Useless Trivia: 23 fascinating facts about brunch!

Brunch is a combination of breakfast and lunch eaten usually during the late morning, but it can extend to as late as 3pm.

Let’s see some interesting facts about it!

1. The word is a portmanteau of breakfast and lunch.

2. Brunch originated in England in the late 19th century and became popular in the United States in the 1930s.

3. The 1896 supplement to the Oxford English Dictionary cites Punch magazine which wrote that the term was coined in Britain in 1895 to describe a Sunday meal for “Saturday-night carousers” in the writer Guy Beringer’s article “Brunch: A Plea” in Hunter’s Weekly’

“Instead of England’s early Sunday dinner, a post church ordeal of heavy meats and savory pies, why not a new meal, served around noon, that starts with tea or coffee, marmalade and other breakfast fixtures before moving along to the heavier fare? By eliminating the need to get up early on Sunday, brunch would make life brighter for Saturday-night carousers. It would promote human happiness in other ways as well. “Brunch is cheerful, sociable and inciting.” Beringer wrote. “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.”

— William Grimes, “At Brunch, The More Bizarre The Better” New York Times, 1998

4. It is sometimes credited to reporter Frank Ward O’Malley who wrote for the New York newspaper The Sun from 1906 until 1919,[8] allegedly based on the typical mid-day eating habits of a newspaper reporter.

5. Some colleges and hostels serve brunch. Such brunches are often serve-yourself buffets, but menu-ordered meals may be available instead of, or with, the buffet.

6. The meal usually involves standard breakfast foods such as eggs, sausages, bacon, ham, fruits, pastries, pancakes, scones, and the like.

7. The United States military often serves weekend brunch in the dining facilities. They offer both breakfast and lunch options and are open from about 09:00-13:00 (though times vary).

8. The dim sum brunch is popular in Chinese restaurants worldwide. It consists of a variety of stuffed buns, dumplings, and other savory or sweet food items that have been steamed, deep-fried, or baked. Customers pick small portions from passing carts, as the kitchen continuously produces and sends out more freshly prepared dishes.

9. Dim sum is usually eaten at a mid-morning, midday, or mid-afternoon teatime.

10. Brunch is prepared by restaurants and hotels for special occasions, such as weddings, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, or Easter Sunday.

11. The Office québécois de la langue française accepts “brunch” as a valid word but also provides a synonym déjeuner-buffet. Note that, however, in Quebec, déjeuner alone (even without the qualifying adjective petit) means “breakfast”.

12. In Quebec, the word—when Francized—is pronounced.

13. German-speaking countries readily adopt Anglicisms, and “brunch” is no exception, defining it as “a combination of breakfast and lunch.”

14. Chinese word “早午饭” is defined as brunch, “早饭” means breakfast and “午饭” means lunch in Chinese. The combination of “早饭” and “午饭” is “早午饭”, as known as brunch.

15. ‘Friday Brunch’ is considered something of an institution in Dubai. Many large hotels and restaurants offer an all inclusive drinks and food buffet during early afternoons, and large groups of expatriates and tourists make this the highlight of their weekend, with parties going on well into the night.

16. In many regions of Canada, in particular in Southern Ontario, brunch is popular on Sundays when families will often host relatives or friends in their dining room.

17. The typical brunch can last a few hours and go late into the afternoon. Montreal-style bagels may be served alongside egg dishes, waffles or crepes, smoked meat or fish, fruit, salads, cheese, and dessert. Often, champagne or wine will be served and following the meal tea or coffee is usually consumed.

18. Many restaurants offer brunch service as well, and the Leslieville neighborhood of Toronto is sometimes called the brunch capital of Toronto as many renowned establishments serve brunch in that neighborhood.

19. In Canada, brunch is served in private homes using homemade foods and in restaurants. In both cases, brunch typically consists of the same dishes as would be standard in an American brunch, namely coffee, tea, fruit juices, breakfast foods including pancakes, waffles, and french toast; meats such as ham, bacon and sausages; egg dishes such as scrambled eggs, omelettes and Eggs Benedict; bread products such as toast, bagels or croissants; pastries or cakes such as cinnamon rolls or coffee cake; and fresh, cut fruit pieces or fruit salad. Brunches may also include foods not typically associated with breakfast, such as roasted meats, quiche, soup, smoked salmon and salads such as Cobb salad.

20. When served in a private home or a restaurant, a brunch may be served buffet style, in which trays of foods and beverages are available and guests can serve themselves and select the items they want, often in an “all-you-can-eat” fashion.

21. Restaurant brunches may also be served from a menu, in which guests select specific items which are served to them by the waitstaff.

22. Restaurant brunch meals range from relatively inexpensive brunches available at diners and family restaurants to expensive brunches served at high-end restaurants and bistros.

23. In South Africa, brunch is a favorite activity for many families. It is globally-distinctive in that only pancakes and fruit are consumed.