supposed to be a 100% home-made pure orange juice.
Unfortunately, when we drank the juice, we realized it had been mixed with water and sugar.. too bad.
- The Toasts
The Salmon toast was good, it had a generous slice of salmon on top of a cream cheese and herbs spread on a whole wheat toasted bread.
Unfortunately, the avocado toast was not up to my expectations. I absolutely love avocados, I could eat them every single day if I could, so I was really hopping to enjoy a good avo toast at this brunch, since it's quite a simple recipe to do.
First of all, the avocado had been blended in a mixer, and I really prefer when the avocado is a bit smashed so that you still can enjoy its texture.
Then, it was loaded in lemon juice and paprika and still happened to be tasteless. To be honest, I felt like the toast was made with non ripe avocados, which were blended to be creamier and the lemon had been added to be able to keep it longer in the fridge without turning brown.
There was a poached egg on top of the toast which was perfectly cooked and runny as I like it.
- The Granola Bowl
I had so many expectations about this bowl and was so enthusiastic to the idea of being able to eat the coconut after eating the granola, but once again I was disappointed 😞
The granola in itself was good but nothing spectacular, it was more like a yoghurt with some fruits and a mint leaf, which actually added freshness to it and was quite pleasing.
There wasn't a lot of granola, and it was soft because it was soaking in the yoghurt. I expect granola to be crunchier, but it wasn't that bothering.
My friend and I noted that each coconut was very different in size and some people had way bigger coconut than we did, which meant more granola yoghurt.. Since we each pay the same price, it's quite frustrating.
The final disappointment was that the coconut was so hard I could not eat it 😖 . I love coconut and was so happy to the idea of being able to eat it after my granola.. But I couldn't. My friend achieved to cut a little piece of coconut but it was tasteless since it was obviously not ripe enough to be eaten.
Overall
I would not say that this place is bad, overall the meal was good but it was lacking some things to be really good. I'm really used to going brunching, it's a thing I do really often and my expectations are quite high. I like good quality food.
Yes, the brunch is "only 18€" which is quite inexpensive for a Parisian Brunch Menu, but I wouldn't mind paying a bit more for products with a higher quality.
To me it feels like a lot of efforts have been made to give a very cozy and welcoming feeling to the place, and give this Instagram vibe we all like, but the quality of the food has been a little bit put aside.
Here are the thing I would change to improve this Brunch :
- Serving 100% orange juice, and lemon juice, which is different from lemonade. To me a "juice" is a "juice" and not a sugary preparation with water, lemon and sugar.
- Being more generous on the avocado toasts, with good portion and more flavours
- Choosing edible coconuts or changing the presentation, because yes It gave me a very Instagram worthy picture, but what's the point if I can't eat it after all
- Being a little more careful when serving vegan drinks
I know my article may seem a bit harsh but I really wanted to give you my honest opinion about it. The brunch was not bad, it was good but more like average good.
I would be pleased to go back if some changes were made, but for the moment I will try some other places.
The food is really nicely presented and you will be able to make great photos (everybody was taking shots of their food in this place, it's an Instagram paradise haha)
Useful information :
Braun Notes Coffee
31-33 Rue de Mogador, 75009 Paris
Find it on the Food Map
Mon-Fri : 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM / Sat-Sun : 9:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Let me know if you tried this place, I would love to know what you think about it !
Have a great day
xx
Lucie
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