9. Barley Mac
1600 Wilson Blvd., Arlington | 703-854-9154 | barleymacva.com
With so many brunch places to choose from, chef Jeremy Magnanelli wanted to create a niche at Barley Mac, the Rosslyn anchor in Mike Cordero’s expanding group of casual-fare restaurants. So he decided to specialize in eggs Benedict. Barley Mac offers four variations of the popular poached-egg dish—including lobster or crabcake—and they’re all served with hollandaise sauce and hash browns. The buttermilk pancakes are excellent—try the version lined with Nutella and accompanied by applewood bacon and an earthy bourbon-banana sauce. Bourbon and poached eggs make another appearance in the prime boneless short-rib hash. The meat is braised for six hours and cooked in a veal stock with mirepoix and mushrooms. “Hangover food, for the most part,” Magnanelli explains. “It sits well in the stomach.”