Q: Where can I get softshell crabs right now?
Kristen: I asked around, and a lot of restaurants have served them as specials, but not menu items as they come in. You may see them on the menus here and there, but according to Built On Hospitality’s Chris Coleman, the season was early this year. Link & Pin will have them on Sunday’s brunch menu, and you may see them pop up as specials pending availability.

Q: What actually defines brunch more, the combination of breakfast and lunch menu items or the time of day?
Kristen: That’s a good question! I reached out to two folks who said both are necessary. “You have to have both that late morning/early afternoon time frame and a particular range of menu items for it to feel like brunch to me,” Ashley Boyd, chef and operating partner of 300 East, says. “It’s not proper brunch without both elements.” Tim Buchanan of Rare Roots Hospitality echos that sentiment, but adds brunch is a different style of dining: “It is a little of both those things plus the idea that it’s more than just a meal period.  It’s a winding down, catching up, spritz and mimosa tower building, people watching, day drinking, hair of the dog from the Saturday night before mentality. It’s more decadent than breakfast, less rushed than lunch, more of an occasion than dinner, and more substantial than all the snacks in between.”

Q: Do you still have the Old-Fashioned Kits for sale?
Kristen: We do! I’ve been pretty limited in my capacity to build them (actually labeling each bottle and putting them together takes a lot of time!) with the StrEATs Festival, so we haven’t promoted them much, but are planning to do so soon. You can order them here!