Good For Whatever Ails You: 'The Cure' At Rider In Williamsburg, Brooklyn
It's been over 120 years since English writer Guy Beringer published his now-famous essay, "Brunch: A Plea," in which he extols the virtues and necessity of a mid-day Sunday meal. When he wrote,
"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. It is talk-compelling. It puts you in a good temper, it makes you satisfied with yourself and your fellow beings, and it sweeps away the worries and cobwebs of the week."
Beringer was certainly referencing morning-saving dishes, such as James Beard Award-winning chef Patrick Connolly's The Cure, from his Williamsburg restaurant, Rider. You can order it during brunch on weekends (11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.) and breakfast on weekdays (8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.) for those that may have stayed out past their bedtime and are having a hard time greeting the workday.
Comprising duck confit, cilantro, pickles, hoisin, and sriracha over a crisped rice patty ― all topped with a poached egg, of course ― the fatty, savory, spicy ingredients come together to clear both your palate and your foggy head. The dish's effect is much greater than it's humble origin belies, as Connolly explained to us recently.
"The first two weeks after we opened Rider, we had no cooks yet, so it was just me, my pastry chef, sous chef, and chef de cuisine on the line, with my friend Billy expediting," Connally said. "At the end of the night, we'd throw whatever was left of mise en place into a bowl and eat it as we closed up. It was generally herbs, duck confit, some pickles, and other random things. We decided to just put a little more order to it and make it a brunch dish."
That "little more order" came in the form of a a crisped rice cake, beloved by Thai and Filipino food fans far and wide, which Connolly admits was "totally by chance." So, remember these words, next time you stay out until 3:00 in the morning "totally by chance," as The Cure is there to revive you, proving Beringer's pronouncements true with every bowl served.