Gastronome

Bread + Butter

The interior of Bread + Butter is bright and open

The interior of Bread + Butter is bright and open

Breakfast haunts, I feel, always are in demand. Most places have lines out the door and wait times that can hit an hour or more on the weekend. So it was nice to stop in at Bread + Butter last weekend for brunch to see no line and plenty of open tables.

The only problem? I arrived close to 11 a.m., and breakfast had ended at 10. (Though I did manage to snag one Spam + Quail Egg Musubi.) A little miffed and confused about why any place would stop serving breakfast so early on a Saturday, I proceeded to order from the lunch menu.

As I placed my order at the counter and sat down at an open table, the atmosphere was enough to make me feel optimistic again.

It’s located near Ala Moana Center, in the spot previously occupied by Angelo Pietro. And though the general layout is similar, the room itself has a different feel. Gone are the dark carpet and covered windows. In their place is a bright, open, simple and modern room.

Spam + Quail Egg Musubi

Spam + Quail Egg Musubi

As I settled down at my table, I dug into the Spam + Quail Egg Musubi. It tasted exactly like … a Spam musubi. Don’t get me wrong — I love Spam musubis. It was just an anticlimactic introduction to Bread + Butter’s seemingly promising breakfast menu.

What I really wanted to try was the Breakfast Pizza, the Breakfast Burrito or the Red Bean + Brie Sandwich.

Still, I was hopeful, and it paid off. Out came the Prosciutto + Fig Pizza (or, as the cashier called it, the Pig + Fig). Deceptively simple, the crust had the right amount of crunch and chew, and dough-to-toppings ratio. Prosciutto and anything goes well together, and the addition of fig made it sweet and savory. I would have only preferred to have a more equal distribution of fig so that each bite would have that same balanced taste.

Prosciutto + Fig Pizza

Prosciutto + Fig Pizza

My brunch mate ordered the Lobster Bisque Mac + Cheese. As we waited, I asked, “Why would you order something so heavy before noon?” I wasn’t entirely wrong. It was an extremely rich dish with bits of succulent lobster mixed in. But it also was a surprisingly light sauce — that was while it was hot, before the cheese had a chance to cool and congeal.

I left forgetting I didn’t really sample any breakfast items. I’d definitely like to return for it at some point, but if I decide to sleep in and miss it again, well, I’d be OK with that, too.