We first visited Set L.E.S. in 2020, and I remember how amazing the Bulgogi Burger was from there. We liked the fun and vibrant atmosphere, the food, and drink. Now in 2023, we finally got to revisit again. They now have a huge outdoor seating, with bright yellow chairs. It is fully covered, so you can eat out even in the rain. We arrived just a few minutes after they opened for the day, but it got crowded within an hour or so. They are popular among the locals and I see people waiting outside most of the weekends, I am happy to see they are doing well.
And I could see they had some renovations in the inside since 2020. They re-decorated also, with new chairs, tables, wall hangings, etc. The bar looks more sophisticated with backsplashes and light fixtures. They had hooks under the bar for your purse and other personal items, and have plugs with USB outlets as well. The inside and outside was decorated with had fun rainbow flags since we visited Set L.E.S. during the Pride Weekend.
Just as our first visit, we went there for brunch. They still have some brunch set menu which looked great, and yes, the amazing Bulgogi Burger. Although I was tempted to order that again, but we decided to try other items to see how they are. We started off with some cocktails from the Brunch menu. They had two of my favorite cocktails on the Brunch menu, it was meant to be!
With that, we ordered Espresso Martini ($14) and Lycheetini ($14). Espresso Martini was strong with wonderful aroma and flavor of espresso. It had a beautiful foam on top, making the flavor to be milder and softer. It had a subtle sweetness, which was just right. A great espresso Martini! Lycheetini was also quite strong! Fruity with solid flavor of lychee. It had a lychee fruit in the middle, and it was a nice big size, plump and delicious. Totally loved it!
Then, we ordered assortment of dishes. We got some Brunch staples, and some that sounded really interesting and unique. If you thought “wow that is a lot of food!” then well, you are right. We did take some food home with us… And our table was right under the red neon light, so I apologize for the strange red hue on my images.
The first up was Ube Mochi Pancakes ($15) with coconut milk drizzled with fresh fruits. Since we already had the amazing Bulgogi Burger here at Set L.E.S., I was not surprised to see an item that is made with Asian ingredients and/or flavors. The pancakes were topped with sweet ripen bananas and tart strawberries for the perfect balance. The drizzle of coconut milk tasted a bit like condensed milk, which went great on that. The color of the pancake in the inside had this beautiful purple of ube! It was fluffy, not too sweet, just right everything.
Next up was another interesting item, Fried Breakfast Wontons ($15). They come in 6 pieces, and they were so cute and very curious… They are made with Bacon, Scrambled Eggs, Cheese and Caramelized Onions. It was quite amazing, with crunchy exterior, and soft eggs in the inside. It was not greasy at all, and the sesame seeds that was coating the exterior added extra crunchy texture and nutty flavor. Didn’t get much bacon nor onion action, as the eggs took the center stage. I still enjoyed it a lot!
Hangover Tots or Home Fries Skillet ($16) had me at “tots”… LOL. I love tater tots, so we of course chose the Tots instead of Home Fries. It is made with Tots with 2 Eggs, Cheese, Bacon, Italian sausage, Spam, Avocado, Sautéed Cherry Tomatoes, Chipotle Aioli & Ketchup. The eggs were cooked to perfection, sunny-side up, with oozy middle. Tots were not greasy, but wonderfully crunchy and potato-y. The seasoning was amazing, loved the Chipotle Aioli & Ketchup concoction. It had a little kick off spicy flavor that was so addictive. Avocado was ripen, soft, and gave that fresh flavor. There were pieces of sausages that added extra texture and flavor. So good!
And then there was the SET Steak & Eggs Skillet ($30). It is made with Vietnamese Buttered Skirt Steak, Sriracha Garlic Home Fries, 2 Sunny Side Eggs. We got this with Waffle Fries, as we really enjoyed their waffle fries before. This dish was huge and very impressive!
Steak is super tender and juicy, and the seasoning was out of this world! It was totally a steak heaven. I’ve had my share of Steak and Eggs, but this one from Set L.E.S. was simply amazing! The meat was tender you don’t need a steak knife (we weren’t given one anyways, but we had no issue with that). Waffle fries had the perfect amount of salty flavor, crunchy and potato-y. It had a nice spice with a little kick, which was also on top of perfectly cooked eggs. Everything was so flavorful, it was not easy to put my fork down, no matter how full I was feeling.
We also had two more cocktails during our big brunch. This time, we ordered from their regular cocktail menu, and not the Brunch cocktails menu. We ordered Sun Dia ($16), made with Tequila, Watermelon Juice, Triple Sec, and Lime Juice. You have to have some watermelon something in the summer… It had a nice sweetness to it, but refreshing too. I ordered Wifey ($16), made with Casamigos Blanco, Raspberries, Egg White, Fresh Lemon, and Simple Syrup. It was beautiful with the gradation of colors that went from red to white. It was nice and tart, and very strong raspberry flavor. Egg white was smooth and delicate, nice drink!
We had an amazing brunch her at Set L.E.S. once again. Everything we had was spectacular! Loved every dish we chose. We were very happy and quite full. The service was friendly and courteous. The music was a bit too loud, but that is kind of normal at a bar/restaurant setting. They did have a good music mix. The high chairs were surprisingly comfortable. We liked the new look of the place, and we love their food and drink! We would definitely go back again in the future for more tasty dishes!
Set L.E.S. – 127 Ludlow St, New York, NY 10002