Sunday brunch can be a tricky thing. The motivation to hail a cab and go downtown to indulge in real food at one of the many area brunch venues is limited on a lazy weekend morning. A trip to Jones, Stephen Starr's retro diner, is well worth the effort and cab fare.
Jones does not take brunch reservations for good reason -- "Don't worry about it. No one gets up that early," said the woman on the phone when I called for a 12:15 reservation. Brunch is served from 10:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and it seems she was right -- we were seated promptly upon arrival, but the bleary-eyed people who came in not thirty minutes later waited on a steadily growing line.
The food, on the other hand, is in complete harmony. Stephen Starr is good at knowing what his patrons expect from a meal, and true to Starr form, our meal was just what brunch should be. The mushrooms in my mushroom and cheddar omelet ($7.50) were sliced perfectly thin, and I couldn't help but imagine the person who took the time to do this just for me. The spinach and feta omelet ($7.00) that my housemate enjoyed was equally delicious, and both of us were delighted that the home fries that came with our eggs were not soggy, as they are at another brunch venue we regularly frequent in West Philly. The third member of our party enjoyed her cobb salad with chicken, crispy smoked bacon, blue cheese and avocado ($10.75). Her one complaint was that a few pieces of lettuces were starting to brown, due to its probable pre-packagedness.
To start your meal -- and your morning -- off on the right foot, the waitress will hand you their extensive bar menu along with the one with brunch fare. We stuck with coffee in sleek glass mugs, thankyouverymuch.
