Best brunch deals

Arlo & Esme
Why we love it: This light and airy café-by-day, bar-by-night serves a small menu of Mediterranean-influenced dishes, like a mayo-free, very fresh tuna sandwich and an unorthodox bowl of perfectly poached eggs topped with a garlic yogurt and strips of toast.
Why it’s a deal: The $15 brunch includes a cup of strong coffee, a mimosa or Bloody Mary and an entrée. Upgrade to $18 for a more original brunch cocktail, like the beery michelada. 42 E 1st St between First and Second Aves (212-777-5617, arloandesme.com) —Justine Sterling

Bar Breton
Why we love it: This family-friendly spot, like a Francophile Bubby’s, is most inviting during weekend afternoons when the sun streams through the front windows.
Why it’s worth it: Although the French often eat their galettes (traditional buckwheat crêpes) at night, the thin pancakes are a perfect first meal of the day. The more traditional the filling the better—we’re partial to the ham, egg and cheese “Mont St. Michel” ($14). 254 Fifth Ave between 28th and 29th Sts (212-213-4999, barbreton.com)—Jay Cheshes

Beer Table
Why we love it: You proved yourself a poor decision maker on Saturday night—be glad Beer Table’s brunch menu keeps the choosing to a minimum.
Why it’s a deal: Just $6 gets you two fluffy waffles—pay $2 more to add tangy ricotta, berries and rhubarb compote. Limitless coffee is great ($3), but a Schneider-Weisse ($9 per pint) is leagues ahead of another second-rate mimosa (Beyond the Mimosa). 427B Seventh Ave between 14th and 15th Sts, Park Slope, Brooklyn (718-965-1196, beertable.com)—Jordana Rothman

Buttermilk Channel
Why we love it: Gracious service mixed with eclectic riffs on Southern comfort food makes up for the wait. Don’t miss the pecan-pie French toast ($10) or fried pork chops and cheddar waffles ($15).
Why it’s a deal: The apple-cider doughnuts ($2 each) are sweet lures, as is the free mimosa, sparkling wine or Bellini accompanying each entrée. 524 Court St at Huntington St, Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn (718-852-8490, buttermilkchannelnyc.com)—JMB

Café Select
Why we love it: The place is as good-looking as the local crowd it attracts. A bonus: we’ve never encountered a wait.
Why it’s a deal: The affordable menu, most of it priced under $13, will satisfy all sorts. Go for the eggs any style with Rösti, a nicely greasy Swiss hash brown ($9); or a ham-and-Gruyère sandwich served with greens dressed in a mustardy vinaigrette ($9). 212 Lafayette St between Kenmare and Spring Sts (212-925-9322, cafeselectnyc.com)—Leslie Price

Char No. 4
Why we love it: There are cheaper brunches, but few with this much laid-back Southern style and chef-driven sophistication: There’s perfectly salty house-smoked ham, flaky biscuits with bacon gravy and toasty brown-butter applesauce. Plus, the chipotle Bloody Mary, made special with bourbon, is sweet and smoky.
Why it’s a deal: The $16 prix fixe includes eggs, biscuits, that amazing ham and applesauce, coffee and juice. 196 Smith St between Baltic and Warren Sts, Cobble Hill, Brooklyn (718-643-2106, charno4.com)—Bret Stetka

Dell’anima
Why we love it: Friendly staff deliver innovative Italian twists on brunch standbys: Instead of grits, there’s Anson Mills polenta with Parmigiano and honey for $5, and baked eggs with pancetta and rosemary for $13.
Why it’s a deal: The portions are generous; the $5 sides are almost a full brunch themselves; and the gratis bread with fresh ricotta, honey and pine nuts doesn’t hurt either. 38 Eighth Ave at Jane St (212-366-6633, dellanima.com)—Rebecca Flint Marx

Egg
Why we love it: This Southern-inflected TONY favorite does right by the chicken’s chief asset. The fresh, local eggs are at their best cooked over easy into an airy slice of brioche, covered with a veil of cheddar ($8).
Why it’s a deal: You’ll wait (and wait) for a go at Egg’s simple delights—but you won’t pay much for them. Breakfast entrées top out at $8.50, and sides (scrapple!) at $3.50. 135 North 5th St between Bedford Ave and Berry St, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-302-5151, pigandegg.com)—Jordana Rothman

Gottino
Why we love it: This sliver of a wine bar—often frantic at night—becomes an idyllic sun-dappled refuge at brunch, when it’s still largely uninhabited.
Why it’s a deal: The house-baked goodies (ricotta fritters, mini chocolate cornetti) are as good as they look. Entrées like waffles with fresh berries and cream ($7) and eggs scrambled with wispy prosciutto ($8) are dead simple and delicious. 52 Greenwich Ave between Charles and Perry Sts (212-633-2590, ilovegottino.com)—Jay Cheshes

Hundred Acres
Why we love it: Dishes satisfy big appetites without sacrificing small details like tender corn bread, a nuanced molé sauce and all-around perfect seasoning. Go for the Acres Scramble or the Quesadilla Gringo, each $12.
Why it’s a deal: Seasonal ingredients are top-notch, like the rhubarb and mint served with yogurt ($9). 38 MacDougal St between W Houston and Prince Sts (212-475-7500, hundredacresnyc.com)—Rebecca Flint Marx

Jing Fong
Why we love it: Cheap but decent dim sum is served in a football-field-size dining room. The whole thing is lit by a neon chandelier that looks like it landed from outer space.
Why it’s a deal: If you go in a group (who doesn’t?) and you divide up the check, you can eat your fill of egg tarts, roasted pork buns and shrimp dumplings, and end up paying only about $15 a head. 20 Elizabeth St between Bayard and Canal Sts, second floor (212-964-5256)—Jennifer 8. Lee

Kittichai
Why we love it: Thanks to a bold panang curry hanger steak and a spicy-and-sour seafood soup flavored with kafir lime leaves, you can escape the usual flapjacks. You can also escape the city’s hectic buzz in a canopied garden.
Why it’s a deal: A three-course meal for $20 would be a bargain anywhere, but this prix fixe includes solid desserts, like a banana spring roll with burnt-honey ice cream. 60 Thompson St between Broome and Spring Sts (212-219-2000, kittichairestaurant.com)—Zachary Feldman

Las Ramblas
Why we love it: This speck of a tapas bar offers respite from a block packed with sex shops and the Jerseyite teenagers who flock to them.
Why it’s a deal: Nearly every menu item is $9 or less, including old-world gazpacho, a bowl of juicy Andalusian lentils topped with delicately fried eggs, and panko-fried baby bocadillos filled with piquillo peppers, ham and Mahón cheese ($7 each). 170 W 4th St between Cornelia and Jones Sts (646-415-7924, lasramblasnyc.com)—Ashlea Halpern

Mercadito
Why we love it: Mercadito delivers fresh, classic Mexican dishes like the scrambled-egg-stuffed chiles relleno—slightly spicy, tempered by mild queso and kicked up with smoky bacon.
Why it’s a deal: For $15 you get a mimosa made with fresh, chunky fruit (we suggest mango or guava), an entrée, rice and beans. Order from the De Dulce Y De Chile section for standouts like tostada de hongos with wild mushrooms and picadas, small plates of corn masa tartlets. 179 Ave B between 11th and 12th Sts (212-529-6490, mercaditorestaurants.com)—Justine Sterling

Moto
Why we love it: Vintage-chic digs complement crowd-pleasers like eggs in creamy tomato sauce ($8) served with crunchy panini and warm date cake.
Why it’s a deal: Paltry prices (nothing tops $9.50) mean starving artists can eat like kings and sip eye-opening Breakfast Beer: Guinness with espresso ($7). 394 Broadway at Hooper St, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-599-6895, circa1938.com) —Joshua M. Bernstein

Motorino
Why we love it: For the enormous Pizza Al’Uovo: a fluffy, charred nan-like crust covered in bubbling cow’s-milk mozzarella, two runny farm eggs and crispy pancetta.
Why it’s a deal: It costs $13 for a “pizza” we dare you to finish on your own, a decent coffee, and your choice of Bloody Mary or mimosa. You’ll pay just $5 more for each additional cocktail. 319 Graham Ave at Devoe St, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-599-8899, motorinopizza.com)—Tejal Rao

No. 7
Why we love it: Chef Tyler Kord’s expertly executed Southern eats, such as cracker-crisp fried chicken and buttery grits, are good-and-greasy cure-alls.
Why it’s a deal: Ten dollars buys half a fried bird that could feed two, and waffles are just $9—leaving cash to splurge on fragrant rhubarb-kafir sangria ($8). 7 Greene Ave between Cumberland and Fulton Sts, Fort Greene, Brooklyn (718-522-6370, no7restaurant.com)—JMB

Pinche Taqueria
Why we love it: If only all brunches were less like a Woody Allen movie and more like, say, that spring break trip to Cabo, complete with chili pepper lights, palm fronds and a beaded curtain depicting Frida Kahlo.
Why it’s a deal: Counter service makes it easy to grab huevos rancheros ($5.65) and a Coronita ($2.75) and walk out having spent less than a tenner. 333 Lafayette St between Bleecker and W Houston Sts (212-343-9977, pinchetaqueria.us)—Allison Williams

Rabbithole Bakery & Bistro
Why we love it: Rabbithole has daily brunch hours (8am–5pm), great coffee (Stumptown espresso) and a cool Mechanical Age–meets-French-café interior. Plus, there’s a spacious backyard.Why it’s a deal: Excellent two-egg dishes ($8–$9) come with herb-flecked roasted potatoes and a heaping side salad of healthy greens. Bagel combos (like eggs, bacon, cheese, basil and tomato) cost $7.50 including coffee. 352 Bedford Ave between South 3rd and 4th Sts, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-782-0910, rabbitholebakery.com)—Erin Wylie

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