My First Boston Brunchers Experience - Ceia

The Peeps

Went to Ceia today with the Boston Brunchers, a lively bunch of ladies (and gentleman) who had lots of fun restaurant tips, cooking ideas, social media and jokes to share! I'm looking forward to enjoying more delicious food and drink with these folks.

The Meal

Upon arrival at our seats, out came our array of SLRs, iPhones, and point-and-shoot cameras.

We started with the St. Germain 75 cocktail: Tanqueray, St. Germain elderflower liqueur, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, and sparkling rose. The St. Germain 75 was much smoother and more complex than a mimosa.

Up next was the oyster escabeche: lightly cooked oysters and a bit of grapefruit in a light mignonette. This was a great amuse bouche, though I still prefer raw oysters with a little lemon juice.

Then came some bread with olive tapenade (not pictured).

The salad course was incredible. I inhaled this gorgeous concoction of cold smoked asparagus, smoked asparagus puree, organic mache, fresh mozzarella, shaved cipollinis and aged balsamic faster than you just read this sentence.

In between the salad and main course, my tablemate got the Rosemary Lemon Drop, which consisted of Ketel One Citron, fresh lemon juice, limoncello, and rosemary simple syrup. I was too busy drinking the french press coffee to try another drink, but hers sure looked good!

Another tablemate commented that the poached eggs on the linguica and sweet potato hash with quail bearnaise would be the first poached eggs she would ever try. What a way to get introduced to poached eggs...these were perfectly cooked.

Not on the menu was this Chilean late harvest sauvignon blanc, a delicious dessert wine paired with the...

...raspberry coconut pain perdu. I had only ever seen pain perdu on Chopped, and now I know why contestants are always making it. What an end to a delicious meal!

The Place

I would recommend Ceia as a great date or ladies' brunch spot. It's stylish, comforting and homey.

Sitting at the bar would be just as fun as sitting at a table.

Check out these awesome wall-mounted wine racks!

Looking forward to coming back to Ceia for more food...I don't think I can wait until this year's Yankee Homecoming Ten Miler. Perhaps Newburyport High School will need some science fair judges this year...and what better way to prepare for judging than another Ceia brunch!

Disclaimer: Brunch was provided free of charge to Boston Brunchers. We only paid gratuity and were not required to write a review.