Where to indulge in the best late-morning bites, plus the stories behind your favorite brunch staples.
Brunch in St. Augustine is more than a weekend indulgence—it’s a flavorful blend of coastal charm, culinary creativity, and centuries-old tradition. Whether you’re sipping a spicy Bloody Mary near the bayfront or digging into a perfectly poached eggs Benedict under a canopy of oaks, the Ancient City offers a brunch scene that’s as rich in taste as it is in history
The word Brunch was first published in 1895 in Hunter’s Weekly in the United Kingdom and became popular in the United States in the 1930s. British writer Guy Beringer blended the two words into brunch and wrote:
″Brunch is cheerful, sociable, and inciting. It is talk-compelling. It puts you in a good temper, it makes you satisfied with yourself and your fellow beings, it sweeps away the worries and cobwebs of the week.″
Florentine Benedict from Beachside Diner
Eggs Benedict (poached eggs over Canadian bacon and English muffin topped with Hollandaise sauce) was created in New York City at Delmonico’s in Lower Manhattan. The menu reads that “Eggs Benedict was first created in our ovens in 1860.” One of its former chefs, Charles Ranhofer, also published the recipe for Eggs à la Benedick in 1894.
3-Shrimp Bloody Mary from OC White’s
The French bartender Fernand Petiot claimed to have invented the Bloody Mary in 1921 while working at the New York Bar in Paris at the time, which later became Harry’s New York Bar, a frequent Paris hangout for Ernest Hemingway and other American migrants. The original cocktail is said to have been created on the spur of the moment, according to the bar’s own traditions, consisting only of vodka and tomato juice.
This cocktail was originally referred to as a “Bucket of Blood.” However, the name Bloody Mary was first seen in print in 1939, as Lucius Beebe printed in his gossip column, This New York, along with the original recipe:
“George Jessel’s newest pick-me-up which is receiving attention from the town’s paragraphers is called a Bloody Mary: half tomato juice, half vodka.”
A 1939 publication by El Floridita in Havana, Cuba had a recipe called “Mary Rose” that listed the main ingredients of a modern Bloody Mary. In St. Augustine, we have amazing brunch options to choose from — always with a twist to the original recipe, and usually some items that include the Datil Pepper — with bottomless mimosas and incredibly decked out Bloody Marys to wash it all down!
Brunch Nachos and BEC Flatbread from Treylor Park
St. Augustine Brunch Favorites:
English
French
German
Italian
Spanish
