Weekend Report: NY’s Best Brunch & Lunch Offerings

Lunch at this lovely corner restaurant makes for an afternoon well spent, where a meal becomes a European affair. Sample a spread of offerings off the daily-changing seasonal menu, which is best enjoyed with a glass of chilled rosé or white wine. If the weather is nice, spring for a sidewalk table, then start with a spritz, and finish with a scoop (or two, or three) from their brand-new lineup of ice creams.

Before you spend your day exploring all that Hudson Yards now has to offer, fuel up at neighborhood pioneer Legacy Records. Here, croissants come in classic, chocolate, and Sicilian pistachio varieties; smoked sablefish is served on a toasted caraway bagel; and the BEC is comprised of pork belly, montasio cheese, fried egg, and hot chile on a milk bun. Also on the menu? Savory salads, hand-pulled mozzarella, and dry-aged beef tartare.

This iconic SoHo eatery is a favorite of industry insiders, and its best-kept secrets can be discovered during Friday lunch and Saturday brunch. On Friday midday is the only time guests can enjoy katsu sandwiches and rice with trout roe, pickles, and miso. The next morning, one of the city’s best breakfast sandwiches is on offer: Estela’s egg, pancetta, and avocado number.

At Ferris, granola and yogurt is topped with the cinnamon scent of Thai basil, pancakes are made with sweet potatoes, and steak and eggs means Wagyu beef. There’s ample more to linger over during brunch hours at this subterranean NoMad eatery, where innovation runs wild. Go ahead, let a meal here be the highlight of your weekend.

Beyond the famed burger, Au Cheval’s menu boasts plenty of hits. Egg varieties are aplenty and decadent at that: scrambled eggs with foie gras is a staple at this swanky diner. Plus, chilaquiles, epic thick-cut bacon, crunchy granola-and-yogurt, and home-style blueberry muffins are calling you to TriBeCa.

Weekend lunch at the Four Horsemen means something new to discover each week, thanks to an ever-changing menu. Maybe the team is leaning Caribbean, with house-made biscuits, jerk chicken, and chocolate-coconut cake. Or perhaps channeling Spain via fried croquettes, herb-laden mussels, and crusty bread with manchego cheese. Stay up-to-date with offerings, broadcast via Instagram, to see what prix fixe steal you can get your hands on. Once you arrive, the only decision you need to make is on wine.

The first thing you’ll notice about Gertie is that it’s flush with natural light and decorated in playful pastel illustrations. The first thing to know about Gertie, is that its in-house bakery program prepares daily “goodies” like jumbo griddled muffins, weekend-only (read: arrive early!) sourdough cinnamon rolls, and bread for reinvented sandwiches, like a whitefish melt. Build your own “anything egg + cheese” and bask in the restaurant’s sunny, good vibes.

Note: Brunch is walk-ins only.

The French know eggs, and the Frenchette chefs are some of the best French chefs around, so focus in on the left side of the menu where brouillade (soft scrambled eggs, Peconic escargot) and oeuf au plat (read: fried, with mortadella and Périgord truffle) are yours for ordering. Supplement your meal with a savory chicory salad—it’s spring, after all—and the juicy pork schnitzel paired with huckleberry preserves.

It’s the weekend, so let loose with the help of old-school hip-hop jams and a biscuit sammy. With chef JJ Johnson at the helm, Henry at Life Hotel is all about a good time and it was just named one of GQ’s Best New Restaurants in America. The menu pulls from the African diaspora, but the chef honed his chops in Harlem, so the everything bagel roti with jerk-cured salmon, za’atar yogurt, and shaved red onion is a signature.

Eggs and fresh (house-made) tortillas are a match made in heaven. Chef T.J. Steele’s Oaxacan cooking is widely praised, and for good reason: expect delicious sausages made on-site, as well as otherworldly chilaquiles.

Helmed by Israeli chef Shimon Maman (formerly of 12 Chairs), Shoo Shoo is a brand-new Mediterranean joint channeling the bohemian cafe culture of Tel Aviv. And brunch is on the menu, with vibrant shareable plates ranging from an herb frittata with green labneh, pancakes layered with melted sweet curd and topped with rose syrup, and “shookshooka” (natch).

Lunch at Misi grants you daytime (read: sun-drenched) access to the same coveted menu dished at dinner. Right now, that means brilliant preparations of seasonal vegetables, heavenly daily pastas, and a rotating array of homemade gelato to cap off a nearly ideal afternoon. Indulge completely, then walk it off along the water at Domino Park, just across the way.

Spend a Saturday or Sunday morning at this cozy Brooklyn locale and your spirit will be restored. Popina, located in Cobble Hill just steps from the water, combines influences from the American South and Italy, resulting in comforting and inventive dishes. For brunch, that means johnnycake mascarpone flecked with bitter orange, grits and greens with a poached egg and ‘nduja gravy, and carbonara.

Variety is the spice of life, and Miss Ada gets this. An abundant selection of dips (smokey sweet potato with creme fraiche, whipped ricotta laced with brown butter and sage, velvety hummus topped with spring peas) are just a few of the offerings that are also available at brunch, alongside savory Yemeni pastries like bureka and zivva; Israeli egg dishes; and gooey, chocolate-y babka.

Fusion is alive and well at Violet, Matt and Emily Hyland’s latest pizzeria rooted in Rhode Island-style pies. The chef, Matt, utilizes a diverse array of flavor profiles to craft craveworthy plates. Take his crispy wontons with Benton’s bacon, cheesy Havarti scramble, and Brooklyn Delhi curry ketchup. In terms of pizza, brunch brings a Jewish-inspired version with Nova smoked salmon, smoked mackerel, scallion cream cheese, and everything bagel spice.

Before or after a stroll through Prospect Park, sit down for a leisurely brunch at Fausto, a self-proclaimed “Brooklyn restaurant with an Italian soul.” Hence, the breakfast sandwich is graced with broccoli rabe, serrano sofrito, sausage, ricotta, and a fried egg; poached eggs top braised duck, polenta, and pea greens; and there’s plenty of pasta—dually suited to individual or family-style indulgences.

Since chef Patch Troffer took the helm at this Williamsburg staple, Japanese influences have seeped into every corner of the menu, and we’re better off for it. Kick off your weekend with an order of Okinawan sesame donuts, which come with tangy lemon curd. Then, dig into an egg & rice bowl with kimchi, sweet potato, and furikake.

Otway’s Deluxe Breakfast always satiates, no matter how you order your eggs or whether you opt for bacon, a lamb merguez patty, or slices of avocado. And, if you’re feeling fancy, consider chicken liver mousse on brioche with pickled garlic scapes or foie gras torchon accompanied by a glass of Sauternes. Idyllic Brooklyn, right this way.

Brunch is a lovely time to visit this modern oasis in Flatiron, which specializes in delicate and refined preparations of Korean home-style cooking. You’ll find house-made morning rolls with black sesame butter, sweet red bean, and berry jam; a lunch box of bibimbap with dried persimmon and gochujang sauce; and sujebi—hand-pulled noodles in a dashi-based broth.

When Einat Admony relocated Balaboosta to what was formerly Bar Bolonat, she took her brunch offering along for the ride. Head to this West Village stunner for elevated Israeli eats. Start with a Harissa Mary, and share a bunch of items with your tablemates: Persian frittata, halva French toast, breakfast bureka, and more.