Fist things first; the interactive knife and fork on the R-Gang Eatery website are a fun and distracting surprise if you go there for more information on this new Hillcrest restaurant. We grabbed brunch here this weekend and found a lot of fun things about R-Gang. (Actually their slogan, brought to you by owner Rich Sweeney, former contestant of Top Chef, is “Food and Fun refueled”)

 

Brunch in Hillcrest on the Sunday of Cityfest may not sound like a great idea, but we arrived at R-Gang Eatery and had no wait for a two-top overlooking the commotion on Fifth Ave. When we arrived, we took a couple of minutes to look over the menu outside and the host, watching us, said, “I’m just gunna dance on the stairs till you guys decide to come in.” We watched him dance for 10 seconds or so and then followed him inside. At our table I couldn’t help myself from saying out loud “This is so cute!” and he replied, “I know, right!”

It is very cute inside. Their website’s photos (and probably the ones I took for this post) don’t do it justice. From what I saw online before I went, I mistakenly thought it would be a very casual and no frills decor. It is actually warm and comfortable with a lot of color and great quality furniture and design. The waiters wear t-shirts that say things like “Gourmet without the ‘Tude”. The whole time I felt like I was at a close relatives house turned into a restaurant for the day. A very design conscious and hip relative. Try this place out and let me know if I’m wrong.

 

We liked that the menu was really straightforward with items like “Waffle”, “Pancakes” and “Eggs Breakfast”. My husband ordered the “Classic Benny” which turned out to be eggs benedict and I got a scramble. Both were simple and good.  The prices are similar to its neighbor the Hash House but don’t expect the same size portions. You might actually finish your meal here. They also have a bloody mary menu with some interesting variations on the drink. I ordered a grapefruit juice but I did snap a photo of our neighbors wild drink.

 

The patio out front was used as a beer (margarita) garden on the day of the festival but  there is normally seating there and I think it would be a great place to have dinner. I can’t believe I didn’t take a picture of it but there is a huge sign that says “FUN” out there and because I had such a great time (how could I not with that dancing host) I thought it was pretty perfect.