Best Sunday Brunch in the Triangle

I absolutely love Sunday brunch - it may be my favorite part of the weekend. It's certainly my favorite weekend meal. At home or in restaurants, brunch memories are important to me.

What is it about brunch that arouses such warm feelings? Maybe it's the idea of the late morning meal itself; almost time for lunch so I'm good and hungry, but still legitimately morning, enough, to crack open some eggs and get some bacon sizzling. Ahhh, and the aroma of the freshly poured cup of coffee.

There's something almost primordially comforting about brunch. The savory smells of cheese melting into an omelette, with smokey ham or bacon layered in, can arouse my lumbering husband out of deep hibernation. And happily helping mix fresh berries into pancake batter clearly gets my family feeling that they're contributing to their contribution to the food pyramid.

I'd like to share that comfort with my family this Christmas. My parents are coming to visit for the holidays and they just love to dine. With that in mind, we've decided to treat them to brunch while they are here. We have several choices for brunch in the Triangle - some casual, some not. It's your choice to experience the different flavors of the Triangle so I've broken them into three categories:

1. Easy Living- Casual Dining

Elmo's Diner
776 Ninth St , Durham , NC , 27705-4803

2. Mid Tier- More upscale but still casual

Courtney's Restaurant
407 E Six Forks Rd , Raleigh , NC , 27609-7829

Fearrington Market Cafe
1 Fearrington Post, Pittsboro, NC
More casual than the fancy Fearrington Restaurant, this quaint cafe doesn't skimp on style or flavor

Brigs Great Beginnings
8111 Creedmoor Rd Ste 169, Raleigh, NC
Specializing in gourmet omelets and golden hot cakes, this eatery raises the bar on breakfast food.

High End- This is best of the best

Herons

What a wonderful addition to the Triangle. Finally, a restaurant in the same class as restaurants in New York, Boston, and other top dining cities. The setting is spectacular and the location is convenient to all areas of the Triangle. I forgot to mention that the service and meal is in a different category than all other restaurants in this area.

Washington Duke

Jazz Brunch is served on Sundays from 10:30am until 2:00pm. The setting is quite elegant, the decorations during the holidays are outstanding, the service impeccable, and the meal delectable.

And if you want to bring home breads for Sunday's breakfast my friends Missy & Lionel at La Farm Bakery (4248 Cary Parkway, Cary, 657-0657) will offer the best hot cross buns, yeast rolls, linzer challah, and a huge selection of tarts and breakfast stratas that are to die for. PS. They also provide bread to Herons at the Umstead too!!