Between Us has been on my list for the longest time. After finally trying it, my only regret is not…read morecoming sooner because everything we ordered was delicious. We walked in around 12:40 without a reservation. They close at 2:30, but we were still seated pretty quickly. Every employee we interacted with was genuinely friendly. The service never felt rushed even though we came close to close. I also had no idea we walked in during their "US Hour" from 12:00 to 2:30, so that ended up being a nice surprise. They offer $7 draft beers, $9 wine, $10 mimosas, plus a handful of bites for $9. We started with the Fried Calamari Tentacles from the US Hour menu. They're served with Japanese mayo, although it tasted like there was some citrus mixed in because it had a nice tangy kick. Whatever it was, it worked really well with the crispy calamari. To drink, I ordered the Yuzu Matcha Mimosa. It had a really vibrant green color that almost reminded me of green juice. I actually enjoyed it. The matcha flavor came through without getting lost. My friend wasn't the biggest fan because they thought it leaned a little too bitter, so I think this one depends on how much you already enjoy matcha. For my entree, I ordered the Duck and Waffles ($24), which comes with crispy duck confit, a waffle, passionfruit guava sauce, and chili crunch. This was easily the highlight of the meal. The duck was cooked perfectly. It was crispy on the outside, tender inside, and seasoned just enough to let the meat shine. I also appreciated that the chili crunch actually had some heat instead of just being there for texture. The waffle was light and fluffy. I'm a sucker for sweet and savory combinations, so the powdered sugar paired with the rich duck was enough to win me over. The passionfruit guava sauce was the only part I wasn't completely sold on. It wasn't bad by any means. I just think it's one of those flavors that comes down to personal preference. This ended up being one of those meals that reminded me why I keep a running list of places I want to try. Great food. Great service. A fun happy hour that I accidentally stumbled into. My only wish is that parking in North Park was a little easier, but that's just part of the neighborhood. I'd definitely come back.

A new brunch spot located in NP run by the young new owners of Thai Time across the street…read more "Between Us" is aptly named with some fusion, "in-between" offerings ranging from Curry Hamburg (Japanese), ube dips (Filipino), Duck Waffles (Chinese fusion), Latke Benedict (Jewish fusion), Beignets (Cajun) and Shakshuka (North African). We had the Beignets (5 for $12) to share, and I ordered the Curry Hamburg ($20), a Black Sesame Latte ($7) w/ a shot of Matcha (+$2), and a Matcha Yuzu Mimosa ($13) for myself. The beignets, perfectly shared between the 5 of us, were a bit too dense and possessed a weirdly hard outer crust. The matcha cream and black sesame mascarpone serving as dips made them a little more enjoyable. The black sesame latte was deliciously nutty, but the matcha shot at the $2 up charge was exorbitant. (Note: This is their only caffeine addition -- along with hojicha -- as they do not have an espresso machine). I was very disappointed in the Curry Hamburg, unfortunately. This was a failed attempt at omurice. The egg, while plentiful, was not even seasoned. Further, the equally unseasoned hamburger patty was very dry and the sauce over-salty. They should have distributed the salt and seasoning throughout the dish because it lacked serious balance. They just added beer and mimosas, so the Matcha Yuzu Mimosa, though overkill with the Matcha (and likely wasted), did ease the ache some. I made reservations online via OpenTable where I had to put a credit card down and agree to the seemingly shady policy regarding party changes within a 24 hour period. We were seated immediately, but they gave us a table with some weird wooden fold-up chairs. Our table was strangely the only one with these uncomfortable chairs. It was also excessively loud and we almost didn't learn the name of our server, who, by the way, was PHENOMENAL despite some of the disappointment with the food! Thank you (Mick) Jagger for taking care of us and getting our food out to us so quickly!