Scratchbread now Serving Breakfast!

-- the tiny Bed-Stuy bakery located on the corner of Bedford and Lexington avenues and known for its fresh-baked Focaccia, brownies, muffins and rolls -- has reinvented itself once more: It is now serving breakfast!

Beginning two weeks ago, at around 6:30 a.m., the bakery began offering a short menu of exotic breakfast delights that either incorporate its current popular baked items, or offers a fresh spin on another.

Take for example, the Chunky Oats Scenario: This is a hearty bowl of their popular oatmeal chunky muffin crumbled over coarsely chopped fruit with nuts and local yogurt ($5).

Or the PB&B, a fresh-baked wheat bread sandwich slightly toasted and made with homemade peanut butter and vinegar-ed blueberries ($3.50).

"We do awesome breakfasts, with fresh-squeezed juices and some fresh-brewed coffee," said Jess Tell, Scratchbread's server/chef for the day. "But people are really nuts for eggs, so we'll do eggs and grits and eggs sandwiches. It changes a little bit every day. We keep the same popular pastries. And we try to always have an egg dish and a potato dish."

There's also the Roasted Garlic Potatoes with house-made spicy tomato sauce and fresh basil ($3). But the little bakery's most popular breakfast item (well, at least judging from what everybody seemed to be ordering) is the grits with kale pesto and eggs ($5).

I had to try it and almost lost track of time, I was so immersed in grits heaven! If you love grits, then don't walk -- run!-- to get this dish, made of organic large-grain hominy grits, topped with a medium-boiled egg, fresh-ground pepper and a homemade pesto unlike any I've ever tasted.

"Yeah, the grits are just ridiculous, it's so good," said Bed-Stuy resident, Laurence, 33, who was ordering at the store's pickup window with his young son. "I've been coming here every morning for two weeks without fail."

The egg-grits-pesto combination in this dish will send you all the way to the moon.

There's only one warning: The items may be fresh and organic, but this dish is made with plenty of cream and butter. So if you're counting calories, plan to make this your meal for the entire day. But trust, it's a sacrifice worth making.

Scratchbread is open for breakfast every day except Thursdays at 6:30 a.m. and serves its morning menu until 3:00 p.m.

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