The 3 P.M. Brunch With the 4 A.M. Vibe By BEN DETRICKNOV. 16, 2011 Continue reading the main story Share This Page Share Tweet Pin Email More Save Photo An enthusiastic reveler parties to a performance by Roxy Cottontail, a promoter, at Eat Yo Brunch at Yotel on 10th Avenue, where the $35 brunch allows patrons to eat and drink for two hours. Credit Deidre Schoo for The New York Times BRUNCH, an occasion for flapjacks, Bloody Marys and meandering conversation, is traditionally the most sluggish of meals. But a smorgasbord of clubby New York restaurants have transformed lazy midday gatherings into orgies of overindulgence with blaring music, jiggling go-go dancers and bar tabs that mushroom into five figures. No, boozy brunches aren’t new. Inspired by the daytime debauchery on Pampelonne Beach in St.-Tropez, where jet-setters arrive by Ferrari and yacht, early iterations began at Le Bilboquet on the Upper East Side in the early ’90s, and spread to meatpacking district flashpoints like Bagatelle and Merkato 55 in 2008. But more recently, these brunches have been supersized, moving from smaller lounges to brassy nightclubs like Lavo and Ajna. The party blog Guest of a Guest has taken to calling it the “Battle of the Brunches.” “Not everyone gets to run to the beach or jump on a plane,” said Noah Tepperberg, an owner of Lavo in Midtown, which started its brunch party a year ago. “If you want to leave your house on the weekend, brunch fills that void.” On a recent Saturday, Mr. Tepperberg stood in Lavo’s basement kitchen, surrounded by meat slicers and employees readying confectionary “poison apples” for a Halloween party for a pre-split Kim Kardashian. Upstairs, patrons in costumes danced atop tables and chairs, bobbing to the carnival syncopation of Jay-Z and Kanye West’s “Paris.” Confetti and blasts of fog filled the air. Continue reading the main story Related Coverage slideshow The Brunch Party Takes Over Clubs NOV. 16, 2011 Advertisement Continue reading the main story It was 3 p.m. “People walk in and say, ‘I can’t believe this is going on right now,’ ” Mr. Tepperberg said. The brunch bacchanalia shows no sign of running dry. The Mondrian SoHo is starting Scene Sundays this month at its Imperial No. Nine restaurant. In Las Vegas, the original Lavo started a Champagne brunch a few weeks ago. Similar affairs have bubbled up in Boston, Los Angeles and Washington. For those looking to replicate the formula, here’s a guide to some of New York’s frothiest. Day and Night Ajna Bar (25 Little West 12th Street, dayandnightnyc.com); Saturday, noon to 6 p.m. This extravagant French-themed party landed in October at Ajna Bar in the meatpacking district, after dousing the Hamptons, Art Basel in Miami and the Oak Room in the Plaza Hotel with rosé. Beneath an industrial skylight and fluttering flags from the United Kingdom, France and Israel, well-heeled patrons pumped their fists and posed for purse-lipped Facebook photos, racking up huge tabs every Saturday. “I understand there’s a lot of people out there going through hard times,” said Daniel Koch, the promoter who helped start the Day and Night parties at Merkato 55. “But what you want to do with your money is your business.” SIGNAL TO DANCE ON TABLES “If you’ve been sprayed with Champagne, make some noise!” a hype man will shout between piercing dance tracks from Robyn, Calvin Harris and Oasis. Dancers in orange bathing suits will emerge; pipes will blast jets of fog. In a dangerously drunken take on a bar mitzvah ritual, a man spooning dessert out of a giant bowl will be seated on a chair and lifted high into the air by his cronies. BRUNCH SET Club-savvy guests seem piped in from Miami, Monaco and Merrill Lynch. “I’m from the South, so drinking during the day is not new to me,” said a woman who wore a Diane Von Furstenberg dress but not the necessary wristband to enter the V.I.P. area. Outside, near a black Aston Martin coupe, a young man wearing paint on his face and sunglasses delved into socioeconomics. “We’re the 1 percent,” he said to a woman, matter of factly. THE BUFFET The Nutella-stuffed croissants ($12) cater to Europeans, while a gimmicky $2,500 ostrich egg omelet (with foie gras, lobster, truffle, caviar and a magnum of Dom Perignon) is for aspiring Marie Antoinettes. Champagne bottles start at $500; packages with several bottles of liquor and mixers for mojitos or bellinis are $1,000. The check can be sobering. “You didn’t look at the price of the Dom bottle!” a man barked into his iPhone, to a friend who apparently ditched before paying. “It’s $700!” STILL-HOT ACCESSORY Slatted “shutter shades” live on at Day and Night. DID THE D.J. PLAY “WELCOME TO ST.-TROPEZ”? Yes. Lavo Champagne Brunch Lavo (39 East 58th Street, lavony.com); Saturday, 2 to 6:30 p.m. Smog guns. Confetti cannons. Piñatas. Masked masseuses. Dancers in Daisy Duke shorts (some on stilts, obviously). Since last November, this Italian restaurant has roiled with the energy and pageantry of Mardi Gras. At the recent Halloween party, Slick Rick, an old-school rapper with an eye patch and glinting ropes of jewelry, lethargically performed several ’80s hits. Some of the younger “Black Swans” in attendance were unsure of his identity. “Is he big in London?” asked an Australian woman wearing a top hat. SIGNAL TO DANCE ON TABLES Caffeinated anthems like Pitbull’s “Hey Baby” and Roscoe Dash’s “All the Way Turnt Up” are accentuated by processions of bouncers carrying women above them in tubs, like Cleopatra on a palanquin. Polenta pancakes taking up precious square footage? Just kick them aside with your stilettos. Newsletter Sign Up Continue reading the main story Open Thread Newsletter A look from across the New York Times at the forces that shape the dress codes we share, with Vanessa Friedman as your personal shopper. You agree to receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. See Sample Privacy Policy Opt out or contact us anytime BRUNCH SET Share Champagne spritzers with willowy model types and inheritors of wealth. The scrum on an October afternoon included the son of a Mongolian dignitary, six scions of Mexican plutocracy wearing novelty somberos, and at least one supermodel. “She’s everywhere,” said Mr. Tepperberg, as the nymph, whose name he couldn’t remember, disappeared into the jungle of merriment. THE BUFFET With the emphasis on tabletop dancing, Italian trattoria offerings (margherita pizzas for $21, and lemon ricotta waffles for $19) are often abandoned underfoot and sprinkled with confetti. Proving alcohol reigns supreme here, ice buckets are carefully shielded with napkins. Bottle service rules: Moët Brut is $195 and liquor starts at $295. Balthazar and Nebuchadnezzar sizes surge toward the $10,000 mark. RISKY ROSé Alcohol and high-altitude dancing can be perilous: there was a brief hullabaloo in one corner when several women took a tumble. DID THE D.J. PLAY “WELCOME TO ST.-TROPEZ”? Yes. Eat Yo Brunch Yotel (570 10th Avenue, yotel.com); Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. If spending thousands of dollars makes your stomach turn, this newish party at Yotel is more easily digested. This affably cartoonish affair, held at the space-age hotel in Hell’s Kitchen with the design aesthetics of a Pokémon, draws a gay-friendly crowd lured northward by Patrick Duffy, a promoter. “There’s a lot of pressure in night life,” Mr. Duffy said. “But I feel like Sunday is a comedown. It doesn’t have to be perfect.” SIGNAL TO DANCE ON TABLES These connoisseurs of brunch wear designer shoes too stylish for tromping atop omelets. With a D.J. spinning dance tracks from LeLe and Earth, Wind & Fire, guests sip bellinis at the bar or banter at long communal tables. The performers are looser. One afternoon, Roxy Cottontail, a pink-haired promoter, vamped around the sunken dining area with a microphone. “Don’t make kitty pounce,” she rapped, before climbing atop a table. BRUNCH SET Clusters of trim men wear leather motorcycle jackets or shroud themselves in patterned scarves. “It’s an eclectic, downtown vibe,” Ms. Cottontail said. “We have the most fabulous gays in New York City.” When a platinum-blond waiter in skintight jeans pranced in front of a wall decorated with pictures of sumo wrestlers riding Japanese carp, it seemed straight from an anime cell. THE BUFFET For an egalitarian $35, patrons receive unlimited grub — options include chilaquiles, halibut sliders and seaweed salad — and a two-hour window of boozing. “It’s not bougie,” said Mr. Duffy, who bounded across the room hugging guests and hand-delivering shots. “You could be a poor, starving artist or someone that doesn’t take a client for under $20 million.” COLOR CODE Wear purple if you hope to be camouflaged by the staff outfits, chairs and ceilings. DID THE D.J. PLAY “WELCOME TO ST.-TROPEZ”? No. Sunset Saturdays PH-D Rooftop Lounge at Dream Downtown (355 West 16th Street, dreamdowntown.com); Saturday, 5:30 to 10 p.m. Despite a happy hour time slot, this sunset party atop the Dream Downtown hotel is not for pre-gaming. After funneling in brunch crowds from elsewhere, 8 p.m. has the frenzied atmosphere and intoxication of 2 a.m. The offbeat timing may deter conventional weekend warriors. “No matter how cool the place, some people feel Friday and Saturday nights are for amateurs,” said Matt Strauss, a manager of PH-D. “We’re not for amateurs.” SIGNAL TO DANCE ON TABLES The D.J. rapid-fires through tracks from C+C Music Factory, LMFAO and Rick Ross, but booze-lubricated guests scramble on couches with little hesitation. Those grappling with bursts of existential angst after six hours of brunch can gaze pensively at the spectacular views of Midtown Manhattan. BRUNCH SET Attractive women and affluent men knot around tables; hotel guests gawk from the bar. On a recent Saturday, Mark Wahlberg danced with a few friends, and David Lee, a former New York Knick, enjoyed downtime provided by the N.B.A. lockout. “We saw an angle,” said Matt Assante, a promoter. “People spend more money than at nighttime.” THE BUFFET Brunch is thankfully over, but crispy calamari ($17) and guacamole ($12) could constitute a light dinner. A bottle of Veuve Clicquot is $475. Cîroc vodka is $450. Cocktails like the Cloud Nine (Beefeater gin, Campari, grapefruit) are $18; a Bud Light is $10. WINDING DOWN After the rigors of daylong gorging, relax with the help of an on-site masseuse. DID THE D.J. PLAY “WELCOME TO ST.-TROPEZ”? Obviously.

CHEFS CLUB BY FOOD & WINE Chefs Club by Food & Wine offers its guests a curated menu made up of signature dishes from four contributing chefs. This line-up is selected by Food & Wine Editor-in-Chief Dana Cowin from among the recipients of the magazine’s prestigious Best New Chef awards. Some of the most brilliant, innovative cooks in America and around the world will share their recipes in the restaurant. Meanwhile they will make regular appearances in the Chefs Studio, an intimate open kitchen and private room at Chefs Club designed for parties, cooking classes and special dinners. These are the chefs for our New York launch: Gabriel Rucker, Best New Chef 2007 A lover of offal and ‘little birds with bones,’ Rucker is the chef and co-owner of Le Pigeon and Little Bird Bistro in Portland, OR. Not one to follow recipes, Gabriel cooks off the cuff in a style that is at once classically French and undeniably American. Erik Anderson, Best New Chef 2012 Chicago-born Anderson spent time cooking for Thomas Keller in the Napa Valley and at Copenhagen’s Noma before turning Southern cuisine on its head at The Catbird Seat in Nashville. Next spring, Erik and fiancée Jamie Malone will team up to open Brut in Minneapolis. Linton Hopkins, Best New Chef 2009 Hopkins opened Restaurant Eugene in his native Atlanta in 2004, naming it after his grandfather. A passionate advocate for Southern tradition and local growers, Linton insists that making mayonnaise from scratch, and teaching others to do the same, can change the world. Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson, Best New Chef 2005 Originally from Toronto, Patterson pursued culinary school and apprenticeships in Paris. Yet it took a stint at The French Laundry in Yountville, CA for Lachlan to discover his real passion: Italy. Since 2004, he has found inspiration in the regional cuisine of Friuli-Venezia Giulia at Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder, CO. MENU TO SHARE ISLAND CREEK OYSTERS, Fresno Chili, Cucumber Mignonette Chef Erik Anderson 20 JAMON IBERICO DE BELLOTA, Beaten Biscuit, Sunchoke Relish Chef Linton Hopkins 25 RATATOUILLE TARTINE, Piquillo Peppers, Basil Oil 12 BROCCOLI PIZZETTA, Chili, Walnut Pesto 14 DIAVOLA PIZZETTA, Salami Napolitana, Smoked Mozzarella, San Marzano Tomato, Chili Oil 17 Chef Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson APPETIZERS SALAD OF THE MONTH Food & Wine Magazine by Chef Michelle Bernstein 14 Watercress, Jalapeño, Watermelon, Pistachio, Chive Vinaigrette CHEFS CLUB SALAD 13 Beets, Tête de Moine, Mint, Basil, White Balsamic FLUKE CRUDO 19 Preserved Lemon, Espelette Pepper CHILLED SPRING PEA SOUP 15 Espellette Croutons, Pea Cream, Pickled Pearl Onions JOHNNY CAKE Chef Linton Hopkins 16 Asparagus, Spring Greens, Mojo Rojo FLOUNDER WITH ONIONS Chef Erik Anderson 18 Grilled Spring Onions, Roasted Chicken Skin Bouillon, Morel Mushrooms, Trout Roe SMOKED & SEARED HUDSON VALLEY FOIE GRAS Chef Gabriel Rucker 26 Sunchoke, Buttermilk-Thyme Jam, Duck Confit, Apple MAINE DIVER SCALLOPS 17 Quinoa, Meyer Lemon, Calabrian Chili Oil LOW COUNTRY SEAFOOD PAN ROAST Chef Linton Hopkins 22 Anson Mills Grits, Carolina Trout Roe, Paprika POTATO GNOCCHI 16/26 Morel Mushrooms, Spring Onion, Asparagus, Fava Beans ENTREES LOBSTER CANNELLONI Chef Lachlan MacKinnon-Patterson 27 English Peas, Tangerine, Agretti BUCATINI ALLA CARBONARA Chef Lachlan MacKinnon-Patterson 20 Sfoglini Bucatini, Smoked Guanciale, Red Onion, Hudson Valley Egg Yolk, Pecorino Ginepro BLACK BASS 30 Market Carrots, Castelvetrano Olives, Maitake Mushrooms, Carrot-Chipotle Jus ARCTIC CHAR 29 Peas, Baby Romaine, Pearl Onions, Pistachio, Coconut Curry Sauce LE PIGEON Chef Gabriel Rucker 38 Dirty Rice, Chicken Liver Mustard, Salsa Verde SASSO CHICKEN Chef Gabriel Rucker 32 Grilled Zucchini, Marcona Almond, Black Truffle, Cipollini Onion COLORADO LAMB CHOPS Chef Lachlan MacKinnon-Patterson 39 Cotechino, Endive, White Beans, Pear ST. CANUT PORCELET IN BROTH Chef Linton Hopkins 36 Loin, Shoulder, Belly and Leg, Spring Roots, Ham Broth THAI GLAZED SHORT RIBS FOR 2 Chef Erik Anderson 86 Barrel Aged Fish Sauce, Broccoli, Peanuts, Mint, Cilantro BONE IN FILET MIGNON Chef Erik Anderson 56 Onion Glaze, Bone Marrow, Spring Vegetables, Horseradish SIDES 10 ROASTED BABY CARROTS, Pistachio Granola, Carrot Puree GRILLED ASPARAGUS, Herb Jus, Parmesan ROASTED WILD MUSHROOMS, Parsley BROCCOLINI, Chili, Parmesan POTATO PUREE, Crispy Potato Skin, Raspberry Powder Chef Erik Anderson Culinary Director: Didier Elena Executive Chef: Matthew Aita