Experience Brunch In a Barrington Farmhouse on North That Feels Like Home

Meghan McGinty’s Farmhouse On North is like coming home for the holidays. It is a cozy, warm and welcoming restaurant located in an historic house in the heart of the Village of Barrington, Illinois. The smell of bacon and maple syrup mixed with gingerbread and fresh pine fills the room as soon as you walk in from the wintery cold. This is Barrington brunch at its best. Every dish is made in-house from locally sourced food products.

Farmhouse on North is Barrington’s first farm-to-table restaurant. It opened to rave reviews in September 2016.  5-star Yelp reviews and neighborhood word-of-mouth has made Farmhouse on North the new “it” place in town for dinner.  The addition of Sunday Brunch to its dinner menu is just one more reason to visit this charming new restaurant. Brunch is served on Sundays from 9:00AM - 1:00PM.

One of the most popular items on the brunch menu is Chicken Biscuit. It is a wonderful plate of Fried Chicken, Homestyle Potatoes smothered in Chicken Gravy, made-to-order Eggs, and a side of Homemade Biscuits.  The fried chicken is the best we have ever tasted. Yes, really.  The organic whole chickens and eggs are sourced from renowned Slagel Family Farm in Fairbury, Illinois. Chef Griffin hand cuts each chicken breast with a wing attached before deep frying with his secret breading. The result is the freshest poultry taste, moist and crunchy at the same time. Each bite is to die for.  The freshly made biscuits were notable for their height and flakiness.

 

 We also tried the Irish Steel Oatmeal garnished with dried cherries, pecans, and brown sugar butter.  Chef added a bourbon maple syrup that took it over the top. So good!

 

Add a Bloody Mary to round out a great Brunch. Additional brunch items include, for example, a Hangar Steak & Eggs Flatbread loaded with cheddar cheese, onions and mushrooms, or Shrimp & Grits with a Bacon Crumble and Creole Sauce.

While the ambience and charming farmhouse setting is wonderful, the food is the star at Farmhouse on North.  Le Cordon Bleu trained Chef Marcanthony Griffin, General Manager Michael Vaccarello, and proprietor Meghan McGinty collaborate to provide new and innovative weekly specials based on the best food products locally available.  For example when fresh pork belly was available, they came up with a Pork Belly Mac & Cheese with Wild Mushrooms and a Truffle Oil Crust. Other favorite weekly specials are the ever-changing flatbreads, and a hand-trimmed 35 ounce Rib-eye Steak for Two.  You can call to find out weekly specials or check their Facebook page.

Opening a restaurant, including assembling a top-notch team, completing renovations in a historic building, building relationships with local farms and food producers, and creating an innovative menu has been both a dream and a labor of love for Lake Zurich native Meghan McGinty. “Reception to our concept from the Barrington community has exceeded all expectations. My dream has been realized and I’m excited about the future” said Meghan McGinty, when asked how it feels to have her first restaurant become such a success.

Seating for both Brunch and Dinner menu is handled on a walk-in basis.   Insiders know that the upstairs bar is a great place to hangout with friends, sample the creative cocktails, or meet new friends while waiting for your table. Reservations can be made for groups of 7 or more.

Farmhouse on North is located at 117 North Avenue in Barrington, Illinois. Dinner is served Tuesday through Saturday starting at 5:00PM.  Brunch is served on Sundays from 9:00AM - 1:00PM. The restaurant is closed on Mondays.  Brunch will resume on Sunday January 8, 2017.  Call 847 387-3408 for more information.