London goes Latin

I first noticed El Vergel on a summer Sunday, as live music and happy diners spilled onto the street from this colourful corner cafe. I didn’t get a chance to visit until yesterday, when I went to try their new(ish) brunch menu with two old friends.  I loved the place as soon as I arrived.

The menu is packed with my favourite dishes and ingredients  – chorizo, salsa piquante, empanadas and avocado – and the bright walls and Latin music reminded me of fun cafes I visited in South America (although the menu is mainly Mexican). I got REALLY excited. This was it! My brunch place! I cancelled every Sunday plan I’d made, immediately imagining El Vergel as the centre of my social life from now on. That artful pile of baskets really did something to me.

Fresh salsa piquante, lined up and ready to be spooned over eggs. What could be better?

El Vergel’s village bread, similar to an English muffin.

I ordered the Special Latin American breakfast – scrambled eggs in a mild piquant sauce with chorizo, kidney beans, village bread and coffee.

It was… nice. The bread was soft and still warm. The chorizo was nicely spicy but a bit sparse. The eggs were good, but the mild piquant sauce couldn’t have been milder. My friend ordered the same dish but with fried eggs, and they certainly had been fried – probably for about 20 minutes. Yolks like rocks. It was all fine, but the final dish didn’t live up to the lively surroundings and exciting menu. I mentally cancelled the wedding booking and vowed to continue the search for my perfect brunch joint.

El Vergel, you’re too nice not to give a second chance, but you didn’t blow me away like I’d hoped.

El Vergel, 132 Webber Street, London, SE1 0QL.
Brunch with coffee and juice, under £10

Porridge. Sounds boring, doesn’t it?

I don’t get excited about breakfast. It takes a while for my stomach to wake up, so I usually force down some plain Oatsosimple made with water or half muesli, half plan oats. Basically, bland fuel to see me through until lunchtime.

I spotted these two-minute simple twists on porridge (OK, oatmeal) on one of my favourite blogs, A Beautiful Mess. Elsie’s been blogging about fashion and DIY for ages and has now added a food section too.  I love her styling – look how pretty she makes porridge!

Breakfast today was a porridge with a spoon of cashew butter and a spoon of damson jam stirred through. That all-America PB&J combo. I never would have thought of doing that in a million years, but it was absolutely delicious. I can’t wait to try out the baked oatmeal recipes when my hunger allows 30 mins preparation time rather than two.