Like Archimedes, I am crying “Eureka!” And like Archimedes, the outcry is caused by the unexpected finding of what I didn’t realize I was looking for.
And what is that? A platonic, perfect eggs Benedict. We found them at Balaban’s on Clarkson Road in Chesterfield, part of a small but carefully curated buffet brunch. No woeful existence in a chafing dish over steam or a Sterno can for these darlings. They’re made to order in the kitchen behind the omelet station. The English muffin is fresh and warm, the Canadian bacon not dried out, the egg poached when you order it, and the hollandaise sauce is exquisite, sharp and buttery at the same time, a satin coverlet over the top, accessorized with a shower of chives. Even at home, it’s tricky to get Bennies to the table much beyond room temperature – it’s easy to overtoast the muffin and overcook the bacon, the hollandaise will separate if it’s kept too warm or clump up if cold, and poaching eggs a skill that few of us have mastered, truth be told. So this is a wonderful treat indeed.
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Yes, there’s roasted beef tenderloin, nicely rare, and the omelet station – and let me remind you that that’s also where most spots can also offer up some over-easies if that’s what calls to you. Excellent, un-soggy bacon and fat link sausages await, and potatoes O’Brien with bits of onion and sweet pepper. There’s also strata, the layers of egg and bread, here with sausage as well, a sort of savory bread pudding. Good biscuits, good gravy.
The table for cold food is headed up by very large shrimp, firm and sweet. A couple of pasta salads are nicely zingy, and here, too is fresh fruit and some potato salad.
Beyond are the sweets. At first glance, it seems to be merely Danish pastries and mini-muffins. But pay attention to that chafing dish. Inside is French toast. Slices of French bread are battered and fried. Just a dribble of syrup is all that’s needed, no ocean of sweet. The batter is a little crunchy, nuggets of what seemed to be ground-up nuts in it.
But owner Steve McIntyre says, no, no nuts. The batter has a little bourbon and a tiny bit of pepper in it. McIntyre suggests siding it with a final piece of the bacon, and while I’m usually a sausage person with my pancakes or waffles, I tried both, and he’s right. It’s the bacon that works best.
Lunchier items are headed up with a beef pot pie – sometimes it’s chicken, we understand – with a biscuit crust (above).
The fish was an Alaskan halibut (right) not your run-of-the-mill stuff found on many similar tables – it was amusing to hear a parent announce that her tween had had three servings of it, and good on the young lady, clearly a promising Eater. And there was a pulled pork that was moist and zesty, quite good, although not smoked. (One wonders about it as the base for a poached egg and a ladleful of that hollandaise….)
Naturally, there’s wine available after 11 a.m., and they’re offering 2-ounce pours from various high-end wines at special prices, if that’s your interest. There’s a contraption called a Coravin that allows wine to be removed from bottles without opening them, which is what they’re using to keep the good stuff fresh.
Good coffee, great service – and the Benedict is brought to your table, by the way, no hanging around waiting for it.
Balaban’s
1772 Clarkson
Chesterfield
636-449-6700
Mon – Thu: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Fri – Sat: 11 a.m. – 10:30 p.m.
Sunday brunch: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
