We've discovered the coziest place in town to spend a lazy, drizzly Sunday morning.

Cafe du Teau, with a well-deserved reputation as one of the finest eateries in town, has recently begun serving a Sunday brunch. What took them so long?

With its soothing murals, ceiling fans, hanging plants, white linen tablecloths, plush booths, mellow jazz and flickering candles, Cafe du Teau is equal parts Paris and paradise.

The beautifully crafted brunch menu items include several elegant appetizers, four nice salads, seven ultra-creative egg dishes and four amazing hot entrees.

Our meal began with a basket of biscuits and bran muffins. The biscuits were disappointingly thin, but delicious. The muffins were as yummy as they were healthy.

Next came an appetizer of stuffed mushrooms ($6.95). The mushrooms, with a subtle garlic flavor, were generously stuffed with lump crabmeat and topped with white cheddar. Also memorable was the blackened shrimp and yellow grits ($6.95), skewered blackened shrimp with lightly sauteed grapes atop impeccably prepared grits.

For entrees, we chose tenderloin benedict ($14.95) and shrimp crepes ($12.95). Each was served with a house salad and choice of home fries or grits. The tenderloin, two beef tenderloin medallions on English muffins topped with poached eggs, was delectable. The beef melted in the mouth and the eggs were light and fluffy. The home fries (tiny cubes of fried potatoes) were wonderfully seasoned.

The crepes (French pancakes filled with scallions, sauteed shrimp, mushrooms and Mornay sauce, baked gratinee) were downright luscious. If you're going to blast your fat calories out of the stratosphere, this is the way to do it. (We get heart-healthy points for the bran muffins, right?)

We cried uncle before we could sample dessert, but the server's description of delicacies such as bananas Foster and creme brulee left us weak-kneed.

There were a couple of snafus; the iced tea tasted bitter (read old) and the service was slow. But elegance and good taste abounded, and our server aced the clutter test. The food and ambiance were so unbeatable that we left wishing we could add a couple of extra Sundays to the week.

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ON THE TOWN

The Eatery: Cafe du Teau, 1855 Central Ave. (map)

Hours: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for Sunday brunch; regular hours 5:30 p.m. until closing Tuesday-Sunday

Phone: 733-3505

The Verdict: Tasteful elegance for a lazy Sunday morning treat. 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.

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Mary Deriso is the retired general manager of the Pinnacle Club, a private dining club in Augusta. Christine Hurley Deriso is a writer whose children's book, Dreams to Grow On, is available in local bookstores and on Amazon.com.