One of the best reasons to get inside the perimeter of Atlanta is the Virginia Highlands. The small area of town is riddled with prestigious oak trees spanning the roads and many cool places to eat. One of the more popular places, located on the corner of Virginia and North Highland, is Murphy’s
I’ve been to Murphy’s several times for weekend brunches and every time the place has been packed! Rain or shine, this place gets the business. On nicer days in the Spring the wait can be very long. But if you have some time on a lazy weekend, Murphy’s is worth a special trip.
It’s hard to get a great look of the inside of the restaurant because there are usually a bunch of people standing by the bar waiting to be seated. As you walk in the door you are greeted with a large round bar with selections of pastries that are hard to resist. To the back of the room on the left is a large wall of a great selection of wines. I haven’t had a chance to check it out, but it looks very intriguing! The seating area, as you can expect is a little cramped because of the limited space characteristic of many places in the highlands. But that’s no reason to skip this place.
Murphy's bar
The brunch menu has several different egg dishes (omelets and frittatas) along with savory dishes (waffles and french toast) and some southern favorites (shrimp and grits). To start the meal, a basket of buttery biscuits and hearty muffins was delivered to the table. Laura likes the biscuits the best, while I really enjoy the muffin which tasted like a carrot/bran muffin. Interesting and delicious.
In our last visit I got the Southwest Frittata. This dish is beautifully constructed egg foundation with spicy chorizo, jack cheese, green onions, sour cream, and fried tortilla strips. I am such a sucker for “southwest” style dishes. They are like catnip to me. The frittata was really good, and perfectly cooked!
Delicious waffles with chicken sausage
We also got the french toast which, in my opinion, is the best french toast I have had in the area! The slices of challah bread are the perfect thickness. The cinnamon butter is deliciously sweet and flavorful. AND, there is enough food on the plate to fill up a regular guy. There are too many places that don’t give you enough food, especially the nicer places. Murphy’s gives you enough food!
Fantastic french toast, so damn good.
In all my visits to Murphy’s I cant say the service stood out, in fact I dont remember it being good or bad. That, in my opinion, is good enough service. The food should be the memorable part of the meal. Price is very reasonable for such a great meal. Last time we went, along with the frittata and french toast we also got a coffee and a diet coke, and our bill (including tip) was $35. Not bad at all!
Murphy’s is very well worth a trip downtown!
Sausage improves just about anything.