NYC: Brunch at Birds & Bubbles (CLOSED) – Lower East Side

Update: Birds & Bubbles is closed

On Sunday, we went for brunch at Birds & Bubbles, which is a cute little place in Lower East Side. The entrance is one stair down, so you don’t really see it from the street, and if I hadn’t known it was there, I would probably have walked right by.

Birds & Bubbles has this gorgeous backyard patio, but for some reason, we were seated inside the restaurant in a dark, completely empty room.

We asked whether outdoor-seating was available, and after a couple of minutes they found a table for us upstairs on the patio instead. We had a reservation, and there were only a few other guests on the patio, so I really don’t understand why they didn’t just offered us one of the outdoor tables to start with.

Birds & Bubbles specializes in champagne and southern food, and the most raved-about items on their menu are the fried chicken dishes. Now if you ask me, fried chicken is always a good idea, so even though I had fried chicken last Sunday on Sylvia’s, I decided to have the waffle fried chicken with smoked cinnamon sugar, which went under the funny name “Birdies in a Blanket.”

Ehsan and Sue both had the Chicken & Egg Biscuit, and instead of champagne, we went for a more affordable bottle of Italian bubbles. My chicken was perfectly fried and very crispy, but I’m not sure I would order it again, as the cinnamon-chicken combo was a bit too sweet for my taste. Both Sue and Ehsan really liked their chicken biscuit, and when I had a taste of it, I regretted that I hadn’t ordered that instead. The devilled egg sauce and the fried chicken was a perfect match. It was crunchy, tangy and very delicious, and it came with a salad on the side, so even though the biscuit doesn’t look that big, it was actually more than enough.

While Sylvia’s is traditional southern food, Birds & Bubbles has a more contemporary take on things, so you can’t really compare the two places, but if forced to choose, I think I’m more of an old-school, Sylvia’s-kind-of-chicken-person. Though this doesn’t mean than I wouldn’t go back to Birds & Bubbles.

The location is adorable (at least if you get a table outside) and even though the staff wasn’t overly friendly, they were attentive and accommodating. I also like that they call their seafood dishes “Chicken of the Sea” *lol*, and I can only imagine how cozy that beautiful patio is after dark, when Birds & Bubbles is open for dinner.

Birds & Bubbles is now permanently closed, but if you are looking for southern food in New York City I suggest that you check out Clinton Street Baking Company (Lower East Side) or Sylvia’s or Red Rooster (both in Harlem)