Pieminister St Mary St Cardiff: ‘Bottomless Brunch’ review

This review is of an 'invitation' meal, so all food and drink was provided free of charge. No obligation was imposed to write anything, positive or not.

As Samuel Johnson (possibly) said: ‘A man who is tired of pies is tired of life’. A notable trencherman, he understood the beautiful simplicity of  this, perhaps the ultimate comfort food. Pieminister, too, have always understood this; and as a confirmed fan their invitation to try their latest promotion, the ‘Bottomless Brunch’, sounds worth sampling. 

‘Bottomless Brunch’ has recently launched in seven UK cities. If you're expecting an endless procession of pies pirouetting towards your waiting maw, you may be disappointed, for the bottomlessness refers to drinks, not the food.

You can choose from prosecco (I still have no idea why this is A Thing) Bloody Mary, Aperol Spritz or Mimosa. (They’re not niggardly, either- we are offered refills before we need them throughout. I'm not kidding: Oliver Reed- insert own cultural ref here, millennials- would have struggled to keep up, although I did make an effort in the spirit of research) 

You'll have a maximum of  90 minutes, so although it's not quite Withnail's notorious 'We'll have to work fast...', the more effort you put in, the more you'll reap the rewards. Or emerge slightly squiffy: it's up to you.

Guido’s Aperol hits the spot admirably. Each tall glass which arrives for me has a welcome, peppery kick: what I get in effect is a half-made Bloody Mary, so you can adjust to your own tastes. You can 'Pimp your own cocktail' with Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco- although if you’re the kind of person who always insists on pimping things rather than, say, improving them- feel free to stop reading this and follow the procedure. (Remember the drill, kids- Stop! Drop! Roll yourself into a bookshop for a thesaurus!).  

There are some nice little touches- the tomato has been roasted with garlic and thyme, the hunks of fried sourdough are light and non-greasy. A tip of the hat to whoever decided on this morning's playlist, too: any assortment of Talking Heads, Stones, early Roxy Music and Wilson Pickett is going to be good for the soul. 

A Skillet (£6.95) is packed tight with a cooked breakfast in miniature, topped with a lightly poached egg. It is billed as a hash, though you'd recognise it as more like a dauphinoise. It  could do with a little more bacon within and is a little light on the sausage, though the béchamel is so good it demands a spoon. 

My Morning Glory (no, really) (£7.95) is a substantial thing. Beans are smoky and avoid the claggy over-sweetness which can ruin them. The pastry itself is lighter, herbier than you might expect, so it doesn’t sit like a cannonball in your guts.   Inside, it's a hot mess of sausage pieces among the cheesy mash and béchamel- the bacon is skewered to the pie via the tomato. A baked egg sets it all off.

There aren’t any non-alcoholic alternatives listed, which means this is ideal for those Saturdays when you are in need not of so much 'a hair of the dog' as an Irish Setter's worth. Alternatively, if you fancy getting a nice little late-morning (or late afternoon) buzz on- and who doesn't?- this is right up your street. 

If you’re a fan of the frisson of decadence daytime drinking brings, then fill your boots. This strikes me as very good value- no, ridiculously good value at £20, as their cocktails are usually £7.95 each, and with a little application several can be tackled - and you'll leave you full as you emerge blinking into the sunlight. 

But to reduce it to simple economics would be to rob it of its louche lustre. There are many, many worse ways to spend a couple of hours indulging yourself.

Pieminister
St Mary St
Cardiff

The next Bottomless Brunches at Pieminister Cardiff are 16th and 30th June. The sittings run from 11am – 12.30pm and from 3pm – 4.30pm 

Check https://www.pieminister.co.uk/bottomlessbrunch/ for updates.