Brunchkin switches format

Brunchkin is switching things up.

The weekend brunch pop-up restaurant started in spring at Batch Bakeshop, now known as A Small Batch. Husband-and-wife owners Jordan and Charlotte Ripley recently announced on Instagram that they are taking a couple of weeks off and launching Brunchkin 2.0 in September.

The new format is a monthly, fixed-price event with a rotating menu. The first day of service is slated for Sunday, Sept. 9.

Reservations for the monthly brunch service will be available online soon.

Meantime, the couple’s signature aebleskivers will be available at the Kendall Yards Night Market and Thursday Market in the South Perry District.

Jordan Ripley grew up celebrating his Danish heritage with aebleskivers on Christmas morning. His wife, Charlotte Ripley, who has celiac disease and can’t consume gluten, has since perfected a gluten-free version of the golf-ball-sized pancakes, or “apple slices” in Danish.

“One of our favorite aspects of our brunch service is the small menu that lets us experiment with new dishes and flavors. If you’ve been in recently, you might’ve tried our sour-doughy aebleskivers or green eggs scram,” the couple wrote on Instagram, adding that they hope the new plan “lets us focus on developing a menu of the food we like best, while still allowing you regular opportunities to come in and enjoy Brunchkin. We also hope this alleviates some of the challenges with our limited seating capacity.”

Under the new format, baked goods, quiches and drinks will still be available for folks who don’t make a reservation in advance.

Brunchkin is a portmanteau, combining brunch and munchkin. The couple – fans of whimsy, hobbit holes and “The Lord of the Rings” – were going for a mystical and mischievous vibe. They began selling their gluten-free aebleskivers and other gluten-free pastries and baked goods – hazelnut coffee cake, flourless lemon doughnuts – at a couple of local farmers markets shortly after they moved here last year.

Brunchkin pop-up staples include a Forbidden Rice Bowl with black rice, preserved lemon, a turmeric poached egg and horseradish-cashew cream; a granola bowl with turmeric, chai spices, maple syrup, maple-cardamom yogurt and strawberry-rhubarb puree; rosti potatoes with a fried egg, feta cream, onion jam, greens and mustard vinaigrette; and a salmon quiche with a potato crust, smoked salmon and fresh dill.

A Small Batch is at 2023 W. Dean Ave. On the web: thebrunchkin.com.