FOOD

The central idea of Hugo’s brunch is regional Mexican cooking first, buffet second. Chef Hugo Ortega’s regular menu has long been built around the cuisines of Mexico rather than a Tex-Mex shorthand, and Sunday keeps that vocabulary while opening it up for sampling. The fundamentals are unusually serious for an unlimited spread: masa, tortillas, cheeses, salsas, moles and even the chocolate are made in house, so the abundance grows out of the same scratch-made work that defines dinner.

Start with the foods that establish the brunch character. Chilaquiles and huevos rancheros bring eggs into the meal through salsa, tortillas and chile rather than through a conventional omelet station. Chilaquiles are one of the buffet’s durable signatures, with tortilla pieces absorbing tomatillo or other chile-based sauces while keeping enough structure for a second helping. Enchiladas and chile rellenos push the plate further into lunch territory, which is why the 10-to-3 format feels less like breakfast and more like a Sunday feast.

Tamales deserve their own pass. Hugo’s makes the masa in house, and the buffet has long used the form as a place for variety rather than offering a single token filling. Savory versions may sit beside sweeter or more unexpected ones, giving the station the feeling of a small regional survey. Fresh corn tortillas and antojitos coming off the comal are equally important: they add heat, texture and immediacy to a format that can otherwise flatten everything into steam-table sameness.

The savory rotation can travel widely. Fresh ceviches bring acidity and cool seafood into the middle of a rich meal; carnitas and other slow-cooked meats give the tortillas something substantial to carry; complex moles add the darker, spiced depth central to Hugo’s cooking. The buffet has also made room over the years for distinctly Mexican detours such as birria de chivo, huitlacoche-filled quesadillas, nopales, fish tamales and duck under mole. Not every specialty appears every Sunday, but the rotating regional material is part of the reason repeat visits can feel different.

That range rewards a little discipline. A plate that begins with ceviche, a small tamal and a chile relleno leaves room to circle back for chilaquiles, mole and a tortilla built around whatever slow-cooked meat is in the day’s rotation. The appeal is not simply quantity. It is the freedom to put foods with very different regional identities side by side, taste them in small portions, and then return to whichever combination made the strongest case.

Dessert is almost a second buffet. Pastry chef Ruben Ortega’s side of the spread includes pan dulce, breads, cookies, tres leches, flan and churros, with fruit offering the occasional reset. Housemade chocolate gives the churros and Mexican hot chocolate a deeper connection to the restaurant’s scratch-made philosophy rather than treating sweets as an afterthought. Tres leches is the obvious landmark, but the pleasure is in seeing traditional Mexican pastry share the same abundance as the savory side.

Regular drip coffee is included in the buffet price; specialty coffee, espresso drinks, fresh-squeezed juices, margaritas and brunch cocktails are additional. Mexican coffee and hot chocolate fit especially well if the meal stretches toward dessert. The final difficulty is the classic buffet problem in a more interesting form: there are too many things worth tasting before you have even reached the pastry table.