Consider this guide to the Mile High City’s essential brunch spots a complement to the just-published 26 Breakfasts Worth Waking Up For and 8 New Brunches to Try Right Now (to which can now be added Coperta, Jacques, and Cantina Loca). With one exception, it doesn’t overlap with either of those maps at all; what it does do is point readers toward 14 restaurants that have proven indispensable when it comes to helping Denverites while away the weekend in style — from a lavish Middle Eastern buffet to a dim sum destination.
Read MoreThe Best Brunch Destinations in Denver
For the ultimate weekend indulgence
Safta
At Safta’s splashy prix fixe brunch buffet, the fare for which chef Alon Shaya is known — including hummus and shakshouka, bourekas, and babka — is supplemented by deli staples like bagels and lox and pastrami hash. Washing it all down with the arak-spiked lemonade is a pro move.
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Noisette Restaurant & Bakery
Vintage meets vogue at Tim and Lillian Lu’s French find in LoHi, setting the stage for timeless luxuries like lobster, truffles, and caviar to appear amid elevated takes on, say, granola and avocado toast. It all calls for bubbles, bien sûr. Brunch is served on Sundays only, but the adjoining bakery is open on Saturdays, when tartines, quiche, and plenty of pastries await.
Duo Restaurant
At nearly 20 years old, this warm and sunny farm-to-table charmer in LoHi still feels like the place to be for brunch, when the menu — much like the decor — strikes a balance between rustic and refined: Think challah French toast with lemon curd, citrus-pomegranate chutney, and pistachios or eggs Benedict with cider-glazed pork, braised collard greens, and mustard cream sauce.
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The Bindery
Come brunch, Linda Hampsten Fox’s LoHi favorite for contemporary cuisine positively bustles with diners digging into dishes whose influences span the globe from Mexico to Europe to the Middle East to the Deep South. Signatures include the ham-and-cheese Dutch baby with mustard gelato; the breakfast spaghetti carbonara; and the Polish omelet with kielbasa, caramelized-onion goat cheese, and horseradish crema — but there’s no going wrong with a good old cheeseburger either.
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Linger
For going on 15 years, this LoHi den of eclecticism in an old mortuary has been doing global fusion like no place else in town. At brunch, the kitchen might mash up Thai and Southern food in the form of green curry shrimp and grits; give eggs Benedict a Korean twist with galbi and kimchi hollandaise; or serve India’s pancake-like flatbread uttapam with lentil korma, tomato chutney, and maple syrup. And the bar follows suit, serving soju-plum martinis alongside rum- and Sherry-spiked Thai tea. (Meanwhile, Linger’s not the only Edible Eats property that does a bang-up brunch: Root Down, located in a midcentury gas station, rocks the zucchini-bread French toast and lamb burgers, while Ophelia’s Electric Soapbox frequently hosts themed DJ sets.)
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Four Friends Kitchen
From the colorfully retro atmosphere and family-friendly service to the array of Southern-style dishes and refreshingly affordable tipples, comfort is the keyword at this Central Park fixture. Beignets, biscuits, and bacon abound; grits, green tomatoes, and gravy do too — and a dedicated kids’ menu augments the good cheer.
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Abejas
Date night, but make it daytime: That’s what brunch at this classy little Golden haunt feels like. Changing slightly with the seasons, the New American menu inheres in sophisticated takes on the classics, be it duck confit hash with butternut and kabocha squash, sweet and red potatoes, poblanos, and chèvre or pork belly and waffles with blueberry-juniper mostarda and creme fraiche. Cocktails like the vodka-based Pear Pressure with spiced pear and rosemary only enhance the vibe.
Ultreia
Tapas for brunch? It’s a thing — a sure one — at this glam Union Station homage to the Iberian Peninsula. But there’s more to the menu than classic small plates like croquetas de jamon, pan con tomate, and imported tinned fish with potato chips: Apple-cranberry empanadas in salted caramel sauce, olive oil pancakes with dried apricots and Marcona almonds, and patatas bravas with eggs and toasted sunflower seeds make for a merry midday meal (as do pitchers of sangria in lieu of mimosas).
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Chez Maggy
Brunch isn’t just for weekends anymore: Ludo Lefebvre’s chic French retreat in the Thompson Hotel, for one, serves it daily while making Sunday service extra-special by bringing in a DJ from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Another nice touch is the option to add a dollop of caviar to anything from the Denver omelet to the croque madame, or even the avocado toast (why not?).
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Hamburger Mary’s
For a good time, call this Uptown burger joint to book a table at its beloved drag brunch. The mimosas are bottomless; the nachos, tots, and even burgers are appropriately loaded with scrambled eggs, cheese, bacon or sausage, and more; and the performers are fire.
Quality Italian
Swanky though this Italian steakhouse in Cherry Creek’s Halcyon hotel may be, bottomless Bellinis are cause for slightly rowdy celebration. Drink in the vibe before settling down over an order of “breakfast risotto” with mortadella, pistachio pesto, and a fried egg or burrata toast with guacamole Genovese and oven-dried tomatoes — or go for gusto with the signature chicken parm pizza for (at least) two.
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Bon Ami Bistro & Creperie
Like its Cherry Creek sibling La Merise, this endearing little Wash Park West hideaway specializes in crepes by day — nearly 20 in all, whether stuffed with beef tenderloin tips, Gruyère, and fried eggs or ratatouille and feta in tomato sauce; unlike its sibling, it’s open for brunch all week long, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday through Sunday. Bottomless mimosas for just $20 seal the deal.
Star Kitchen
From 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends, the carts practically fly around the dining room of this Federal Boulevard stalwart, which has got dim sum service down to a spectacular science — dumplings, buns, rice crepes, turnip cakes, chicken feet, shrimp balls, spare ribs, egg tarts, and all.
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The Post Chicken & Beer
Served on cheddar biscuits, buttermilk waffles, and huevos rancheros, or in smothered burritos, salads, and sandwiches, fried chicken rules the roost at this downhome Rosedale shack (with a sibling in LoHi) — which also happens to sling what may be the ultimate hair of the dog: The Good Ol’ American Breakfast with Laws rye whiskey, butterscotch schnapps, maple syrup, OJ, and a strip of bacon.