Brookline Lunch

Had to kill some time waiting for the MIT museum to open and talked with Caroline while drinking coffee.
Aewesome place and then Syrus suggested the smoked salmon, bacon and avocado with tomato and red onion omelet ($ 14).
Freaking awesome! No really it was perfect and the whole grain toast had a super good bite.
Top it off with coffee and a nice size mimosa ($ 9 was a great value) and it was a outstanding experience. Wait staff was excellent… Very accommodating and friendly.
Only dig was the dark bathroom (more light is always better to ensure cleanliness) which had a full trash can at 9:00 AM… Makes one wonder.

If you’re ever in Cambridge boating or live there You need to check out this spot! On a rainy day we were trying to go to some coffe café place but they were beyond busy! So we traveled around, my boyfriend got so hungry he said «Next spot we see we eat at» He found this spot after we walked down this beautiful alley full of graffiti. Oh boy I’m so happy that the café was busy or else we would’ve missed out on a amazing experience!
The staff is very friendly and welcoming. The location isn’t the biggest but very homey feel to it which is always a plus! The took our order and within 15−20min it was all out and ready. They offer you homemade hot sauce and jam. My plate was delish! Bottom layer was full of veggies get assortment Brussels zucchini broccoli onions ugh I wish I could remember what the rest were but trust me it was plentiful! Second layer was home fries ughh perfectly seasoned had a nice crisp mmmmm and 3^rd layer was the sunny side eggs (eggs made upon request) served with wonderful multigrain toast. We also ordered French toast ugh so fluffy absolutely amazing spot.
We went searching for food bc our hotel had those stupid ridiculous hotel prices. Two eggs and home fries for 16 $ lol what a joke! Come here and we got a meal for two plus extras for 18 $! Much better off leaving your hotel and coming here.
Great prices Great Staff Great food! What else do you need?

So I mostly lurk, and not review. There’s this one place though… OMG the warmth of this family run restaurant is unmistakable. The care with which the plates are prepared and presented is unique. The quality of the cooking is out of proportion with its somewhat modest atmosphere. Cash only for a family run place is ok by me. Recommended: any special omelette; any Benedict dish. For non-​breakfast, stars are the soups and the chicken curry. LPT: it’s a family owned place– come with a good attitude and you’ll have a great experience.

Wow, there are vegetables! So many vegetables! I have to admit, I am not a bit fan of American diner brunch, because of all the greasiness and carbs. This place does it right, with a heaping ton of vegetables (I was confused at first cause I couldn’t find the eggs in my omelette) and some fresh fruit! The homemade jam really hit it out of the park for me though — I had never had jam that full of depth and complexity. That being said, the omelette /​eggs themselves felt a bit underseasoned (I found myself continuously reaching for ketchup and hot sauce — which I rarely use). I’ve only tried this place once so I’ll need to try it once more to see if this rating stabilizes!

This place is AMAZING… I’m from California and all I want is for these people to move there! Best little restaurant/​brunch place I’ve ever been to in terms of food quality and price!

Love this place! Delicious food! Very affordable too. Bring cash as it doesn’t accept cards.
I ordered BLT lunch sandwich and it was beyond my expectations. They have a nice spicy homemade sauce.

Was here with a friend for brunch at 11:30 and the wait was reasonable at about 15 minutes. The atmosphere was homey and welcoming.
Food:
Off all the places I’ve eaten at in Cambridge/​Boston, Brookline Lunch could very well have the best quantity of food-​to-​price ratio. I had the Jerusalem omelette, which really should have been called the Jerusalem omelette + salad + potatoes + grilled bread + falafel topped with goat cheese and mint leaves. Even though I came in hungry, I didn’t come anywhere near finishing my plate but was able to try a little bit of everything. I enjoyed each component, especially the delicious, melt-​in-​your-​mouth goat cheese. I also had baklava, which was very large for the price and not overly sweet like some baklava I’ve had in the past. The two combined cost about 12 bucks and were enough to serve two people.
Service:
The service definitely wasn’t the best I’ve had, but considering Brookline had a total of just five staff members/​cooks serving over a dozen tables, it was nonetheless an impressive effort. The food took 20 – 30 minutes to arrive, which isn’t unreasonable.
Things to watch out for:
Brookline Lunch is a hole-​in-​the-​wall establishment so it’s easy to miss if you’re not careful. It’s also one of the few places in the area that’s cash-​only, so be sure to watch out for that as well.

Love the prices! $ 7 for an amazing HUGE omelet??? Am I still in Boston or is this heaven?
I came on a Thursday around 11 am and it was pretty empty, only a few other tables.
Pretty large menu, and breakfast is served all day!!! My kind of place from the get go.
+amazing homemade strawberry jam
+delicious (homemade?) hot sauce
+family owners are so sweet
+open layout
+no AC no problem in the fall!
+quick service
–cash only BUT lots of ATMs nearby
–coffee was ok, not great

So happy I stumbled upon this place! The portions are huge and their homefries aren’t traditional — they have sautéed veggies in them. They have a big menu and everything’s pretty reasonably priced. I loved that they had quite a few eggs benedicts to choose from. It also wasn’t crowded for a saturday afternoon, which was nice. Be careful though, this place is CASH ONLY.

Great place, amazing stuff, best brunch ever! We were visiting from Toronto and this place made our stay even more enjoyable ! Thank you

The line can be intimidating at first, especially given how small the restaurant looks, but the food and the atmosphere are worth the wait if you aren’t starving and hangry. I love the benedicts, the omelettes, and really anything with salmon in it here. Most things come with a giant pile of potatoes and veggies. The grilled cheese is gimongous — don’t be fooled. The Mediterranean plates are great for a light lunch.

I wanted to like this place. I really did.
Ordered a salmon Benedict, which tasted okay except for a PLASTIC wrapper in my food, which was mixed in. I let the waitress know, twice, and she did not offer to make a new dish or anything. She said, what do you want me to do? Clean it up?
I think it’s standard in most restaurants to apologize at least, and offer to make a new dish or discount /​comp the meal. Disappointed with the service.

A nice family owned and operates holdout that still serves brunch under $ 10 in an increasingly expensive neighborhood. No frills, no house made ketchup or vegan mayo– just classic diner fare.
My husband loves this place, so we go somewhat regularly. It’s totally fine for a place that’s across the street and serves some very filling plates with healthy options (egg whites, veggies, and wheat toast, anyone?). A lot of their menu is focused on middle eastern or Mediterranean fare, which isn’t my cup of tea, especially in the morning. So I don’t quite *love* it as much as other people seen to– but it’s a matter of personal preference.
Generally, I don’t think it’s worth waiting in line for. There are a ton of places nearby for brunch and the food just isn’t that stand out.
The space is small and hot/​cold, depending on season. Try not to sit next to the door in the winter. Sorry to say you’ll want to avoid this place on a hot summer day, since it’s totally sweltering inside.
The prices are good and the food is good, but it adds up quickly for a very basic meal. Two egg entrees, two coffees and a juice with tip ends up being over $ 30 for a simple breakfast.
I wish I liked this place more! It’s so cute. But just not my jam. If you’re nearby and looking for a basic breakfast or lunch, it is worth checking out. Maybe you’ll love it as much as other people seem to!

The pictures of the food can speak for themselves. Only complaint is that there was no AC so I basically wanted to start crying in the middle of brunch because of the heat.
The portions are huge. The amount of food I got was more than what I’m seeing in some of the pictures on Unilocal

This place is definitely a hole-​in-​the wall family owned restaurant & it is hidden in between Brookline St off of Mass Ave.
I found this place on Unilocal for cheap & tasty brunch and it’s true, everything is under $ 10!
I wanted to try their «Mediterranean» dishes but I didn’t see enough photos or reviews from other Unilocalers who have ordered that, so I feel that this place is mostly known for their breakfast/​brunch egg benedicts and sandwiches.
I ordered a Florentine egg benedict (with spinach), comes with homefries. It was good & quite filling actually.
But I was a little bit disappointed with the hollandaise sauce. I personally felt it was… too sour and too.much. Which is not a big deal because I can just scrape some of it off. I personally feel that Café Luna has the best egg benedicts in the Cambridge area and I hold their sauce to my standard.
This was my first time here, I love the interior actually despite what other people have said about it because it just feels very.homey. Brick walls and photographs hanging. Random things on the walls. Not fancy, no air conditioning (fans) on a hot hot day, but I think it gives it that middle eastern flavor as if you were in a restaurant there.

Amazingly nice and hospitable servers, however food was very underwhelming. The omelettes come in large portions, but are less about the eggs (there was about one egg total per plate) and more about the other things. If I were to ever come back, I would not order an omelette. The ultimate omelette had one piece each of bacon, sausage, ham, and chicken among mushrooms, broccoli, tomatoes, sundried tomatoes, onions, cheese, and potatoes.
Great homey vibe, but there was no air conditioning on a hot, humid day.

This place is a hidden gem in Central Square! It’s tucked away in Brookline St off of Mass Ave.
Everything is under $ 10 — so amazed! I got the florentine eggs Benedict with tomatoes and it was really awesome. Eggs were poached perfectly and hollandaise sauce melted in my mouth. Comes with potatoes, peppers and onions. Healthy stuff! Celine got the French toast with eggs and that was really good too.
The only thing I was unhappy about was the lack of a/​c so it gets really hot. I want to go back to try out more things!

Saturday brunch in here. Service was quick and they are really nice. Small place so if you don’t like crowed places think twice cause the food is totally worth it. We order egg Benedicts and effgwhites with veggies and they were terrific!!! So so good. Generous portions, awesome sauce. Warm food for the soul.

I spoke too soon in my previous review. I’ve had worse and worse experiences here each time. After a bad stomach experience with ordering the eggs, I only ordered simple salads as my gluten free option. But I feel like I get no respect about my allergy, often getting treated as if I’m creating this inconvenience. (All I ask is for you to not give me bread, just a pile of leaves). Last time I was still given the gluten side. When I asked what it was, I was told to not worry about. It only has gluten on the inside b/​c it’s deep fried. =/​Not how it works.
I’ve only come back b/​c friends/​students appreciate the cheap eats. But I will never return and do not recommend this place to anyone who has any allergies.

Finally made it out here for a Saturday brunch! It is a small hole in the wall place, crowded on weekends, and yes there will be at least a 10+ minute wait.
That said, for two people you can get a table fairly quickly, as I did. We were seated in a small nook in the back of the restaurant, which although tight, had plenty of cute art on the walls.
There is a drink waitress and a food waitress, so who you order coffee from doesn’t also bring the food.
I had the garlick benedict, which was an egg benedict with chicken and bacon and it was divine. I ate the whole thing, which had a very generous helping of homefries (that managed to successfully incorporate broccoli!). I was stuffed afterwards!
And also very happy with the bill, as it wasn’t expensive at all and the portion sizes were massive. I was a very happy bruncher.
BUT
–1 star for some flies buzzing around /​wall&floor cleanliness