Monkey Bread Recipe From The Brunch Menu At The Redhead, East Village

At some point, The Redhead may have been your neighborhood secret, but that's no longer the case.

One dish alone–fried chicken–pulled chef Meg Grace into the spotlight, leading to a consulting gig at nearby newcomer Permanent Brunch this summer.

The scope of Grace's involvement at PB was limited: She didn't stick around past designing the opening menu. But back in The Redhead's kitchen, the weeks she'd spent testing doughnut recipes and perfecting biscuits and gravy were still in her mind. So last weekend, The Redhead quietly launched a brunch program of its own.

And where PB falls short, The Redhead succeeds with inventive, eggy aplomb. The only overlap on the menus is the roasted chicken with mushrooms and wild rice and bacon waffles ($16), which is entirely deserving of reprise and reinforces Grace's deft talent with poultry.

In her rendition of biscuits and gravy ($14), cakey buttermilk biscuits carry on with a thick slice of country ham and a poached egg, which Grace then douses with redeye gravy (so named for its key ingredient, a shot of coffee). It's the type of sweet-salty combination on which she's made her name.

But perhaps our favorite dish–and the perfect way to end your meal–is the gooey, pull-apart Monkey Bread ($5) topped with caramelized bananas (pictured; click here to download the recipe).

And like the fried chicken, this brunch won't stay a secret for long.

The Redhead, 349 E. 13th St. (between First and Second aves.); 212-533-6212 or theredheadnyc.com