Sugar N Spice: Avondale

After two weeks and two posts covering the semi-upscale brunches of Nectar and Greenup, we turn our attention to a restaurant offering a more standard brunch fare: SUGAR 'n' SPICE. This classic Cincinnati establishment sits on Reading Road in all of its Pepto Bismol colored glory, right behind the sock guy and his mountain of 3 for $5 socks.

The interior is a cross between funky 50’s diner and a children’s story book about breakfast cooking. With its old timey cash register, hospitable waitresses, and expertly muraled walls, the atmosphere is half of the attraction.

This week our party was limited to three, so we were unable to sample 80% of the menu as in previous weeks. Not to mention the fact that the menu is of the diner variety: tons of items, categorized sections, a million combinations of the same items and sides, actual prices rather than whole numbers, etc. The pancakes and lunch sandwiches are really cheap ($3.50 for a half order of pancakes to $5 or $6 for a sandwich), but certain items like their omelets, breakfast burrito, and corned beef hash are a little more expensive than what you might expect to pay at a no-frills diner ($6-$8).

Luckily SUGAR 'n' SPICE is one of the few places that understands the importance of offering both sweet and savory in a single brunch dish. One of our biggest complaints when brunching is that too often you are forced to choose between the sweet dish (pancakes, waffles, etc.) or the savory (eggs, bacon, omelets, etc.), when really all you want is a little bit of both. The Breakfast Special at SnS fulfills this simple, yet oft ignored desire. With two eggs, meat, and two wispy thin pancakes, the Breakfast Special is a manageable portion at a reasonable price. The corned beef hash and poached eggs hit the spot this past Saturday for some reason, but it was hard to ignore the fact that we were shelling over $7 for them to crack open a can of CBH.

SnS is successful with another brunch rarity: The Saturday Brunch. In fact, if we aren't mistaken, breakfast/brunch is offered whenever SnS is open (7am to 3pm daily). We are currently tagging the establishments that serve Saturday brunch, so that they are easier to search.

Finally, one of the best elements of the SUGAR'n SPICE experience is the people. SnS is one of the asterisks to the notion that our city is separated into Black Cincinnati and White Cincinnati. This puts SUGAR'n SPICE firmly in the realm of Tucker's, Park Chili, etc., where the diversity of the clientele only makes the homogeniety of most dining experiences all the more obvious.

The Sugar n Spice website-
a shining example of customer and community appreciation