RFK Rankings · Boston
Best Restaurants for Brunch in Boston (2026)
Weekend brunch · Boston · 6 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published March 12, 2024 · Updated June 7, 2026
Jason Santos fries beignets to order in Back Bay, and a mile south the Beehive runs a live jazz brunch under a Tremont Street arts centre. Boston does weekend brunch as a sit-down event, not a buffet. These six, ranked, are where to spend a Saturday morning in the city when the table matters as much as the coffee.
1.Buttermilk & Bourbon
Jason Santos fries beignets and glazes honey biscuits at Boston's marquee New Orleans brunch; book the Back Bay patio.
Jason Santos opened Buttermilk & Bourbon at 160 Commonwealth Avenue in 2017 and built the weekend brunch around New Orleans cooking. The fresh-fried beignets run about $11 and the warm honey-glazed biscuits with pimento cheese about $16.
The room is loud, the patio fills first, and the bourbon list backs a proper brunch cocktail. This is the destination brunch in Back Bay, so reserve the weekend table rather than walk up.
2.The Beehive
A live jazz brunch in a theatrical South End room; come Saturday for the music as much as the plates.
The Beehive sits below the Boston Center for the Arts at 541 Tremont Street and runs a live-music weekend brunch with bands on the floor. DownBeat has listed it among its top jazz clubs worldwide.
Bistro plates land in the $16 to $26 range, the room is dim and theatrical, and the music is the reason to book. Reserve Saturday or Sunday between ten and two for a seat near the band.
3.Lincoln Tavern & Restaurant
Southie's packed weekend brunch built on Fruity Pebble pancakes and cider doughnuts; book the patio before noon.
Lincoln Tavern runs the busiest weekend brunch in South Boston at 425 West Broadway, a wood-fired Aquitaine Group room that has taken a Boston Magazine Best of Boston brunch nod.
The Fruity Pebble pancakes run about $15 and the apple-cider doughnuts come warm; breakfast plates sit in the $15 to $23 range. The patio packs out by noon on Saturdays, so reserve early.
4.Frenchie Wine Bistro
A proper South End croque madame and a relaxed wine-bar room; come for an unhurried Sunday brunch in the city.
Frenchie opened on Tremont Street in 2017 as a South End wine bistro and runs one of the better French brunches in Boston at 560 Tremont Street. The croque madame is the dish to order.
Brunch plates fall in the $14 to $22 range, the room is small and easy on conversation, and the wine list carries the meal. Come for a slow Sunday rather than a quick stack.
5.The Friendly Toast
Boston's all-day, no-rules breakfast institution; come any morning for stacked pancakes and a Bloody Mary.
The Friendly Toast serves brunch all day at 35 Stanhope Street in Back Bay, a kitschy retro diner that grew out of Portsmouth and now runs a second Cambridge room in Kendall Square.
Over-the-top pancakes and a long all-day breakfast menu sit around $14 to $20, the Bloody Mary list is deep, and there is no weekend-only window. Come on a weekday morning to skip the line.
6.SRV
A Venetian small-plate brunch instead of eggs and pancakes; book the South End room for a different kind of Saturday.
SRV opened in 2016 at 569 Columbus Avenue as a South End bacaro and runs an Italian weekend brunch of cicchetti and house-milled pasta. Boston Magazine has named it among the city's best restaurants.
The format is a multi-course Italian prix-fixe with cicchetti from roughly $6 to $18, an alternative to the egg-and-pancake rooms above. Book it when you want a long, wine-led Saturday brunch.
Not for everyone
Famous, but not actually brunch
Cafe ArtScience. The Kendall Square room has closed, so its brunch is off the live ranking. For a sit-down weekend brunch nearby, the Cambridge Friendly Toast in Kendall Square is the working alternative.
Pammy's. The acclaimed Cambridge trattoria from Chris and Pam Willis is dinner only and does not open for brunch. It is a fine dinner, but do not arrive on a Saturday morning expecting eggs.
Mistral, Sorellina and Mooo. These are Boston's polished dinner rooms, not brunch destinations; Mistral and Sorellina are dinner only and Mooo runs as a steakhouse. Save them for the evening, not the morning.
How to brunch well in Boston
Boston's brunch scene clusters in three pockets: the South End around Tremont Street, Back Bay along Commonwealth and Stanhope, and South Boston off West Broadway. None is far apart, so a slow morning can move from a wine bistro to a jazz room without crossing the city.
Weekend tables fill fast at the destination rooms, so reserve rather than walk up at Buttermilk & Bourbon, the Beehive and Lincoln Tavern. For an all-day option with no weekend window, the Friendly Toast takes the pressure off a late start.
Frequently asked
Where is the best brunch in Boston?
Jason Santos's Buttermilk & Bourbon in Back Bay is the marquee pick, a New Orleans room built around fresh beignets and honey-glazed biscuits. For a live jazz brunch, the Beehive in the South End is the destination; for a packed weekend scene, Lincoln Tavern in South Boston.
Which Boston brunch has live music?
The Beehive below the Boston Center for the Arts at 541 Tremont Street runs a live jazz brunch on Saturdays and Sundays, with bands on the floor between roughly ten and two. DownBeat has listed it among the top jazz clubs in the world, and the music is the reason to book.
Do you need a reservation for brunch in Boston?
Yes at the destination rooms. Buttermilk & Bourbon, the Beehive and Lincoln Tavern all fill their weekend tables and patios early, so reserve rather than walk up. For a no-reservation, all-day option, the Friendly Toast in Back Bay serves brunch every day and is easiest on a weekday morning.
What is a good upscale brunch in Boston?
SRV in the South End runs a Venetian small-plate brunch of cicchetti and house-milled pasta, an Italian alternative to the egg-and-pancake rooms. For a relaxed French brunch built around a proper croque madame and a wine list, Frenchie on Tremont Street is the South End standby.
Is Cafe ArtScience still open for brunch in Boston?
No. The Cambridge room has closed, so its brunch is no longer a working option. For a Kendall Square weekend brunch nearby, the Cambridge branch of the Friendly Toast serves an all-day menu; across the river, the South End and Back Bay rooms above are the destinations.
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Browse the full Boston dining guide, read the Buttermilk & Bourbon profile, compare the city's casual rooms in the Boston walk-in ranking and its counter seats in the Boston solo dining ranking, or open the full RFK rankings index.
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