20 Best Brunch Spots in Chicago

High Angle View Of Breakfast Served On Table at Chicago restaurant
Christie Russert / EyeEm / Getty Images

The brunch scene in Chicago is diverse and vast, with options all over the Windy City that serve this mid-morning to early afternoon meal on weekends throughout the year. Many of these great restaurants are also near famous Chicago landmarks like the Lincoln Park ZooMagnificent MileMillennium Park, and Willis Tower, while others are off the tourist path and give visitors a chance to explore Chi-Town's colorful neighborhoods.

Most brunch restaurants in Chicago serve their menus on Saturdays and Sundays from mid-morning to the afternoon, but some of them offer "brunch all day" or even throughout the week, in case you need an omelet and some mimosas outside of the weekend. From appropriate family-friendly finds to high-end destinations with star chefs, you're sure to find somewhere for brunch to make your Chicago trip memorable.

01 of 20

Luella’s Southern Kitchen

Luella’s Southern Kitchen french toast

Kurman Communications, Inc. / Flickr 

Address
4609 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60625, USA
Phone +1 773-961-8196

Named after chef and owner Darnell Reed's great-grandmother—whose delicious Southern recipes inspired him to pursue his passion for cooking as a career—Luella's Southern Kitchen is located in the Lincoln Square neighborhood a block away from the Old Town School of Folk Music. This BYOB restaurant offers contemporary updates on Southern favorites like brown sugar and bourbon French toast, a pimento cheeseburger, shrimp and grits, and Nashville hot chicken and waffles.

02 of 20

North Pond

North Pond restaurant

North Pond

Address
2610 N Cannon Dr, Chicago, IL 60614, USA
Phone +1 773-477-5845

Located a short stroll from the Lincoln Park Zoo, North Pond Restaurant serves brunch every Sunday. This James Beard award-winning restaurant offers a spectacular view of a pond overlooking the Chicago skyline. Originally built in 1912 as a warming shelter for ice skaters, this redesigned restaurant now features a menu prepared by Chef Bruce Sherman using fresh, local ingredients from small farms nearby. The fixed menu constantly changes but you can choose between seasonal dishes for a delicious farm-to-table three-course meal and order specialty cocktails from the bar for an additional charge.

03 of 20

avec Restaurant

West Loop neighborhood in Chicago

Ken Lund / Flickr 

Address
615 W Randolph St, Chicago, IL 60661-2239, USA
Phone +1 312-377-2002

Just a few blocks north of the Old Saint Patrick's Cathedral in the West Loop neighborhood of Chicago, avec Restaurant offers a brunch on Sundays featuring a fusion of Mediterranean and Midwestern spices and foods. Menu highlights include wood-oven baked French toast with fresh ricotta, baked lavendar yogurt with fresh peaches and honey almond granola, and squash blossom pizza with smoked mozzarella and an egg.

04 of 20

Bijan's Bistro

interior of Bijan's Bistro

Bijan's Bistro

Address
663 N State St, Chicago, IL 60611, USA

Located in the River North section of Chicago, Bijan's Bistro offers its brunch menu on weekends. The restaurant is two blocks away from the Richard H. Driehaus Museum, making it a great stop for an afternoon brunch of steak and eggs, Belgian waffles, a pancetta burger, or a shrimp roll. You can order sangria by the glass to accompany or go all out and ask for the bottomless mimosa deal.

Continue to 5 of 20 below.
05 of 20

Wishbone

Wishbone

 Paul Sableman / Flickr

Address
161 N Jefferson St, Chicago, IL 60661, USA
Phone +1 312-850-2663

Frequented by Oprah Winfrey when she lived in Chicago, Wishbone offers cuisine inspired by traditions of the Deep South. With dishes like the Savannah shrimp omelet, Kentucky scrambled eggs, and North Carolina-style crab or crawfish cakes with hollandaise sauce, Wishbone's brunch is a West Loop favorite on Saturdays and Sundays. Menu items are relatively inexpensive here and the full bar sometimes offers discounts on cocktails when dining for brunch.

06 of 20

Au Cheval

Outside Au Cheval

 Interim Archives / Getty Images

Address
800 W Randolph St, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
Phone +1 312-929-4580

If you're looking for a good deal on brunch in the West Loop neighborhood, Au Cheval serves traditional diner fare with a focus on eggs. After all, its name is a food phrase that means "with an egg on top." The wait can be up to two hours on Saturdays and Sundays for brunch since they don't take reservations, but with tasty menu items like cheeseburger á cheval, chilaquiles, and crispy potato hash with duck heart gravy on the menu, it's worth the time in line.

07 of 20

The Florentine

Grand Opening Of The JW Marriott Chicago

Daniel Boczarski / Getty Images 

Address
151 W Adams St, Chicago, IL 60603, USA
Phone +1 312-660-8866

Located just two blocks from Willis Tower inside the JW Marriott Chicago, The Florentine offers bottomless mimosas and bloody mary cocktails on Saturdays and Sundays. This Printer's Row neighborhood restaurant offers an Italian twist to brunch as well as seasonal dishes featuring high-quality, local ingredients. The Amatriciana with sunny side eggs, caramelized onions, pancetta, spicy tomato sauce, and grilled sourdough is particularly good, as is the egg white frittata.

08 of 20

Chicago Q

Chicago Q Smoked Bacon Baklava

 opacity / Flickr

Address
1160 N Dearborn St, Chicago, IL 60610-2720, USA
Phone +1 312-642-1160

Located in the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago, just a short walk away from Oak Street Beach and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago Q is one of the city's favorite BBQ restaurants with brunch service offered Friday to Sunday. Along with signature BBQ items like smoked chicken or brisket eggs Benedict, you'll also find Creole fried alligator, hush puppies, and shrimp and grits. For an additional fee, you can also buy in for some bottomless mimosas.

Continue to 9 of 20 below.
09 of 20

Bistronomic

Eggs Benedict, Canadian Bacon, Hollandaise, Fines Herbes at Bistronomic,

Lou Stejskal / Flickr 

Address
840 N Wabash Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
Phone +1 312-944-8400

Located a short stroll from the Magnificent Mile in Chicago, the French-inspired menu at Bistronomic features a delicious traditional croque monsieur alongside short-stack pancakes, brioche French toast, omelets, and eggs Benedict. The award-winning dish, however, is Le French Burger with country pate and cognac sauce. On Saturdays and Sundays, guests can also pay a little extra for 90 minutes of bottomless mimosa—plenty of time to get your money's worth.

10 of 20

Baptiste & Bottle

Hilton Files Plans For Initial Public Offering

Scott Olson / Getty Images 

Address
101 E Erie St, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
Phone +1 312-667-6793

If you're looking for a boozy brunch, you can head over to the lobby-level eatery Baptiste & Bottle inside the Conrad Chicago. The Saturday and Sunday brunch menu features favorites like Nutella French toast with hazelnuts, strawberries, and vanilla chantilly and a hashbrown skillet with a chicken thigh and a fried egg. For an additional flat fee, you can indulge in an unlimited bloody mary and mimosa bar that's filled with all sorts of homemade mixes and garnishes served with bourbon, vodka, or tequila.

11 of 20

Sinhá Elegant Cuisine

Chicago United Center

 Wally Gobetz / Wikimedia Commons

Address
2018 W Adams St, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
Phone +1 312-491-8200

Directly across the street from the United Center, you'll find a South American restaurant unlike any other in the city. Sinhá Elegant Cuisine was opened by a Brazilian-born woman who still curates the weekly Sunday brunch menu. Featuring live entertainment, samba dancing, and an all-you-can-eat spread of classic Brazilian dishes such as fish stew and black beans with seasoned basmati rice, Sinhá Elegant Cuisine is a great BYOB brunch spot if you're looking for something south of the border. The Brazil brunch buffet is only available on Sunday, but Sinhá serves a "mini-brunch" throughout the week.

12 of 20

Shaw's Crab House

Chicago Navy Pier

 J.Castro / Getty Images

Address
21 E Hubbard St, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
Phone +1 312-527-2722

Just a short walk away from the Navy Pier, Shaw's Crab House is one of Chicago's most highly regarded seafood restaurants. A family-style brunch is served every Saturday and Sunday featuring a fixed four-course menu to share among your table. Since this is a crab house, you can expect the menu to include some of the best seafood in Chi-Town, including oysters, shrimp cocktail, chilled mussels, and lobster bisque.

Continue to 13 of 20 below.
13 of 20

Pearl's Place

Shrimp and grits at Pearl's Place

Pearl's Place

Address
3901 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60653, USA
Phone +1 773-285-1700

Southern-focused classics are served all day at this relaxed family eatery in Chicago's historic Bronzeville neighborhood. The menu features options like made-to-order omelets, home-style potatoes, grits, and buttermilk biscuits, making it the perfect place for a "down home" southern cooked' brunch. Pearl's Place has been a neighborhood staple for decades, contributing to several community events and organizations each year.

14 of 20

Peach's on 47th

two breakfast plates at Peaches

Peaches on 47th

Address
4652 S King Dr, Chicago, IL 60653, USA
Phone +1 773-966-5801

Ranked the "Best Brunch in Chicago" by Condé Nast Traveler Magazine, Peach's on 47th offers breakfast and lunch items daily. Deeply rooted in the African American community of Chicago, Peach's is a neighborhood staple and just a quick drive from Hyde Park, where you'll be near President Barack Obama's home. In addition to such specialties as salmon croquettes and cheese grits, peach bourbon French toast, and fried chicken wings with cinnamon French toast and sweet honey butter, you can also choose from egg white omelets and gluten-free pancakes.

15 of 20

Lula Cafe

Lula's take on the jibarito benedict

 Lula Cafe

Address
2537 N Kedzie Blvd, Chicago, IL 60647, USA
Phone +1 773-489-9554

Located near Logan Square, Lula Cafe was one of Chicago's pioneers in the local, organic, and sustainably sourced cuisine scene. The brunch is particularly popular here and is offered every morning from Thursday to Sunday. While the menu is limited, it's only because they specialize in the best. What's offered depends on what products are in season, so the menu is constantly being updated, but some examples include a summer squash breakfast sandwich, smoked trout scramble, or their signature breakfast burrito.

16 of 20

Little Goat

Outside Little Goat

Interim Archives / Getty Images 

Address
820 W Randolph St, Chicago, IL 60607-2308, USA
Phone +1 312-888-3455

Stephanie Izard’s contemporary West Loop diner is open all day, and you can order breakfast or brunch any time of day. This menu at this kid-friendly restaurant features favorites like dark chocolate chip crunch pancakes with chocolate malt butter or big homemade biscuits smothered in gravy. But don't take "kid-friendly" to mean that everything on the menu is geared toward a young palate; Japanese okonomiyaki omelets or an Indian-style breakfast burrito show that Little Goat has something for all.

Continue to 17 of 20 below.
17 of 20

Kitsch'n on Roscoe

interior of Kitsch'n On Roscoe

Kitsch'n On Roscoe

Address
2005 W Roscoe St, Chicago, IL 60618-6201, USA
Phone +1 773-248-7372

Located in the quaint neighborhood of Roscoe Village, Kitsch'n on Roscoe is a quirky restaurant offering throwback dishes like Green Eggs & Ham, candied bacon BLT, cinnamon toast, and various takes on the classic French toast. The restaurant is also not too far from Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs Major League Baseball team, and the Southport Corridor shopping district, where you can browse some of the biggest designer names alongside local artists and vendors.

18 of 20

Bub City

Biscuit sandwiches at Bub City

Bub City 

Address
435 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60654, USA
Phone +1 312-610-4200

With a location just outside the Chicago O'Hare Airport as well as in the bustling River North neighborhood of the city itself, Bub City is a great place to grab a BBQ-inspired brunch while listening to country music. You can order entrees including biscuits and gravy, breakfast tacos, and fried chicken sandwiches along with sides such as cheesy grits, crispy tots, or mac and cheese. Brunch is served Saturdays and Sundays at the River North location and daily at the Rosemont location near the airport.

19 of 20

The Publican

Inside seating at the Publican

The Publican

Address
837 W Fulton Market, Chicago, IL 60607-1318, USA
Phone +1 312-733-9555

The brainchild of Michelin-starred chef Paul Kahan, Publican cranks out unconventional bites to the delight of its many fans. Brunch is served on Saturdays and Sundays and the seasonal menu changes by the week, but always includes the freshest ingredients and produce, such as fava bean sandwich with runny eggs or a cauliflower scramble with romesco sauce (all of the dishes are vegetarian by default, but you can add bacon or sausage to any of them). Publican's "Libations" menu is just as creative as their food menu, with fresh juice cocktails or their signature witbier mimosa.

20 of 20

River Roast

Blues and Brews Brunch menu item at River Roast

River Roast

Address
315 N La Salle St, Chicago, IL 60654, USA
Phone +1 312-822-0100

Featuring riverfront views and a British-American fusion menu of brunch favorites from both sides of the pond on Saturdays and Sundays, River Roast has become a River North staple for Chicago-style blues and great food. Local bands rotate weekly as guests chow down on updated Southern dishes like chicken and waffles, steak and eggs with salsa verde, and a seasonally inspired omelet.

Back to List

20 Best Brunch Spots in Chicago