Erin Jackson
Good Time Design really nailed it with The Blind Burro. From lunch, to happy hour, to dinner, and even a take on dim sum (small plates served table-side, on a cart), this little donkey knows how to deliver a good time. Two of the newest additions to the property near PETCO Park include the recently opened Cat Eye Club, a not-so-secret speakeasy-themed bar accessible through a back door (or a dedicated side entrance on 7th Ave), and a brunch menu.
I sampled several different items on my mid-day visit, from the chilaquiles (not terribly memorable) to the Achiote shrimp benedict (excellent), but the dish I know I’ll be craving very soon is the churro waffle ($9).
In the first attempts at the dish, kitchen staff experimented with using churro batter, but it didn’t fare well inside the waffle iron, so a traditional batter was substituted. Immediately after cooking, the waffle gets the churro treatment (it’s rolled in cinnamon and sugar, which caramelizes from the heat), followed by a triple hit of sweet drizzles (Jamaica syrup, Crème Anglaise, and dulche de leche). The waffle is deceptively light, crunchy, and quite sweet. One drink that provides a nice counterbalance to all of that sugar is the new white hot sangria (white grape juice and white wine with strawberries, oranges, apples, and the kicker: spicy segments of serrano pepper). A bottomless glass is $12 during brunch.
The Blind Burro is located at 639 J Street, downtown in the East Village. Brunch is served on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.