A love letter to poached eggs – brunch at Zaftig’s Delicatessen

I’m a sucker for poached eggs. Piercing the yolks with your knife. Sliding down the plate like the ooze of a lazy, ruptured sun. Top it with even more yolk in the form of Hollandaise, slide a velvety slice of smoked salmon underneath. Cut, and at the bottom is a fried potato pancake. A bit of green from spinach leaves, a side of good hash browns, prettified by a round of pale orange cantaloupe. The menu calls its Empire Eggs.

It’s even better if you split the chocolate french toast with your friend, so you have something sweet at the same time. The raspberry sauce clings to the skin in fuchsia strips. Drown it in syrup. It’s good.

Since I visited Coolidge Corner staple Zaftig’s right after a snowstorm, there wasn’t the usual 1 hour wait. My friend and I only had to chat about Hollywood talent agencies for ten minutes before being seated and being fed a complimentary nibble of bagel chips. Thanks, Yelp, for the empire eggs rec – fan-bloody-tastic. Zaftig’s is a nice bit of local flavor, and a delicious, casual, diet-unfriendly brunch.