The 16 best brunch spots in Boston to try right now

The rare restaurant that offers brunch seven days a week, this welcoming Southie hangout has developed a reputation for sinful brunch treats. Eye-catching eye-openers include Fruity Pebbles pancakes and short rib poutine (rosemary truffle fries, bone marrow gravy, smoked short rib, mozzarella, sunny-side up egg, crumbled bacon, and shaved truffle). If there’s a big game on, expect the place to be packed.

For more than four decades, this refined Harvard Square restaurant has set the local standard for farm-to-table dining. Sunday brunch service offers a decidedly grownup affair (no hangover hash here). Culinary gems include brown butter parsnip soup, strawberry-buttermilk pancakes, and a Scituate lobster roll. Come summer, a seat on the garden terrace is one of the most coveted al fresco brunch options in Cambridge.

One of the city’s coolest dim sum brunch scenes can be enjoyed on weekends at this South End stalwart. Local couples and packs of culinary enthusiasts gather to share selections from the lengthy menu, much of which veers into vegetarian and vegan territory. Inviting options run the gamut from delicate fresh rolls and lemony shrimp dumplings to wild boar dan dan noodles. Refreshing cold salads provide a nice counterpoint to fiery dishes such as spicy tofu bao.

Chef-owner Michael Scelfo churns out some of Cambridge's most inventive weekend brunch offerings. Pickled corn pancakes jockey for attention alongside the likes of hickory smoked pig tails with cheese crisps, grits, and a soft poached egg. Lighter options include local burrata with spring onion jam, or what's billed as the "ubiquitous" kale salad, featuring shaved fennel, pistachio, and lemon. Plus, the bar's Szechuan Bloody Mary provides a textbook hair-of-the-dog option for those in need.

Be prepared for a long, yet totally worth-it line on the weekends. Jamaica Plain’s Little Dipper offers an out of this world brunch experience. On their cosmic-themed menu you'll find comforting and familiar breakfast options as well as indulgent sandwiches. No matter which dish you choose, don’t forget to look up and admire the rocket ships hanging from the ceiling.

For an Italian-accented Sunday brunch, make a beeline to this hot spot in the South End's Ink Block complex. Menu highlights include bucatini carbonara, pork belly and potato hash, and a mortadella sandwich with muffaletta relish. Strawberry cream cheese donuts, cinnamon buns, and mixed berry pop tarts are just some of the sweet treats on offer. Whenever the weather allows, opt for a table on the sunny sidewalk patio.

A local gem for nearly 30 years, this family-owned restaurant is beloved for its huge portions of American breakfasts with a Portuguese twist served on the cheap. Every entrée comes with fresh fruit or a bowl of cream of wheat, though we highly recommend you choose the latter, a sweet and creamy dish with its own cult following. The vine-covered patio makes this spot a popular choice when the weather is warmer.

Puritan's Sunday brunch service is a social affair, with crowds of youthful Cambridge residents splitting pitchers of mimosas, bloodies, and Aperol spritzes. Chef-owner Will Gilson preps an inviting brunch menu: popular options include sourdough griddle cakes with honey butter, and beet-cured salmon atop an everything bialy. Housemade pastries run the gamut from pesto monkey bread and twice-baked cashew croissants to sugar-and-spice donuts.

Warning: as one of Kenmore Square’s most popular weekend brunch spots, Island Creek Oyster Bar gets packed to the gills whenever the Sox have an afternoon home game. The seafood-centric menu satisfies savory hankerings for smoked salmon, fried clams, and most notably the kitchen's award-winning lobster roll. Those looking for a classic start to the day can opt for cinnamon French toast or an egg white frittata.

Head to the Seaport for a most unique weekend brunch option; where else can you have moussaka alongside champagne tray service? Meze plates (zucchini crisps, a tzatziki trio) demand attention alongside classic breakfast faves. The breakfast gyro (scrambled eggs, grilled halloumi, loukaniko, and florina pepper coulis wrapped in a pita) is a house favorite. When the weather allows, the breezy outdoor patio is a great spot for people-watching.

This Inman Square haunt may be the only spot in town to offer brunch on both Sundays and Mondays. The odd timing might cater to restaurant industry workers, but anyone can stop by to enjoy fried chicken and buttermilk waffles topped with hot pepper syrup. Other temptations: a brunch burger topped with chocolate-covered bacon, and blueberry French toast made with Texas toast, malted whipped cream, cobbler cookie crumble, and maple syrup. The bar whips up a bevy of creative booze-forward drinks for hair-of-the-dog types.

Befitting a modern steakhouse, Boston Chops pulls out all the carnivorous stops during its Sunday brunch service. We're talking a dish of brisket, shank and tongue hash, served with fries, cheese curds, gravy, and a poached egg. Steaks, tartare, and burgers are on offer, as are classics such as French toast, eggs Benedict, and several different variations of the Bloody Mary (including one with smoked beef tongue).

Waypoint invites Sunday brunchers to indulge their seafood obsessions while the sun's out. Celebratory types eschew fresh oysters or smoked and salted peel-and-eat shrimp in favor of the inventive caviar service, complete with plankton and white corn blinis. Other nautically-inspired brunch offerings include a potato latke Benedict topped with lobster, an everything bagel pizza topped with smoked whitefish, and a plate of chicken-fried oysters and waffles featuring buttermilk-bacon gravy and roasted apple honey.

For a historically-minded Sunday brunch, look no further than East Cambridge’s Loyal Nine, where the kitchen reinvents New England classics for modern-day palates. This approach translates into a rare opportunity to start your day with an order of sweet corn samp (a traditional porridge featuring poached egg, roasted rainbow carrots, confit mushrooms), or eggs baked in a cast iron with parsnip, squash, and thyme cheese sauce.

Enjoy a Greek-accented brunch (10am-3pm every Saturday and Sunday) at new Back Bay hot spot Krasi. Sit indoors or outdoors, and enjoy reimagined brunch cocktails and sinful treats such as a baklava muffin or saganaki.

Drink’s new weekly Drag Brunch series — the esteemed cocktail bar’s first time ever hosting brunch — takes place every Sunday from 12-3pm. Guests will enjoy specialty cocktails, a delicious brunch menu, a fun drag performance, and a raffle with prizes. A portion of the proceeds from cocktails and raffle tickets will go to The Boston Alliance of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Youth.

How do you like to fuel up in the morning? Whether it's a bagel to go or a plate full of eggs and bacon, the best breakfast spots in Boston have you covered.

Even in the summertime, Bostonians continue to consume copious amounts of fine coffee; many simply switch from hot to iced. Fortunately, however you like it, a good cup of coffee is never far away in the Hub.