Mother’s Day Brunch With a Brooklyn Beat

Image by Martyna Starosta
Watch chef Ilan Hall whip up a spring brunch with soul.
For fans of and telegenic chef-owner Ilan Hall, spring brings a double helping of good news.
First, Hall and his business partners announced they’re reopening their Los Angeles restaurant, which shuttered right after its Brooklyn offshoot opened. Downtown foodie mecca Grand Central Market will house the new Gorbals L.A., whose menu will “skew vegan,” as Hall told the Forward.
Second, The Gorbals in Brooklyn is launching brunch service, bringing Hall’s brainy, genre-busting food to what many Gothamites consider the most important meal of the week.

Image by Martyna Starosta
On tap: Hall’s distinctive spins on familiar favorites like eggs benedict (with a potato-latke base), cucumber salad (with sumac and fried chickpeas), and a “GLTA” sandwich of gribenes, lettuce, tomato, and avocado.
With Mother’s Day in mind, Hall shared his secrets for breaking out of the brunch box and giving Mom some delicious surprises. For the bright, delicious cucumber salad he makes in the video, click here.
Michael Kaminer is a frequent contributor to the Forward.