I%26#39;ve heard good thing about the 676, Erwin, an American Caf茅, and Four Seasons Brunch (not sure I can afford it?)-Looking for feedback on these?
What others are around Hotel Monaco area you would recommend?
Quality yet reasonable Buffets and Brunches in dt Chicago
Not really sure about the ones you picked out.
But the best brunch in chicago is at The Ritz-Carlton (A Four Seasons hotel)
160 East Pearson St. at Water Tower Place, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. 60611-2124 Tel. 1 (312) 266-1000
Quality yet reasonable Buffets and Brunches in dt Chicago
Near your hotel - http://www.burnhamhotel.com/bur_atwood.html
You can do a brunch search at metromix.com and chicagoreader.com
stef26, I suggest that you look at the menu pages for each of these restaurants for the prices.
The Four Seasons brunch, especially, would exceed your budget for the entire day, if you are planning on the amount indicated in your other posts. The others will take a major portion of the daily budget as well.
The only one I haven%26#39;t been to is 676, so no comment on that.
I used to go to erwin (lower case ';e';) quite often years ago, but don%26#39;t any longer. There are other places I enjoy more.
At 6 E. Chestnut is Tempo Cafe...they hve great breakfast skillets...very crowded on the weekends. it%26#39;s about a mile away from you...take the Michigan Ave. Bus or Red Line.
Ann Stathers has various locations around the city...you%26#39;ll order hot food which is mediocre, but you%26#39;ll get huge portions of baked goods with it. Definately get their cinamon rolls.
Both should fall within you%26#39;re recommended price ranges...there is No Ann Sather by your hotel, but you could probably get to the one on Wicker Park in about 15 minutes via the blue line.
Both are reasonably priced restaurants with good, filling food. There%26#39;s nothing spectacular about them like the Four Seasons...but you%26#39;re not gonna find Ritz Carlton amenities at McDonalds prices.
From the Chicago Tribune....
Back to Print Edition - Thursday At Play
THE ULTIMATE BRUNCH GUIDE
TODAY%26#39;S COLLECTION OF BRUNCH GUIDE STORIES HAVE BEEN POSTED ONL
Phil%26#39;s Five under $25
By Phil Vettel
Tribune restaurant critic
Published April 26, 2007
This story contains corrected material, published April 27, 2007.
It%26#39;s not terribly difficult, it seems to me, to crank out a modest, low-priced brunch, or a super-high-end, high-priced one. The genius, it seems to me, is in creating a brunch that satisfies one%26#39;s artistic and physical hungers without breaking the bank.
And here are five places, listed alphabetically, that do so brilliantly.
Bongo Room
1152 S. Wabash Ave.
312-291-0100
(also 1470 N. Milwaukee Ave.
773-489-0690)
www.bongoroom.com
Saturday-Sunday; no reservations
$4.95-$12.95 a la carte entrees
During the week, these South Loop and Wicker Park restaurants are reliable breakfast (and lunch) destinations. But on Saturdays and Sundays, when lunch isn%26#39;t available, the kitchen appends a special brunch menu to the regular breakfast offerings, adding eggs Benedict variations (one substitutes sauteed red peppers for bacon, making it more veggie-friendly; at the other extreme, there%26#39;s a beef-tenderloin Benedict with porcini-hollandaise sauce) and killer pancake specials such as blueberry-cheesecake pancakes with almond panna cotta sauce. But the oh-my-God feature is the signature Chocolate Tower French Toast -- chocolate-chunk bread stuffed with maple mascarpone, topped with banana creme-brulee sauce and chocolate shavings -- an architectural marvel that stops conversations when it%26#39;s brought into the dining room. It%26#39;s safer to look at this paean to caloric excess than it is to eat it, but people can%26#39;t resist. (What I find irresistible is the mushroom and sun-dried tomato chicken sausage.) The fancy Benedicts approach $13, but just about everything else is under $10. Reservations are not accepted, so arrive early and be patient.
Cafe des Architectes
20 E. Chestnut St.
312-324-4000
www.sofitel.com
The restaurant does not accept reservations for Saturday and Sunday brunch, though it does accept breakfast reservations and is accepting brunch reservations for Mother%26#39;s Day (the information on reservations as published has been corrected in this text).
$11-$17 a la carte entrees
The dining room in the Sofitel Chicago Water Tower hotel would be a top brunch pick if all the kitchen did was pass along the great French-press coffee and that sensational bread basket, brimming with baguettes and croissants (one or two are chocolate filled) that are so good we asked to take home the uneaten ones (they cheerfully provided a carryout box). But in addition to a killer crab cake Benedict, buttermilk pancakes, three-egg omelets and intriguing-sounding salads, there%26#39;s the $23 Brunch Sampler, a three-course marvel that includes a trio of fresh juices (generally orange, strawberry and raspberry, but the mix changes), a plate of mini-desserts and, in between, four miniature entrees on a divided platter. There%26#39;s the artful tower of delicately smoked salmon layered with micro-thin slices of crispy bagel, scrambled eggs with truffles, a tomato-goat cheese quiche and a tiny circle of brioche French toast. The window-lined room manages to be cheerful even on overcast days and is positively gorgeous when the sun shines brightly. This is the most expensive brunch on my list, but it%26#39;s the best. Valet parking is discounted with restaurant validation.
Frontera Grill
445 N. Clark St.
312-661-1434
www.fronterakitchens.com
Saturday; reservations strongly recommended
$8.95-$15 a la carte entrees
Ten minutes before Frontera opens on Saturday morning, people are milling by the entrance, eager to claim a table at Rick Bayless%26#39; muy popular Mexican brunch. Available only on Saturdays (the restaurant is closed Sundays and Mondays), the brunch offers organic egg dishes and hot cakes -- but in a style that you won%26#39;t confuse with the local diner. Picture instead sunny-side-up eggs in creamy garlic sauce over thick buttermilk biscuits (dubbed huevos Fronterizos), or white-corn pancakes topped with whipped goat cheese and agave syrup. Huevos a la Mexicana consists of scrambled eggs with tomatoes, onions, cilantro and chiles, with chorizo sausage or grilled shrimp as optional add-ons. If you%26#39;re not in a breakfast mood, there are plenty of tacos, ceviches, sopas and stews to contemplate. The dining rooms are colorful and festive, the bar is open (margaritas and mimosas if you%26#39;re indulging, hot chocolate and limonada if you%26#39;re not) and the music overhead is Latin pop -- often covers of American hits, good for a spirited game of Name That Tune.
Prairie Grass Cafe
601 Skokie Blvd., Northbrook
847-205-4433
www.prairiegrasscafe.com
Saturday-Sunday; reservations recommended
$6-$22 a la carte entrees
This cheerful restaurant does everything right, with a subtle sense of style. The weekend brunch menu (offered Saturdays and Sundays) offers sweet and savory crepes, well-made omelets, griddled items and five variations of eggs Benedict (I love the signature PGC Benedict with Neuske bacon, sauteed spinach and roasted-tomato hollandaise sauce). French toast is a strength, whether it%26#39;s the challah French toast with maple syrup or the more indulgent version with strawberry compote and sweetened ricotta cheese. (A colleague raved about the banana-bread French toast, a special, on a previous visit.) If your main course doesn%26#39;t include the homemade sausage, spiked with ancho chile, by all means order it as a side dish (a $4 splurge), and consider the delicious smoothies ($6) as well. There are a few pricey items, such as the surf %26#39;n turf Benedict (with tenderloin filet and crab cake) and the grilled-salmon Caesar salad, but most items are $12 or less. Commuter tip: If you%26#39;re driving to Prairie Grass Cafe from some distance, choose any route that keeps you off the Tri-State (under construction) and the Willow Road bridge crossing the Tri-State (ditto).
Sola
3868 N. Lincoln Ave.
773-327-3868.
www.sola-restaurant.com
Saturday-Sunday; reservations recommended
$5-$12 a la carte entrees
On Saturdays, you can claim a table pretty much any time during brunch, but you%26#39;ll want a reservation for Sunday service. In keeping with chef/owner Carol Wallack%26#39;s aloha-in-Chicago theme, Sola%26#39;s brunch menu is jazzed with lots of tropical accents, from the sparkling Maui-mosa (a mimosa made with pineapple and passionfruit juices) to the mango curd that adds a tart touch to the Grand Marnier French toast. There%26#39;s Latin flair in Wallack%26#39;s huevos Benedictos, an eggs Benedict variation with spicy chorizo sausage, corn bread and ';salsa hollandaise,'; and you can%26#39;t go wrong with the matzo brei (two colleagues praise that dish) or the Black Forest omelet with ham, gruyere cheese, crispy leeks and caramelized onions. Most dishes are under $10. For $5, start your morning off with some malasadas, Portuguese-style doughnuts that Wallack says are very popular in Hawaii.
two fairly new buffet brunches, both around $15.00 are Lux Bar on Sundays from 9-3 and breakfast buffet at Bice Bistro at The Talbott Hotel. Have not tried either yet, so let us know!
I%26#39;ve got brunches in downtown Chicago listed here:
thelocaltourist.com/restaurants/chicagobrunc鈥?/a>
I%26#39;ve added links to menus and prices where available. The list is ONLY downtown, so it should be easier to narrow it down.
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