Best Brunch in Manhattan
The 10 best brunch spots in Manhattan, bottomless mimosas, French toast, smoked salmon towers, eggs benedict. Picked by locals, sourced from Eater NY, Time Out, Infatuation.
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- 1SoHo · $$ · Spring St (6) · 224 Lafayette StMap ↗verified 10w ago
A Lafayette Street SoHo cafe from the husband-and-wife team Dean and Maya Jankelowitz, small, bright, Mediterranean-Israeli-South-African mash-up with a famously photogenic green shakshuka.
Because Jack's Wife Freda essentially invented the modern Manhattan instagram-brunch aesthetic in 2012 and is still doing the rosewater waffle better than the dozens of imitators that opened in the years after.
Order Green shakshuka, rosewater waffle with rose syrup, latte.
Walk in alone or as a two-top right at the 9 a.m. open, the bar seats turn over fast and the wait posted at the door does not apply to solo or duo bar diners.
Photo: Bex Walton, CC BY 2.0 Photo: Bex Walton, CC BY 2.0 - 2West Village · $$$ · Christopher St-Stonewall (1) · 42 Grove St
Also No. 3 on Best of the West Village → · No. 8 on Best French in Manhattan →
Map ↗verified 10w agoJody Williams's tiny Grove Street gastrothèque, a French aperitivo bar that runs an all-day brunch of croque madames, fluffy steamed eggs, and waffles iron-pressed to order.
Because Buvette's steamed eggs are produced under a steam wand at the espresso bar, no other Manhattan kitchen does scrambled eggs that way, and the croque madame here has the right balance of bechamel to gruyere.
Order Steamed eggs, croque madame, waffle with maple, espresso.
Grab a corner of the bar and order from there, the dining room is the wait, the bar is the way in, and the same brunch menu prints on both sides.
@buvettenyc ↗Buvette
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- 3
Sarabeth's▲ buzzing
Upper West Side · $$$ · 79 St (1) · 423 Amsterdam AveMap ↗verified 10w agoThe Upper West Side flagship of the Sarabeth's mini-empire, a wood-paneled neighborhood breakfast room that has been serving the same lemon-ricotta pancakes and four-flowers preserves since 1981.
Because Sarabeth's is the canonical Upper West Side brunch experience and the lemon-ricotta pancakes here are the original from which every imitation in the borough has been cribbed for thirty years.
Order Lemon-ricotta pancakes, eggs benedict, four-flowers preserves on toast.
Take the early seating at 8 a.m. on a weekend, the room is calm, the regulars are reading the Times, and you walk out before the post-brunch line even forms.
@sarabethsnyc ↗Sarabeth's
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- 4Lower East Side · $$ · Delancey St-Essex St (F J M Z) · 4 Clinton St
Also No. 10 on Best of the Lower East Side →
Map ↗verified 10w agoA Lower East Side bakery-and-cafe on Clinton Street that opened in 2001 and built its reputation on what is regularly named the best blueberry pancake in New York.
Because Clinton St. Baking Company runs an actual bakery program in the back, which means the muffins and the pancakes are made from genuinely fresh-milled batter rather than a Sysco mix held overnight.
Order Wild Maine blueberry pancakes with warm maple butter, side of bacon.
Show up at 8 a.m. flat on a weekday, the LES weekend wait can hit two hours, but a 10 a.m. Tuesday is a walk-in.
Photo: Belathee Photography, CC BY-SA 3.0 Photo: Belathee Photography, CC BY-SA 3.0 - 5SoHo · $$$ · Spring St (C E) · 463 W Broadway
Also No. 4 on Best Bagels in Manhattan →
Map ↗verified 10w agoThe Major Food Group SoHo brunch operation, a Jewish-deli-meets-fine-dining room engineered around a multi-tier bagel-and-fish tower that anchors the table.
Because the Sadelle's tower is the dish that started the modern Manhattan bagel-tower trend and the smoked-fish program (sturgeon, sable, Eastern Nova) genuinely competes with Russ & Daughters at sit-down service.
Order The Bagel Tower for two with sturgeon, sable, and Eastern Nova; mimosa.
Reserve four weeks out for any Saturday, the Sadelle's book opens exactly twenty-eight days ahead and the noon slot vanishes inside an hour.
@majorfoodgroup ↗Sadelle's
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- 6SoHo · $$$ · Spring St (6) · 80 Spring St
Also No. 4 on Best French in Manhattan →
Map ↗verified 10w agoKeith McNally's SoHo French brasserie, opened 1997, red-leather banquettes, mirrored walls, and a brunch service that has run uninterrupted for nearly thirty years.
Because Balthazar is the New-York-French-brasserie-template that every imitator has tried to copy, and the bread basket alone (croissant, pain au chocolat, baguette) is reason enough to book the table.
Order Eggs norvegienne, frites, full bread basket, fresh-squeezed orange juice.
Reserve a week out for a 9 a.m. weekend slot, the early window is cheaper to book and lets you actually hear your tablemates over the room volume.
Photo: Ralph Daily, CC BY 2.0 Photo: Ralph Daily, CC BY 2.0 - 7Tribeca · $$ · Franklin St (1) · 120 Hudson StMap ↗verified 10w ago
A Tribeca corner diner on Hudson Street that has been doing all-day American brunch, pancakes, biscuits, BBQ-side leanings, since 1990, family-friendly and stroller-tolerant.
Because Bubby's is the rare kid-tolerant Manhattan brunch that the parents actually like too, the buttermilk pancakes are properly rendered, and the homemade pop-tarts are a unique-to-Bubby's breakfast item.
Order Buttermilk pancakes, sour-cherry homemade pop-tart, fried chicken biscuit.
Sit at the back booth if you bring kids, the hostess team puts the families together back there and the noise floor of the room covers the toddler chaos.
Photo: Aude, CC BY-SA 2.5 Photo: Aude, CC BY-SA 2.5 - 8Chelsea · $$$ · 14 St (A C E L) · 156 10th Ave
Marc Meyer's farm-to-table Chelsea kitchen on Tenth Avenue, opened 2005, sustainable-sourcing-forward, with one of the best outdoor brunch patios south of the Highline.
Because Cookshop runs the most consistent farm-to-table brunch in Manhattan and the patio across from the Highline is genuinely pleasant nine months of the year, which is rare for the borough.
Order Farm eggs benedict with hollandaise, side of breakfast sausage, bloody mary.
Reserve the patio specifically when booking, the indoor dining room is fine but the patio is the reason to choose Cookshop over the dozen other Chelsea brunch options.
Photo: thms.nl (Thomas van de Weerd), CC BY 2.0 Photo: thms.nl (Thomas van de Weerd), CC BY 2.0 - 9West Village · $$$ · 8 Av (A C E L) · 52 Gansevoort St
Also No. 7 on Best French in Manhattan →
Map ↗verified 10w agoThe reborn Keith McNally Meatpacking French bistro, original closed 2014, reopened 2019 in a new corner storefront with the same menu, the same servers, and the same celebrity-spotting volume.
Because Pastis is the brunch room everyone in Manhattan claims to be over but still books for out-of-town guests, and the steak frites at brunch is the rare Sunday dish that justifies the price tier.
Order Steak frites, eggs benedict, bottomless mimosa add-on.
Take the 11 a.m. Sunday seating, the late slot is reserved for the celebrity-and-paparazzi crowd, but 11 a.m. is genuinely a normal-people brunch.
@pastisnyc ↗Pastis
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- 10Murray Hill · $$ · 33 St (6) · 442 3rd AveMap ↗verified 10w ago
A Murray-Hill-adjacent Australian-style cafe on Third Avenue that runs a tightly-edited brunch built around flat whites, smashed avocado toast, and house-baked banana bread.
Because Ruby's is the closest Manhattan equivalent to a Sydney corner cafe, the espresso program is calibrated for Australian-style milk steaming and the kitchen actually toasts the sourdough rather than buying pre-sliced.
Order Smashed avocado toast with poached egg, banana bread, flat white.
Order the flat white and not the cappuccino, the milk-steam ratio at Ruby's is built for the flat white spec, and the cappuccino comes out heavier than it should.
@rubyscafe ↗Little Ruby's
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Good to know
- What is the best brunch in Manhattan?
- Our current #1 reflects a blend of editorial sourcing from Eater, The Infatuation, and Time Out, plus live community votes. The list re-ranks as votes come in — what is first today may not be first tomorrow.
- Where can I get bottomless mimosas in Manhattan?
- Several spots on this list run bottomless brunch programs — typically $20 to $35 for 90 minutes of mimosas or bloody marys. Hell's Kitchen, the Lower East Side, and the West Village are the deepest neighborhoods for it.
- Do I need a reservation for brunch in Manhattan?
- Yes, for almost everything on this list. Walk-ins on Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. routinely run an hour wait or longer. Reservations open one to two weeks out for the higher-end rooms.
- What is the best late brunch in Manhattan?
- Several rooms on this list serve brunch until 3 or 4 p.m. on weekends. Show up at 1:30 to 2 p.m. for a noticeably easier walk-in than the 11 a.m. peak, with the same menu and a calmer dining room.
- How much does brunch cost in Manhattan?
- A two-person brunch with one cocktail each typically lands at $80 to $130 before tip at most spots on this list. Sadelle's and Sarabeth's climb past $150 for two if you order the bagel tower or the four-course.