The Eveleigh’s seeded granola for the “I can barely stomach anything” hangover.

As someone who’s not into scenes, look-at-me-ness or celebutards, I avoid the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood like I do babies and questionable rashes on people. But when a publicist used my two favorite words (“brunch” and “cocktails”) in her pitch to entice me to check out The Eveleigh (“eh-ver-lee”) — a newish restaurant by three Aussie hotties Nick Hatsatouris, Nick Mathers and Lincoln Pilcher — well, I said “hells yeah!”

The cocktail menu, a nice mix of classics and instant classics, was created by bar manager Dave Kupchinsky, formerly of Tar Pit. But I didn’t know this til I arrived at the Abercrombie & Fitch-esque restaurant, in the former Kenneth Cole space, late Sunday morning. I just love brunch and cocktails!

Nice place to nurse a hangover.

And yes, the decor of reclaimed wood, rustic tchotchkes and lime and lemon trees instantly transports you from standing on L.A.’s famous thoroughfare to the Hamptons or Sonoma wine country or somewhere casual and far from billboards and nonstop gridlock.

Walking past a water fountain which a trio of friends let their dogs drink from and into the front part of the restaurant where I was greeted by a hostess with a genuine smile, I felt stirrings in my heart. Could this be the one place on the Sunset Strip that’s for the likes of me?

The hostess lead me and my brunch companion, blogger ShopEatSleep, past a fireplace, a beautiful bar with a steel (?) top counter and old-fashioned-looking bar stools to our seats on the patio out back. There were two long communal tables and several booths. In the back was a bar that is currently not in use but, we’re told, will some day be. The roof was open but plastic walls helped keep it from getting too breezy. Can’t wait to see what this place will be like during the summer.

From Los Angeles Times:

This Aussie-accented newcomer brings a rustic chic setting, appealing French-Italian comfort food and a savvy cocktail and wine list to the party on Sunset.

Perusing the brunch menu, I was immediately struck by the varied selection of dishes that would appeal to any hungover appetite: from “I can barely eat anything” seeded granola with frozen yogurt and blood orange to “I need fat” Big Breakfast with eggs, pork and sage sausage, smoked bacon, potato hash, and avocado toast. This is a big win for anyone wandering the Strip in a boozy, post-Saturday night haze. And if you’re not hungover, I highly recommend the soft scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, chervil hollandaise on an English muffin for $13.

Bubble & Squeak.

That’s another thing I appreciated about the Eveleigh, its prices. Sure, this media brunch was comped but I wouldn’t have minded paying my own way. Of course I don’t know if I can reconcile paying $9 for banana bread with lemon and clove mascarpone and honey but at least we’re not talking $18 for chicken and waffles ::cough::Tasting Kitchen::cough! And the cocktails here are $12 each, not too bad for WeHo.

Speaking of which I like how the cocktails also vary in a hangover-friendly manner, from a soothing gin with housemade tonic to the “I want to be drunk again” Morning Glory Fizz with Scotch, lemon sugar, absinthe and egg white. And for those who’d rather go the route of a healthy hangover cure, there’s a smoothies menu. And one particular shot, the Wake Me Up shot was described as something that will instantly detox you, making you sweat out the toxins. Made of ginger, lemon and cayenne it’s said to help your digestive system and circulation. Maybe try that after the cocktails.

My favorite smoothie, though, was the Cacao-Nut Date made with young coconut meat, coconut water, sweet cacao nibs, cinnamon, vanilla stevia and vanilla hemp milk. I can’t see this being a hangover cure because it’s sweet like a pastry and a bit gritty thanks to the nibs, but it’s a delicious drink to have after brunch.

In any case, The Eveleigh is definitely a brunch spot worth trekking out to WeHo for on the weekend, if you’re looking for a quiet spot on the Strip to nurse your hangover, far from the maddening mechanical bull and AMFs of Saddle Ranch up the street.

Hit the jump for the brunch cocktail gallery.

The Eveleigh
8752 Sunset Boulevard
West Hollywood, California 90046 (map)
(424) 239-1630
Hours: Dinner — Sunday-Wednesday 5pm-10pm, Thursday-Saturday 5pm-10pm, Brunch — Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm

Chanel No. 5: pomegranate, serrano infused mescal, agave, lime

Mescal Old Fashioned

Blood & Smoke: mescal, Sweet Vermouth, cherry Heering, blood orange, Serrano peppers, mesquite smoke

Gin with housemade tonic.