French toast: Five great riffs on a brunch classic in NYC

Whether you want French toast with challah bread, brioche, sourdough or a version with panettone, we have the right sweet brunch dish for you.

By Laren Spirer Tue May 29 2012

The best brunch in NYC 2012: Your guide to a late breakfast

  • Photograph: Jakob N. Layman

    PB&J pain perdu at Recette

  • Photograph: Alex Strada

    Panettone French toast at Saint Austere

  • Joseph Leonard

  • Photograph: Paul Wagtouicz

    Sourdough French toast with roasted cinnamon-apple butter at North End Grill

Photograph: Jakob N. Layman

PB&J pain perdu at Recette

These superior versions of French toast may use a variety of bread, but they’re all uniquely, sweetly delicious brunch plates.

PB&J pain perdu at Recette

Recette

  • Price band: 4/4

Chef Jesse Schenker tinkers with the classic for his PB&J pain perdu. His pillowy treat features a three-inch-thick wedge of Sullivan Street brioche stuffed with a swirl of creamy peanut butter and grape jam. He serves the fried confection in a pool of sweetened condensed milk laced with Earl Grey tea, plus a cluster of sugar-dusted berries arranged on top. $12.

  1. 328 W 12th St, (at Greenwich St)
Book online
Mushroom and ricotta kreplach at Kutsher's Tribeca

Kutsher’s Tribeca

  • Price band: 2/4
  • Critics choice

Certain hard-line brunchers will tell you that challah is as essential to French toast as rye bread is to a pastrami sandwich. Skeptics may be persuaded by the version at Kutsher’s. Hefty slices of light and eggy challah arrive topped with a mix of strawberries, raspberries and blueberries, a sprinkling of powdered sugar and a dollop of whipped cream. Amp up the sweetness with the maple syrup and tangy berry compote that’s served alongside. $16.

  1. 186 Franklin St, (between Greenwich and Hudson Sts), 10013
Book online
Panettone French toast at Saint Austere

The Saint Austere

  • Price band: 1/4

Swapping out traditional bread for a hunk of panettone—a sweet Italian loaf studded with candied citrus peel and raisins, usually served at Christmas—gives this adaptation a cottony, ethereal texture. Chef Gary Comstock rounds out the sugary toast with a few savory touches: cayenne-spiced pecan butter and crunchy bits of fried prosciutto. $10.

  1. 613 Grand St, (between Lorimer and Leonard Sts), 11211
More info
French toast at Joseph Leonard

Joseph Leonard

  • Rated as: 4/5
  • Price band: 2/4
  • Critics choice

Two custardy slabs of egg-battered brioche are bookended by a generous smear of Nutella underneath and coins of sliced banana on top. A flurry of powdered sugar and a dousing of floral honey finish the whole gently crisped package. $13.

  1. 170 Waverly Pl, (at Grove St)
More info
Sourdough French toast with roasted cinnamon-apple butter at North End Grill

North End Grill

  • Price band: 2/4
  • Critics choice

A two-inch-thick piece of Sullivan Street sourdough is the humble canvas for this simple and satisfying French toast revision. Chef Floyd Cardoz advances the classic with the addition of his house-made roasted cinnamon-apple butter—a rich and fragrant spread stuffed into the center of each golden slice. $17.

  1. 104 North End Ave, (at Murray St)
Book online

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