Feel the Burn
Burntzilla’s Brick French Toast is offered only on weekends.
Eat a light dinner tonight, because tomorrow we’re getting brunch. And Burntzilla’s new brunch menu, launched last weekend and coming back this weekend, promises not to disappoint. One standout menu item that’s sure to delight is the Burntzilla Brick French Toast.
“Our Brick French toast is a thick cut of Brioche,” says Martin Tse, one of the four owners of Burntzilla, part of the Irvine-based Burnt Restaurant Group. “We get it from a local bakery called Bread Artisan Bakery. Our trick is that we soak the brioche overnight with our French toast mix.”
The Brick French Toast is served with maple syrup and whipped butter, but for those who want an extra sweet start to the day, it can be ordered with a mix of strawberry toppings (strawberries, strawberry sauce, vanilla ice cream and sweetened condensed milk) or a mix of chocolate toppings (chocolate sauce, caramel, toffee bits and vanilla ice cream).
If dessert for breakfast isn’t your style, there are plenty of savory options: breakfast burritos, breakfast quesadillas, five types of breakfast sliders, and, for the health conscious, breakfast salad. Sides include breakfast potatoes, tater tots, and French fries. The Burnt Restaurant Group originally launched a brunch menu at Burnt Crumbs, a sister restaurant with locations in Irvine and Huntington Beach, to rave reviews.
“We're hoping that brunch here at Burntzilla will work too,” says Martin. “'Cause brunch in Orange County seems to be a really positive thing. It's very popular. Everybody likes to eat brunch out here. So we're hoping that will transcend in this place and we can just start making some money. That's the whole reason why we're doing the brunch over here.”
Due to the pandemic, Burntzilla faces the same economic challenges as other restaurants in Irvine and throughout the country.
“Everybody's trying to make due with what they got,” says Martin. “Everybody's treading. I hear all these different restaurants are going out of business. If you don't adapt and try different things while you're in this mess that we're all in right now, then you're just settling. At least we're making moves. And if it doesn't work out, we tried everything possible. So we're hoping that this brunch thing is going to catch on as well.”
Aside from the extra business, Burtzilla is launching brunch because of their passion for the new menu items.
“The Brick French Toast is the only sweet menu item on our brunch menu,” says Martin, “and we feel it’s a winner. Our brunch sliders are really good, too. I think our slider sandwiches are better than the sandwiches [at Burnt Crumbs]. Then our breakfast burritos are really solid as well, and that was maybe the most popular item last week. The way we cook is the way we like to eat!”
Burntzilla is offering brunch on Saturdays and Sundays only, from 9 am to 2 pm.
Walnut Village Center: 14413 Culver Drive, Irvine
See http://www.burntzilla.com for more info
