What's for breakfast?

Friends,

My daughter and I are making our first weekend trip to Chicago; this forum has been useful in selecting local restaurants for lunch and dinner, however identifying good places for breakfast has been more challenging. With that in mind, please provide me with your thoughts on joints that serve a good breakfast.

We have no particular preference, other than cooked from scratch, and ideally something one would not normally make at home. Ethnic restaurants of any sort are a plus.
We don’t get to spend much quality time together (she’s away at college), so a $15 breakfast won’t send me screaming for the exit.

We’re staying downtown; no car, so we’re using public transportation and cabs.

We have no particular décor or vibe, other than to enjoy each other’s time.

Many thanks everybody,

Jack

"Downtown" is still a very big place, it would help if you were more specific.

You've unearthed my bumkin roots - to a country boy, all of Chicago is downtown.

We're staying in the Loop.

Thanks again -

Jack

You cannot go wrong with Lou Mitchell's. It is easily walked from anywhere within the Loop. And it is a true piece of Chicago lore.

565 West Jackson Boulevard Chicago, Illinois 60661 (312) 939-3111

Here are just a few spots that immediately come to mind, which folks around here tend to enjoy more often than not . . .

Manny's
1141 S Jefferson St
Chicago, IL 60607
312 442-0671

Uncle Mike's Place
1700 W Grand Ave
Chicago, IL 60622
312 226-5318

Moon's Sandwich Shop
16 S Western Ave
Chicago, IL 60612
312 226-5094

Xoco
449 N Clark St
Chicago, IL 60654
312 334-3688

Ina's
1235 W Randolph St
Chicago, IL 60607
312 226-8227

Nhu Lan Bakery
2612 W Lawrence Ave
Chicago, IL 60625
773 878-9898

Also, a couple of potentially useful, locationally-oriented threads:

Mexican breakfast--Loop (and immediate) environs

Breakfast near DePaul that takes reservations

Beyond that, as zoid posted above, the more specific you can be about location, preferences, etc. the better we can be with providing some suggestions.

Hope that helps a bit,

=R=

For breakfast with a Cajun flavor, try Heaven on Seven, the Wabash location. They open for breakfast at 10 on Sat., closed on Sun:

http://www.heavenonseven.com/wabash.html

Sunday breakfast in the Loop

Many of the places mentioned serve every day of the week.

Just be aware that Xoco only serves Tuesday through Saturday (closed Sundays and Mondays).

knorekj wrote:Ethnic restaurants of any sort are a plus.

Therefore Xoco is a no-brainer.

You could also take a short cab ride to Chinatown for some dim sum. Shui Wah and Cai are both pretty good. If you come from a city known for its dim sum, please disregard.

If you will be in town on a Sunday, my favorite brunch place in Chicago is North Pond. It is in the Lincoln Park neighborhood (so you will need to spring for a cab) but is a beautiful restaurant (literally in the heart of Lincoln Park with views of the pond and Chicago's skyline). Outstanding food, service and ambiance.

Take the Pink Line down to 18th street and go to Nuevo Leon.

Habibi wrote:Take the Pink Line down to 18th street and go to Nuevo Leon.

Seconded.

Kman wrote:

Habibi wrote:Take the Pink Line down to 18th street and go to Nuevo Leon.

Seconded.

Great suggestion!

Nuevo Leon
1515 W 18th Street
Chicago, IL 60608
(312) 421-1517

=R=

I love brunch! So all of these suggestions are more of the traditional-type of breakfast/brunch spots.

Floriole in Lincoln Park is gorgeous and has exceptional pastries, quiche, salads, soups, sandwiches, coffee etc.

Floriole Cafe and Bakery
1220 W Webster Ave
(773) 883-1313

Sunday? A reservation at Nightwood for great choices, both sweet and savory.

Nightwood- Pilsen--you can hop the blue line or take the Halsted bus
2119 S. Halsted
312-526-3385
http://nightwoodrestaurant.com/

Hendrickx Belgian Bread bakery. Best croissant in the city and get the liege waffle. Very, very tiny and simple. Take a loaf of craquelin for later and use it for toast or sandwiches. It's a rich brioche studded with pearl sugar. Located in the mag mile area on Walton. Easy bus, train, or taxi from the Loop if you don't feel like walking.

100 East Walton St, Chicago, IL IL 60611

312.649.6717
Tue - Sat: 8:00 am-7:00 pm
Sun: 9:00 am-3:00 pm


What time are you going to eat? Some of my favorite places have no reservations and monster waits.

Friday, or if you eat early, Sweet Maple, delicious biscuits, ask for hot applesauce instead of honey or jam.

Sweet Maple Cafe
1339 W. Taylor Street (Taylor between Throop & Loomis)
Chicago, Il
312/243-8908


I also adore Lula, it's owned by the same folks that own Nightwood but I think you can get a reservation for Friday morning, you can't for Saturday or Sunday. Get farm eggs if you order eggs, great food, seasonal, and runs the gauntlet of sweet and savory successfully. Again, if you are going on Saturday or Sunday get there early or be prepared to wait a long time. Lula is in Logan Square, take the blue line.

Lula Cafe
2537 N. Kedzie Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60647
773.489.9554
http://www.lulacafe.com/

Saturday, get there early or be prepared to wait at M Henrietta in Edgewater. Take the red line. The breakfast bread pudding is only available on Saturday & Sunday. I'm also a big fan of the Latina omelet with plantains & black beans.

M. Henrietta
1133 W Granville (a few doors west of the Granville stop on the CTA Red Line)
Chicago IL 60660
773.761.9700
Tuesday - Friday 7:00am - 3:00pm, 5:00pm - 9:00pm
Saturday 8:00am - 3:00pm, 5:00pm - 9:00pm
Sunday 8:00am - 3:00pm

Also on the north side there is Tweet Let's Eat. Get the red velvet cake to close out your meal. This one is cash only and can be a wait if you don't land early on Saturday or Sunday.

Tweet Let's Eat
5020 N. Sheridan Road
773.728.5576
Open 6 days a week (Closed Tuesday's) from 9am-3 pm
Dinner on Friday's from 5:30 pm- 9:30 pm
http://www.tweet.biz/index.html

Please let us know where you go, what you had, & how you liked it.

Enjoy,

If I had a college age daughter who I was spending time with downtown, I would seriously consider Sunda for Sunday morning brunch. Its known as one of the celebrity hotspots in town (which might make it of particular interest to her), but we have been there on Sunday mornings when it is quiet and very few people were in the restaurant. You can get points for taking her to a hotspot and still have it quiet and relaxed enough to enjoy it yourself. It is a beautiful room and a number of things on the menu are really very good. She will feel that you took her somewhere special. I would check out the brunch menu on their website to see if it interests you.

I have to second the recommendation for Uncle Mike's.

When my almost college aged daughter heard about my experience with a Filipino Breakfast, she was crushed that she did not get a chance to go with me. We are remedying that in the near future.

Food is great, no question that it is home-cooked, super friendly people and it is near enough to the loop that it is a short and affordable cab ride. As long as atmosphere is not one of your main criteria (because the place is not quite a dive, but well short of the Ritz), you can't go wrong here. Before you go, you need to read the Uncle Mike's thread, so you understand the Filipino menu options...

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=347178

Enjoy

Tempo upscale diner.
6 E. Chestnut