BRUNCH is the new breakfast for those who love dining out.

And due to popular demand for the mid-morning dishes an Essex restaurant has introduced a special section to its menu catering for those not quite wanting a big meal but still in need of something having skipped breakfast.

It will be on offer every weekend from 10am to 1pm, the optimum days and time for brunchers.

Antonio Lopez Rocha, head chef at steak and Grillhouse Chop Bloc in Chelmsford is behind the new additions which he explains have arrived by popular demand from customers.

Keeping the steakhouse ethos, the eaterie has come up with a new specially designed range of dishes - both sweet and savoury to satisfy diners late for breakfast and early for lunch.

Antonio explains it is a meal which has become popular with food fans including his own family.

And he explains this has inspired some of the dishes on the new brunch menu: "Food and family are my passion.

"My wife, kids and I always try and eat breakfast together, when we can, and when we do I always make their favourites."

He says these include French toast and Heuvos Rancheros.

"These two dishes always get requested, so I have tweaked them slightly for our brunch menu, and truly hope that they become our guest’s family favourites too.”

Combining sweet and savoury, the brunch offerings also including pancakes, Eggs Benedict, a chorizo breakfast bown, brunch brioche, and smoked beef hash.

As a popular steakhouse the Chop Bloc has become popular with diners for its cuts of meat and approach to cooking it so the brunch menu also includes a steaek and eggs option.

As with the dinner menu, the brunch option gives diners the chance to choose and favourite cut from sirloin to fillet or T-bone and then a style of eggs complete with homemade hash browns.

All the steaks are sourced from Hereford cattle, which live on farms in the UK which stick to strict animal welfare practices.

It is one of the UK's oldest native beef breeds, originating in the County of Herefordshire in the mid 1700s and reared in a traditional way to produce quality beef which is naturally marbled

Antonio has shared these recipes for two of the dishes for a chance to re-creating the brunch favourites at home :

Huevos Rancheros:

Ingredients

For the tomato base:

* One tin or six blanched and de-skinned fresh tomatoes.

* One medium onion peeled and finely chopped

* A large carrot peeled and finely chopped

* A large celery stick washed and ended finely chopped

* One tbsp Tomato purée

* Half cup water (add more if sauce is too thick)

Then :

* 100g Black Beans

* 100g Tomato Sauce

* One tortilla

* 100g Guacamole

* Two fried eggs

* 50g Chorizo

* 5g Fresh Chilli

* 5g Coriander

Method :

* Make the tomato base by blending, onion, chopped tomato's, carrots, celery, water and tomato puree, put all in a blender and mix.

* Heat all the other ingredients up, the chilli, coriander, black beans, tomato sauce, excluding the Guacamole.

* Fry the eggs

* Put all the ingredients of the dish, on top of the warm Tortilla.

Brioche French Toast:

Ingredients

* Two slices of Brioche

* Two eggs

* 100ml Milk

* 2g Vanilla Extract

* Maple syrup and blueberries (optional)

Method

* Mix the milk, eggs and vanilla extract together in a mixing bowl

* Soak the brioche bread in the mix

* Fry the bread in a hot pan until golden brown on both sides.

* Add maple syrup and blueberries for that extra zing.