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Tacos in individual cardboard serving trays with metal cups of sauces on the side.
Breakfast tacos at Vincent’s.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

14 Top-Notch Brunches Around Boston

Stacks of pancakes, endless dim sum, crispy fried chicken, and more

by Eater Staff Updated
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Breakfast tacos at Vincent’s.
| Erika Adams/Eater Boston
by Eater Staff Updated

With a wide-open weekend and endless hours to linger over eggs Benedict, syrup-laden French toast, piping hot coffee, and boozy beverages, nothing suits the day better than brunch. Boston readily embraces the weekend ritual with all-you-can-eat brunch buffets, baklava pancakes, and an endless parade of dim sum. Here’s a sampling of excellent Boston-area brunch options, a mix of neighborhood mainstays and some newer spots worth exploring.

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The Neighborhood Restaurant

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Classic breakfast options and huge portions abound at this aptly named neighborhood restaurant in Somerville’s Union Square. Eggs, French toast, home fries, pancakes, omelets, and more are all on the menu at the family-run restaurant that has been around since 1983. The Borges family’s Portuguese roots show up in some of the dishes. A must-have is the Cream of Wheat, which also comes as one of the appetizer choices with any breakfast selection. Venture onto the handwritten specials page of the menu for huge, flavor-packed pancakes, French toast, and more. Breakfast starts at 7 a.m. daily.

25 Bow St, Somerville, MA 02143
(617) 623-9710
(617) 623-9710
A white bowl of Cream of Wheat sits on a dark background, topped with a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.
Cream of Wheat at Neighborhood in Somerville.
Rachel Leah Blumenthal/Eater Boston

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Monument Restaurant & Tavern

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Soaring ceilings; handsome, rustic wood; and brick walls make for a relaxing backdrop to one of the most loved brunches in Charlestown. Saucy birria breakfast tacos, fluffy lemon and poppyseed pancakes, and breakfast pizza are all on offer alongside buckets of prosecco, cinnamon toast brunch cocktails with cereal milk, and more. Brunch runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

251 Main St, Boston, MA 02129
(617) 337-5191
(617) 337-5191

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Reelhouse

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In anticipation of warmer days ahead, how about brunch on the waterfront? Reelhouse’s seafood-centric version includes shellfish towers, eggs Benedict with salmon cakes, and cinnamon sticky buns. Brunch runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

6 New St, Boston, MA 02128
(617) 895-4075
(617) 895-4075

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Vincent's

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Vincent’s, run by the same team behind hip Jewish deli Mamaleh’s, does a Texas-style brunch on the weekends that is worth rolling out of bed for. Here, the brunch spread includes breakfast tacos served on housemade flour tortillas, saucy tortas, and puffy kolaches baked with sweet and savory fillings. Brunch runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday but get there early if you’re eyeing a kolache, as those typically sell out before the day is done.

233 Cardinal Medeiros Ave, Cambridge, MA 02141
(617) 314-7297
(617) 314-7297
A puffy baked pastry with cream cheese and berries in the center, set on a floral white small plate.
A sweet kolache from Vincent’s.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

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Strega North End

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It’s no surprise that glitzy North End hot spot Strega knows how to throw a rollicking brunch party. On Saturday and Sunday, head to Hanover Street for chicken and waffles with spicy maple syrup, peperonata omelets, a towering burger topped with a fried egg, and champagne by the bucketful.

379 Hanover St, Boston, MA 02113
(617) 523-8481
(617) 523-8481

Brookline Lunch

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The name is a bit of a misnomer; Brookline Lunch serves breakfast and brunch all day in Cambridge (on Brookline Street, to be fair; and sure, there’s lunch too). Under the current ownership for over 30 years but dating all the way back to 1937, this old-timey spot has become especially popular in recent years for its pancakes, especially the baklava pancakes, which were originally meant to be a special but jumped to the regular menu. The rest of the breakfast menu is full of eggs: omelets, Benedicts, and such. Open six days a week from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Closed Tuesdays.

9 Brookline St, Cambridge, MA 02139
(617) 354-2983
(617) 354-2983

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Branch Line

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This Watertown standby, known for its rotisserie chicken (and killer beer list and bocce on the patio), serves a weekend brunch full of favorites: the restaurant’s essential sugar snap pea salad, half and whole rotisserie chickens, breakfast sandwiches, and more. Grab a pint of ice cream or sorbet, too. Brunch runs Saturdays and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

321 Arsenal St, Watertown, MA 02472
(617) 420-1900
(617) 420-1900
Rotisserie chicken on a plate in a pool of sauce.
Rotisserie chicken at Branch Line.
Rachel Leah Blumenthal/Eater Boston

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Lulu's Allston

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Available seven days a week until 3 p.m., Lulu’s brunch menu features a lot of booze, draft cold brew, and hearty food options like breakfast totchos, a “meaty masterpiece” omelet, short rib mac and cheese, “white trash hash,” a variety of Benedicts, burgers, and more. Brunch starts at 11:30 a.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. on weekends.

421 Cambridge St, Allston, MA 02134
(617) 787-1117
(617) 787-1117
Poached eggs, hollandaise, and braised short ribs served over a pile of tater tots.
“White trash hash” at Lulu’s Allston.
Katie Chudy/Eater Boston

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Winsor Dim Sum Café

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Get an early head start or prepare to wait for a seat at Winsor, a snug Chinatown restaurant known for its excellent dim sum. Don’t miss the turnip cakes, spareribs with black bean sauce, and preserved egg and pork congee, all on the $5.69 dim sum menu. Service starts at 10 a.m. daily. Cash only. (If you prefer your dim sum whizzing by in carts while you’re seated in a banquet hall, nearby Empire Garden and Hei La Moon are great options.)

10 Tyler St, Boston, MA 02111
(617) 338-1688
(617) 338-1688
Three dark wooden steamer baskets filled with buns and dumplings plus plates and bowls of other food are arranged on a wooden table.
A spread of dim sum, including the turnip cakes and spareribs, at Winsor.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

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Darryl's Corner Bar & Kitchen

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Buckle in for an all-you-can-eat jazz brunch fest at Southern comfort food favorite Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen. Unlimited quantities of eggs, fried catfish, cheddar grits, and waffles await for $25.95 per person (for adults), $22.95 (for seniors), or $19.95 (for kids ages 6 to 12). It’s only available on Sundays, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

604 Columbus Ave, Boston, MA 02118
(617) 536-1100
(617) 536-1100
A plate with a red buttermilk waffle slice, grits, green beans, eggs, and a cornbread muffin.
Sunday brunch at Darryl’s.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

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Publico Street Bistro & Garden

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Publico’s brunch is a choose-your-own-adventure of sorts: Go big and boozy with bags of doughnuts and alcohol-spiked breakfast frappes, or just relax over a tasty plate of hot chicken Benedicts blanketed in the restaurant’s special hot sauce hollandaise. There’s also year-round patio seating in the restaurant’s interior courtyard, outfitted with a retractable roof.

11 Dorchester St, Boston, MA 02127
(617) 622-5700
(617) 622-5700
A glass filled with a red cocktail and garnished with a slice of bacon sits on a wooden table.
Publico’s formidable Blood Mary.
Publico

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Lincoln Tavern & Restaurant

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With both weekday brunch and weekend brunch, this South Boston cafe’s menus are jam-packed with sweet and savory options. From the griddle, the fruity pebble pancakes — which have become somewhat of a signature dish for the restaurant — are doused in a cereal milk anglaise, and there is brioche French toast topped with berries and cream. There are plenty of options leaning in the lunch direction as well, from entree-sized salads to wood-fired pizzas. Brunch starts at 10 a.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. on weekends, and goes until 3 p.m.

425 W Broadway, Boston, MA 02127
(617) 765-8636
(617) 765-8636
Pancakes covered in a pink syrup and topped with fruity pebbles cereal.
The famed fruity pebble pancakes.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

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Nos Casa Cafe

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Seafood for brunch is never a bad choice, and Cape Verdean restaurant Nos Casa Cafe has delicious seafood in spades. Cod fish croquettes, flaky pastries stuffed with tuna, and the famed Cape Verdean stew cachupa all make for an excellent start to the day. The restaurant opens at 7 a.m. six days a week. Closed Sundays.

475 Dudley St, Roxbury, MA 02119
(617) 606-7060
(617) 606-7060

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Brassica Kitchen + Cafe

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Brassica’s crispy, crunchy fried chicken is legendary around Boston. Get it at brunch via a hefty plate of fried chicken and waffles, but don’t stop there. Grab a fluffy, thick doughnut from the pastry case near the door and then order a feast of great brunch-time dishes, from the white bean pupusas with chili crisp to the compulsory cheesy corn cachapas.

3710 Washington St, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
(617) 477-4519
(617) 477-4519
A white plate with a towering pile of fried chicken and a waffle cut into four slices.
Fried chicken and waffles at Brassica.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

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The Neighborhood Restaurant

25 Bow St, Somerville, MA 02143

Classic breakfast options and huge portions abound at this aptly named neighborhood restaurant in Somerville’s Union Square. Eggs, French toast, home fries, pancakes, omelets, and more are all on the menu at the family-run restaurant that has been around since 1983. The Borges family’s Portuguese roots show up in some of the dishes. A must-have is the Cream of Wheat, which also comes as one of the appetizer choices with any breakfast selection. Venture onto the handwritten specials page of the menu for huge, flavor-packed pancakes, French toast, and more. Breakfast starts at 7 a.m. daily.

25 Bow St, Somerville, MA 02143
(617) 623-9710
(617) 623-9710
A white bowl of Cream of Wheat sits on a dark background, topped with a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.
Cream of Wheat at Neighborhood in Somerville.
Rachel Leah Blumenthal/Eater Boston

Monument Restaurant & Tavern

251 Main St, Boston, MA 02129

Soaring ceilings; handsome, rustic wood; and brick walls make for a relaxing backdrop to one of the most loved brunches in Charlestown. Saucy birria breakfast tacos, fluffy lemon and poppyseed pancakes, and breakfast pizza are all on offer alongside buckets of prosecco, cinnamon toast brunch cocktails with cereal milk, and more. Brunch runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

251 Main St, Boston, MA 02129
(617) 337-5191
(617) 337-5191

Reelhouse

6 New St, Boston, MA 02128

In anticipation of warmer days ahead, how about brunch on the waterfront? Reelhouse’s seafood-centric version includes shellfish towers, eggs Benedict with salmon cakes, and cinnamon sticky buns. Brunch runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

6 New St, Boston, MA 02128
(617) 895-4075
(617) 895-4075

Vincent's

233 Cardinal Medeiros Ave, Cambridge, MA 02141

Vincent’s, run by the same team behind hip Jewish deli Mamaleh’s, does a Texas-style brunch on the weekends that is worth rolling out of bed for. Here, the brunch spread includes breakfast tacos served on housemade flour tortillas, saucy tortas, and puffy kolaches baked with sweet and savory fillings. Brunch runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday but get there early if you’re eyeing a kolache, as those typically sell out before the day is done.

233 Cardinal Medeiros Ave, Cambridge, MA 02141
(617) 314-7297
(617) 314-7297
A puffy baked pastry with cream cheese and berries in the center, set on a floral white small plate.
A sweet kolache from Vincent’s.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

Strega North End

379 Hanover St, Boston, MA 02113

It’s no surprise that glitzy North End hot spot Strega knows how to throw a rollicking brunch party. On Saturday and Sunday, head to Hanover Street for chicken and waffles with spicy maple syrup, peperonata omelets, a towering burger topped with a fried egg, and champagne by the bucketful.

379 Hanover St, Boston, MA 02113
(617) 523-8481
(617) 523-8481

Brookline Lunch

9 Brookline St, Cambridge, MA 02139

The name is a bit of a misnomer; Brookline Lunch serves breakfast and brunch all day in Cambridge (on Brookline Street, to be fair; and sure, there’s lunch too). Under the current ownership for over 30 years but dating all the way back to 1937, this old-timey spot has become especially popular in recent years for its pancakes, especially the baklava pancakes, which were originally meant to be a special but jumped to the regular menu. The rest of the breakfast menu is full of eggs: omelets, Benedicts, and such. Open six days a week from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Closed Tuesdays.

9 Brookline St, Cambridge, MA 02139
(617) 354-2983
(617) 354-2983

Branch Line

321 Arsenal St, Watertown, MA 02472

This Watertown standby, known for its rotisserie chicken (and killer beer list and bocce on the patio), serves a weekend brunch full of favorites: the restaurant’s essential sugar snap pea salad, half and whole rotisserie chickens, breakfast sandwiches, and more. Grab a pint of ice cream or sorbet, too. Brunch runs Saturdays and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

321 Arsenal St, Watertown, MA 02472
(617) 420-1900
(617) 420-1900
Rotisserie chicken on a plate in a pool of sauce.
Rotisserie chicken at Branch Line.
Rachel Leah Blumenthal/Eater Boston

Lulu's Allston

421 Cambridge St, Allston, MA 02134

Available seven days a week until 3 p.m., Lulu’s brunch menu features a lot of booze, draft cold brew, and hearty food options like breakfast totchos, a “meaty masterpiece” omelet, short rib mac and cheese, “white trash hash,” a variety of Benedicts, burgers, and more. Brunch starts at 11:30 a.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. on weekends.

421 Cambridge St, Allston, MA 02134
(617) 787-1117
(617) 787-1117
Poached eggs, hollandaise, and braised short ribs served over a pile of tater tots.
“White trash hash” at Lulu’s Allston.
Katie Chudy/Eater Boston

Winsor Dim Sum Café

10 Tyler St, Boston, MA 02111

Get an early head start or prepare to wait for a seat at Winsor, a snug Chinatown restaurant known for its excellent dim sum. Don’t miss the turnip cakes, spareribs with black bean sauce, and preserved egg and pork congee, all on the $5.69 dim sum menu. Service starts at 10 a.m. daily. Cash only. (If you prefer your dim sum whizzing by in carts while you’re seated in a banquet hall, nearby Empire Garden and Hei La Moon are great options.)

10 Tyler St, Boston, MA 02111
(617) 338-1688
(617) 338-1688
Three dark wooden steamer baskets filled with buns and dumplings plus plates and bowls of other food are arranged on a wooden table.
A spread of dim sum, including the turnip cakes and spareribs, at Winsor.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

Darryl's Corner Bar & Kitchen

604 Columbus Ave, Boston, MA 02118

Buckle in for an all-you-can-eat jazz brunch fest at Southern comfort food favorite Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen. Unlimited quantities of eggs, fried catfish, cheddar grits, and waffles await for $25.95 per person (for adults), $22.95 (for seniors), or $19.95 (for kids ages 6 to 12). It’s only available on Sundays, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

604 Columbus Ave, Boston, MA 02118
(617) 536-1100
(617) 536-1100
A plate with a red buttermilk waffle slice, grits, green beans, eggs, and a cornbread muffin.
Sunday brunch at Darryl’s.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

Publico Street Bistro & Garden

11 Dorchester St, Boston, MA 02127

Publico’s brunch is a choose-your-own-adventure of sorts: Go big and boozy with bags of doughnuts and alcohol-spiked breakfast frappes, or just relax over a tasty plate of hot chicken Benedicts blanketed in the restaurant’s special hot sauce hollandaise. There’s also year-round patio seating in the restaurant’s interior courtyard, outfitted with a retractable roof.

11 Dorchester St, Boston, MA 02127
(617) 622-5700
(617) 622-5700
A glass filled with a red cocktail and garnished with a slice of bacon sits on a wooden table.
Publico’s formidable Blood Mary.
Publico

Lincoln Tavern & Restaurant

425 W Broadway, Boston, MA 02127

With both weekday brunch and weekend brunch, this South Boston cafe’s menus are jam-packed with sweet and savory options. From the griddle, the fruity pebble pancakes — which have become somewhat of a signature dish for the restaurant — are doused in a cereal milk anglaise, and there is brioche French toast topped with berries and cream. There are plenty of options leaning in the lunch direction as well, from entree-sized salads to wood-fired pizzas. Brunch starts at 10 a.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. on weekends, and goes until 3 p.m.

425 W Broadway, Boston, MA 02127
(617) 765-8636
(617) 765-8636
Pancakes covered in a pink syrup and topped with fruity pebbles cereal.
The famed fruity pebble pancakes.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

Nos Casa Cafe

475 Dudley St, Roxbury, MA 02119

Seafood for brunch is never a bad choice, and Cape Verdean restaurant Nos Casa Cafe has delicious seafood in spades. Cod fish croquettes, flaky pastries stuffed with tuna, and the famed Cape Verdean stew cachupa all make for an excellent start to the day. The restaurant opens at 7 a.m. six days a week. Closed Sundays.

475 Dudley St, Roxbury, MA 02119
(617) 606-7060
(617) 606-7060

Brassica Kitchen + Cafe

3710 Washington St, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130

Brassica’s crispy, crunchy fried chicken is legendary around Boston. Get it at brunch via a hefty plate of fried chicken and waffles, but don’t stop there. Grab a fluffy, thick doughnut from the pastry case near the door and then order a feast of great brunch-time dishes, from the white bean pupusas with chili crisp to the compulsory cheesy corn cachapas.

3710 Washington St, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
(617) 477-4519
(617) 477-4519
A white plate with a towering pile of fried chicken and a waffle cut into four slices.
Fried chicken and waffles at Brassica.
Erika Adams/Eater Boston

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