5 Milwaukee-area brunches to try on leisurely days or Christmas break

Carol Deptolla, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·7 min read

Downtime around the holidays. Plenty of newer brunches. I think you know what to do here.

The boom in all-brunch-all-the-time restaurants didn't let up in the pandemic. Between those and other new restaurants serving brunch Sundays (or more often), diners looking for something new have plenty of options.

Here are my favorites among the newer brunches around Milwaukee, in alphabetical order. Most have lunch dishes as well as breakfast plates, and all offer takeout in addition to in-person dining. As you'll see, we seem to be in a golden age for French toast; several restaurants make pretty dazzling versions.

But first, a shout-out to a couple of restaurants that fall outside the parameters of new-in-the-pandemic brunches but make a very good start to the day:

The second location of Mimosa, at 275 Regency Court in Brookfield, opened in late 2019, just a few months before the lockdown. It has the same high quality (and even higher volume) of the original location in Franklin; it's open daily.

And the polished Sam's Place Jazz Cafe, which opened in March at 3338 N. King Drive, serves breakfast only until 10:30 a.m. Wednesdays through Sundays before switching to lunch, but it makes the best salmon croquettes I've had in a long time.

More: Christmas 2021: Milwaukee-area restaurants open or offering takeout

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Remember, as you venture to restaurants, that most are affected by the ongoing labor crunch and other pressures brought on by the pandemic; patience and kindness will be appreciated.

The French toast at Blackwood Brothers Restaurant in Bay View that's on the Sunday brunch menu is made from thick slabs of brioche. Chai spices are whipped into the cream served with it.
The French toast at Blackwood Brothers Restaurant in Bay View that's on the Sunday brunch menu is made from thick slabs of brioche. Chai spices are whipped into the cream served with it.

Blackwood Brothers Restaurant & Social Club

Dinner until midnight most of the week is the main gig for Blackwood Brothers, named for an old hardware-company sign found in its building in Bay View. But come Sunday morning, this chill spot serves one of the most creative brunches in Milwaukee (and also serves vegan dishes).

Instead of a Croque Monsieur sandwich, it serves Crepes Monsieur ($15), two large crepes filled with ham, gruyere and the restaurant's own blackberry jam and drizzled with Dijon-mustard spiked sauce. The French toast ($15) scented with chai spices should pry a sleepy diner's eyes wide open: Two thick slabs of rich brioche dotted with pearl sugar fill the plate, served with blueberries, spiced whipped cream and warm maple syrup. Brunch cocktails supplement the Valentine coffee and Rishi tea.

Hours: Brunch is served 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays (dinner is 5 p.m. to midnight Tuesday to Saturday, 5 to 9 on Christmas Eve). 3001 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. blackwoodbrothersmke.com

RELATED: Blackwood Brothers Restaurant is open in Bay View

The brunch steak and eggs from Fool's Errand, 316 N. Milwaukee St., uses the same quality sirloin steak as for the steak Diane at dinner.
The brunch steak and eggs from Fool's Errand, 316 N. Milwaukee St., uses the same quality sirloin steak as for the steak Diane at dinner.

Fool's Errand

At dinner, Third Ward restaurant Fool's Errand makes comfort foods with flair, and it cooks with the same spirit at brunch.

For splurge-y steak and eggs ($27), the restaurant uses the same top-notch sirloin that it prepares as steak Diane at night, deeply beefy and tender. French toast here is no ordinary French toast; it's creme brulee French toast ($14) a thick slice that's custard-y, as all great French toast should be, but also has a crisp sugar glaze that shatters when cut.

The creme brulee French toast from Fool's Errand in the Third Ward has a custard-like interior and a crisp sugar glaze that shatters.
The creme brulee French toast from Fool's Errand in the Third Ward has a custard-like interior and a crisp sugar glaze that shatters.

And do yourself a favor: Order a side of the hash brown fingers ($6), the same perfectly crisp, perfectly rectangular sticks that the owners have served with caviar and creme fraiche at another of their restaurants, EsterEv. No caviar here, and none needed; the sticks are pure delight in themselves.

Hash brown fingers are a side dish at Fool's Errand on North Milwaukee Street.
Hash brown fingers are a side dish at Fool's Errand on North Milwaukee Street.

Hours: Brunch is 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; dinner is 5 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday (closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, open New Year's Eve for dinner only and New Year's Day for brunch and dinner). 316 N. Milwaukee St. (414) 269-9908. foolserrandmke.com. Reservations recommended; make them online or by calling. For handicapped entrance, call the restaurant for access to elevator at the back of the building.

RELATED: DanDan co-owner Dan Jacobs is happy to take on a new restaurant in Fool's Errand

The French toast stack at Golden Nest Pancakes & Cafe in Wauwatosa is made with cinnamon bread and is layered with roasted apples, cream cheese icing and candied pecans.
The French toast stack at Golden Nest Pancakes & Cafe in Wauwatosa is made with cinnamon bread and is layered with roasted apples, cream cheese icing and candied pecans.

Golden Nest Pancakes & Cafe

Look up to see the golden nests: distinctive, nestlike golden light fixtures; the bulbs in each resemble large eggs. Aqua-upholstered booths, natural light flooding the dining room — the space is modern and cheerful.

Some seating is in the lounge area of Golden Nest Pancakes & Cafe, 11250 W. Burleigh St., Wauwatosa. More tables are in the larger dining room.
Some seating is in the lounge area of Golden Nest Pancakes & Cafe, 11250 W. Burleigh St., Wauwatosa. More tables are in the larger dining room.

Settle in and dig into plates such as the substantial omelets, with fillings like cremini, oyster and shiitake mushrooms with fresh spinach and mozzarella ($15) served with crisped hash browns. Or an architectural French toast stack ($14) with layers of cinnamon swirl bread, cream cheese icing, roasted apples and a crown of candied pecans, a sort of layer cake for breakfast. Golden Nest makes dandy corned beef hash, as a main dish ($15, with eggs) or a side ($5).

Golden Nest in Tosa serves seven kinds of mimosas; a flight lets customers sample four such as, from left, classic orange juice, elderflower, blood orange and lavender lemon.
Golden Nest in Tosa serves seven kinds of mimosas; a flight lets customers sample four such as, from left, classic orange juice, elderflower, blood orange and lavender lemon.

The restaurant has a full complement of espresso drinks and brunch cocktails, including a popular mimosa flight of four to try.

Hours: 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily (closed on Christmas). 11250 W. Burleigh St., Wauwatosa, in a freestanding building at the Mayfair Collection. (414) 935-2135. goldennestpancake.com

RELATED: Brunch restaurant Golden Nest opens in Wauwatosa

Good Eats Cafe in Pewaukee makes a frittata with smoked salmon, goat cheese and capers, garnished with tomato and arugula. Well-crisped hash browns can be added for $2.
Good Eats Cafe in Pewaukee makes a frittata with smoked salmon, goat cheese and capers, garnished with tomato and arugula. Well-crisped hash browns can be added for $2.

Good Eats Cafe

Expect out-of-the-ordinary touches for brunch dishes at this sleek Pewaukee brunch restaurant, which had barely opened before it shut down in March 2020 because of the pandemic (it reopened more than two months later).

Look over the appealing menu: Biscuits and gravy get a hot-honey drizzle; slivers of watermelon radish garnish the avocado toast. Frittata with smoked salmon, goat cheese and capers ($15) is a winner; so is the beef brisket hash ($18), bound together (and its flavor deepened) with demi-glace made with stout. Decision making gets more complicated on the weekend, when the kitchen prepares specials.

Count on good coffee and espresso drinks (the restaurant roasts its own beans), and it makes cocktails at the full bar, garnishing bloody marys with a beef stick better than you'll see elsewhere.

Hours: 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily (closed Christmas Day). 1405 W. Capitol Drive, Suite F (near Pick 'n Save), Pewaukee. (262) 695-9999. goodeatspewaukee.com

RELATED: Good Eats Cafe, a breakfast-lunch-brunch spot, is coming to Pewaukee

A breakfast burrito with house-made vegan chorizo is on the brunch menu at plant-based Lafayette Place on the east side.
A breakfast burrito with house-made vegan chorizo is on the brunch menu at plant-based Lafayette Place on the east side.

The Lafayette Place

A sibling to the popular National Cafe in Walker's Point, the Lafayette Place serves a menu that is entirely plant based, from the oat milk in lattes to the Impossible brand soy sausage with the full English breakfast (with scrambled tofu, not eggs). Fitting, since it took over tiny but stylish space formerly occupied by vegan restaurant Celesta.

The menu is concise but covers all the bases, including sandwiches for lunch, smoothies, and cocktails and wine. Looking for breakfast? The cheesy hash ($12) mixes potatoes, roasted vegetables and the house vegan chorizo and ties them together with melted Violife cheese and chipotle sauce. Or, for a perfectly portable breakfast, the chorizo burrito ($11) packs hash brown patties, beans, corn, peppers and pico de gallo with Violife cheese into a flour tortilla.

Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday to Sunday (closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day). Ordering and payment can be contactless — by QR code at the tables with smart phones and payment by credit card — but customers can order at the register and pay with cash. 1978 N. Farwell Ave. lafayetteplacemke.com

RELATED: The National owners plan Lafayette Place on east side for vegan brunch, at the former Celesta site

Georgia Garcia serves the Ruby’s bagel sandwich to Mary Kuder, who was having brunch with James Brown at Lafayette Place, 1978 N. Farwell Ave. The vegan restaurant is among the newer spots in and around Milwaukee serving brunch.
Georgia Garcia serves the Ruby’s bagel sandwich to Mary Kuder, who was having brunch with James Brown at Lafayette Place, 1978 N. Farwell Ave. The vegan restaurant is among the newer spots in and around Milwaukee serving brunch.

Carol Deptolla has been reviewing restaurants around Milwaukee since 2008. Like all Journal Sentinel reporters, she buys all meals, accepts no gifts and is independent of all establishments she covers, working only for our readers. Contact her at carol.deptolla@jrn.com or (414) 224-2841, or through the Journal Sentinel Food & Home page on Facebook. Follow her on Twitter at @mkediner or Instagram at @mke_diner.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee-area brunches to try on days off, Christmas break: Good Eats, more