There’s nothing subtle about Crack’D, an out-of-the-box brunch spot in the Lower Garden District.
From the splashes of egg-yolk yellow inside and out to the cracked egg logo and dining room disco ball, the restaurant is proudly playful. Mismatched china adds a touch of homespun charm to the bold scheme.
Opened in March in the space formerly occupied by The Munch Factory, the latest restaurant from the locally owned OnePack Hospitality Group has attracted a perpetually crowded dining room.
The hospitality group counts four iterations of Legacy Kitchen, Mr. Ed’s Oyster Bar & Fish House on Carrollton Avenue and The Vintage coffee and wine café in its portfolio. Mid-City native Bernard Stolberg leads OnePack, with a track record of propelling Creole Cuisine Restaurant Concepts into major growth.
Joshua Wetshtein, who spent a decade opening restaurants across the globe for chef/restaurateur Wolfgang Puck, is the company’s culinary director. Ash Salem and Raouf Mousa of RAR Investments also are partners in Crack'D.
Chef de cuisine Shelby Van Hoose, working closely with Wetshtein, offers a menu that tweaks the classics. The restaurant is going pork-free, so its maple-lacquered, peppered bacon is made from local duck. It is delivered in a dramatic presentation, suspended by clothespins along with sprigs of rosemary. Then it is torched at the table to caramelize all those flavors with a flare of drama.
“It is a social media world we live in,” Stolberg says. “Anything we can take to the next level, we want to do that.”
While not as dramatic, rosti is a great starter to share. It features a lattice of grated and fried potatoes topped with a layer of chive crème, smoked salmon and crispy fried capers for crunch. Another option is the decadent Bienville shrimp casserole, a bake of gooey Swiss and Gruyere cheeses with Gulf shrimp and mushrooms, served with toasted crostini on the side for dipping.
There also are lemon ricotta pancakes and bananas Foster pain perdue. Acadian Assets is one of four Benedicts options, and it includes smoked brisket, poached eggs, fried green tomatoes and crawfish cream sauce on biscuits. A riff on chicken and waffles is a glazed fried chicken thigh with hot maple syrup, served in a waffle cone.
There is a club sandwich with pastrami, a double American cheeseburger and mac and cheese topped with Crystal fried crawfish tails and crispy Brussels sprouts. Shakshuka, the North African specialty, bathes baked eggs and goat cheese in a spiced tomato sauce, served with toasted sourdough.
Avocado toast gets a Latin spin with slices of radish and Cotija cheese and poblano crème layered on ancient grains toast, with a fried egg on top.
On the pastry side, one winner is the skillet of warm pull-apart monkey bread oozing salted caramel and cinnamon sugar, a Midwest favorite that is right at home in the Gulf South.
“I hear all the time, ‘This was amazing, but not exactly what I expected,’” Wetshtein says. “That’s exactly what we are going for.”
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And what would brunch be without bubbles? There are bottomless mimosas for $25, as well as fun brunch cocktails like a cold brew-tini and a blood orange mezcal Paloma.
Don’t expect diner prices — a basket of croissants, muffins and biscuits is $18 — but the entrees are in keeping with the local market. Shrimp and grits are $21; avocado toast is $16; and $15 brings three eggs with merguez sausage, duck bacon and hash browns.
Although the concept seems built to replicate, Stolberg is taking his time.
“We just opened in March, and we have the summer ahead of us,” he says. “We want to have things going smoothly before we make any moves.”
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