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Porchetta Eggs Benedict from Via

Porchetta Eggs Benedict from Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Porchetta Eggs Benedict from Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA
The most recent Foodies adventure, took us to Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, to enjoy their newly released brunch menu. The popular restaurant, known for its Italian comfort food, added Sunday Brunch as part of their menu a little over a month ago. With and extensive menu from appetizers, main courses, and a number of brunch cocktails, you must check out Via Brunch as soon as you can!

This past Sunday was the absolute perfect day to be outside on the Via patio. The warm, morning sun was shining in, and a slight breeze allowed us Foodies to sit comfortably with the windows open. For starters, we split the House Made Zeppole, warm Italian donuts, fried to order and tossed in cinnamon sugar. Think Dunkin Donuts munchkins, but much better! We also shared a Smoked Salmon Plate, which was absolutely amazing! If you like smoked salmon, this is an appetizer I would highly recommend. The crunchy and buttery Tuscan well paired well with the crisp, red onions, capers and mustard sauce. Top that all off with thinly sliced, smoked salmon and you have a delightfully, satisfying and savory appetizer. My drink of choice was a Mimosa, and as much as I love this signature breakfast cocktail, I do wish I opted for the Flight of Bubbles; a sampling of Bellini and Mimosa options with different fruit juices was beautifully displayed, and seemed a better bang for your buck at $13, than a single champagne glass Mimosa for $10.

For my main course, it was easy to decide on the Porchetta Eggs Benedict. For one, I have never really had eggs Benedict, but my love for poached eggs, drew me to this breakfast staple. I had also heard some really great things about how it looked from some photographer friends that had taken pictures of the feast not too long ago. The shaved porchetta was served over grilled Tuscan bread, local poached eggs and a lemon pepper aioli. The entire dish was also drizzled with this wonderful, rich gravy that really pulled all of the flavors together. The porchetta almost took on a shaved steak flavor with the gravy and the Tuscan bread was so delicious! I love any type of aioli anyway too, but the lemon pepper flavor definitely replaced what normally would be hollandaise quite nicely. The dish was heavy and as I would normally recommend sharing, I couldn’t stop eating it.

The wait staff was friendly and attentive. They handled all requests and order promptly and with much enthusiasm, especially given we had a large party. At Via you certainly come to expect a certain level of service and professionalism, and they did not disappoint. With their hearty portions, and an array of different menu options, bring and appetite and grab a group of friends when you come to Via brunch!

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Brunch: Salmon Salad from Via on Shrewsbury Street

Salmon Salad from Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Salmon Salad from Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

The latest Foodies gathering was Sunday morning brunch at Via Italian Table on Shrewsbury Street. It is unusual for us to get together for brunch but certainly a nice change. We were seated on the patio which made for a wonderful experience, the weather was magnificent with warm sunshine and a nice breeze.

I have not been to Via in quite some time and had never enjoyed brunch there so I was looking forward to seeing what changes had been made and how the brunch menu would be constructed. Being that it was brunch I opted to start with a Smoking Mary – Via’s take on a Bloody Mary. Mixed with Tito’s vodka and Dow’s 10 year Port, the drink was satisfying but not as rich and bold as other Bloody Mary’s I have had, but it certainly did the trick.

The entree list was extensive, and nothing was perfectly “traditional” (which is fine by me). Via added some little twists that made the dishes a bit more adventurous, French Toast Casserole, Porchetta Eggs Benedict, Bacon Egg and Cheese served on an Italian Baguette and other nice changes. For my meal I chose the Salmon Salad. The meal was served with a huge piece of perfectly grilled salmon, light and flaky, along with fresh avocado, corn, cherry tomatoes, zucchini ribbons, mixed greens and homemade pesto. Interestingly there was not any dressing per se added to the salad allowing for the ingredient combination and pesto to mix in a wonderful fresh, light and delicate manner.

My dining partner and I shared a hash brown cake, which we asked to be served extra crispy. When it arrived we added some salt and a little hot sauce (a must) and we had the perfect side dish to eat with meals.

When I was done, I felt satisfied but not stuffed, a great way to start a wonderful Sunday morning!

Overall brunch at Via Italian Table was fantastic. The patio is a wonderful place to enjoy a meal, the food itself was outstanding and the service was very good. I look forward to enjoy brunch here again, hopefully very soon!