#98 – PORK ‘N’ EGGS at PAPACITOS BROOKLYN

Once again Time Out New York released their Top 100 Dishes of the year and once again, I’m going to eat my way through every one. And no price point or subway delay will stop me. In no particular order, here’s my take on their Top 100.

When I think of breakfast, I think of an early morning meal. This is part of the reason I rarely eat it, since I tend to sleep as late as possible. Brunch is different, since it lasts well into the afternoon. But, in my mind, breakfast should be finished by around 11 or 12, don’t you think?

So I was shocked to discover that Papacitos doesn’t even open for breakfast until 11am. Their breakfast is served from 11am-4pm. To me, that’s well in to the brunch arena, except this “breakfast” is only available Monday through Friday. On the weekends the food is called brunch and the menu is different, but the hours are the same. I could understand if this were a Breakfast All Day type of place (like a diner), but the meal is only served until 4pm. What happens when you have a craving for huevos rancheros at 7pm??

The Pork ‘n’ Eggs is only served at breakfast (which, to recap is Mon-Fri only, 11am-4pm) and because of the wacky serving hours, it made it difficult for us to obtain. When we finally made it to Greenpoint on a Friday afternoon, we began to understand that Papacitos doesn’t play by anybody’s rules except their own. It’s a surprisingly spacious restaurant (strange for New York City), decorated with blue paint (usually a no-no for restaurants), and serving Mexican street food in a diner-like setting.

I got a choice on how I wanted my eggs cooked and while I normally choose scrambled, Time Out mentioned the “molten poached eggs”, so I decided to take their recommendation. The plate was rather full with lots of accoutrements, including a few warm pieces of tortilla for wrapping, some red rice, black beans, stewed pork, and it was all topped with two poached eggs.

The eggs themselves were on the smaller side and came dangerously close to being nothing more than a garnish. They were also way overcooked with the yolks being dry and practically hardboiled. Not to mention they were bland.

But as I mixed the eggs together with the rest of the components, some flavors started coming to life. I especially liked the smoky, salty red rice and the crunchy bits of charred peppers and onions. The pork was stewed and tender, with nice earthy, peppery flavors.

It was a decent Mexican breakfast, but the easiest things to cook should have been the eggs and that was what held this dish back. Maybe I should have gotten them scrambled after all.

Or maybe the problem was the breakfast chefs had left for the day. If I was a breakfast chef, I’d expect to be finished with my shift way before 4pm.

Would Papacitos Brooklyn’s Pork ‘n’ Eggs make my Top 100 of the year? There were some good, filling flavors, but nothing special or unique that you can’t get from other Mexican fast food joints. The eggs were a fail and that’s what keeps this dish to a 6 out of 10.