The Best Brunch Spots in New Orleans (2026)

Two Chicks Café on Gravier Street is a colorful, easy-to-spot room that sits a short walk from several downtown hotels, which explains the steady flow of out-of-town guests. Diners describe the space as bright and the menu as long enough that choosing becomes the hard part.

The crab cake benedict leads. Two visitors during Mardi Gras ordered it on a first visit and returned two days later, and others praise the barbecue shrimp, the pancakes and the grits bowl. The kickin chicken and the juice list add range, and the refillable drinks are refreshing and not overly sweet. Breakfast and lunch menus run side by side, so a mixed group finds something for each person.

The room fills on weekend mornings. Diners mention a short pause at the host stand when it is busy, and a few note that service can feel slower during peak hours. Arriving early avoids most of that. Prices are fair for the portion, and the location makes it easy to fold into a walking morning.

Surrey's Café & Juice Bar occupies a colorful corner of Magazine Street, and a local diner admits to walking past it hundreds of times before finally going in. The room is small, funky and busy, which suits the menu.

The shrimp and grits are the dish diners praise most. The grits are creamy, the sauce is balanced, and several people who normally pass on the dish ordered it twice. Banana foster French toast and the crab meat omelette have their own followings. The kitchen also takes creative turns, from huevos rancheros topped with lox and capers to biscuits with sausage gravy and a boudin breakfast biscuit. Homemade biscuits are a constant favorite.

Waits are the main caveat. The line can run long on weekends, and the space is tight, so diners recommend arriving before the late morning crowd. A few mention that the room could be cleaner, but food and service win most tables. The juice bar adds a lighter option for anyone avoiding heavy plates.

Ruby Slipper Central Business District sits at the downtown end of Magazine Street, inside a historic building that diners find handsome. A line forms on weekends, and diners say the crowd speaks for itself. One visitor returned a second time during a short stay, and an Uber driver pointed another toward it.

Breakfast and brunch carry the menu. The biscuit and the pancakes come up most, followed by the sweet heat chicken, also called hot honey chicken, and fried chicken served with biscuits. Eggs Cochon Benedict, shrimp and a white chocolate bread pudding fill out the table, and a very large Ruby mimosa is a favorite.

Practical notes: the online waitlist confused some diners, so sign up before arriving and watch for the text. Early mornings are quieter, and seating indoors is easy at 7:30. Service is quick, with staff who suggest dishes. Coffee earned a middling mention.

Ruby Slipper Decatur is one of several locations in the Quarter and the Marigny, and diners say it is the one closest to the river and the French Market. The room is lively, the staff is friendly, and one server took time to explain local food businesses to a visitor.

The Southern Breakfast is the plate that wins tourists over, with fried green tomatoes, grits and eggs. Sweet Heat fried chicken, biscuits, pancakes and eggs benedict are the other regular orders, and shrimp and grits has plenty of fans. French toast bites please families, and white chocolate bread pudding is the dessert diners mention most. Iced coffee and bananas foster pancakes come up for early risers.

Popularity means waiting. A waitlist can stretch to an hour in cold weather, so diners suggest adding their names early and strolling the neighborhood. One diner reported a mix-up with an add-on egg, but most visits go smoothly and the service earns steady praise.

Ruby Slipper Marigny on Burgundy Street earns its reputation on welcome. Servers greet guests as they pass, hostesses seat overheated visitors with ice water in seconds, and managers invite diners back the next day if the kitchen is closing. Many visitors name the server who took care of them, which says plenty.

The menu covers the Ruby Slipper standards. Biscuits and a breakfast sandwich are popular, shrimp and grits is the dependable plate, and the Sweet Heat chicken draws repeat orders. Pancakes and eggs benedict fill out the table, and beignets are a favorite with groups. Coffee, iced or hot, arrives quickly. The hot honey chicken shows up on many tables as well.

The room suits family brunches, group celebrations and quiet visits at the bar. A few diners wished for a quicker kitchen on busy days, but they mostly describe feeling looked after. Several tables brought children, and the room handled them well.

Ruby Slipper Canal sits at the edge of the French Quarter on Canal Street, and nearby construction can make the entrance easy to miss. Diners walked past it several times on one trip before stopping, and afterward were glad they did.

The biscuits are the most praised item, with shrimp and grits, fried chicken and a smoked salmon plate close behind. A breakfast sandwich draws mixed reactions, with a few noting the bun and potato portions vary. Mimosa flights and a whipped pineapple mimosa suit a long morning, though one flight read as sweet to a diner who does not usually drink mimosas.

Service is the strength. Servers such as Ruth earn long notes of thanks from tables that felt looked after, and diners describe attentive service without hovering. The room runs loud when full. An online waitlist works well, and arriving around nine on a Friday morning meant only two parties ahead for one diner.

Jimmy J's Cafe on Chartres Street looks small from the sidewalk, and diners say that is deceiving. The room holds only a handful of tables, but the kitchen makes the most of the space, and staff stand outside to welcome people in. A short line often forms on weekend mornings.

The crab cake benedict is the order to know. The eggs are gently poached, the crab cake is held together with only a light coating, and the hollandaise lands in balance. The breakfast bowl is a hearty second choice, and a pork chop benedict, a crawfish benedict and a breakfast burrito appear on other tables. Beignets arrive fresh and hot, and a half order of biscuits and gravy gives a table room to share.

One table found the check high for three drinks and three meals, though portions were large. Servers earn praise for handling a crowded room with grace. Arriving early on a weekday avoids the longest wait, and the walk from nearby hotels is short.

Bearcat Cafe Uptown on Jena Street is spacious and welcoming, and diners say it handles dietary needs with confidence. The menu is not entirely vegan, but vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free choices are plentiful, and a visitor who craved biscuits and gravy found a vegan version here.

Pancakes are the dish named most, including blueberry and banana foster. The Cat Daddy biscuit and the brisket hash draw regular orders, and a creole crab dish impressed one table. A large coffee list and house-made juice round out the menu, and the strawberry lemonade comes in a glass bottle that diners remember. Mimosas use fresh orange juice.

The wait is the main caution. Sunday brunch brings a line, often twenty-five to thirty minutes, and weekday visits ease it. Parking near the cafe can take patience. Patio seating helps on mild days, and the staff gets warm marks for friendly service.

Two Chicks Cafe on Convention Center Boulevard is small, colorful and well placed for anyone attending an event nearby. Hotel concierges point guests here, and diners describe a walk of only a few minutes. The room is lively without being chaotic.

The crab cake eggs benedict is the standout order. The hollandaise has some heat and extra lemon, which suits the crab cakes. The Under the Sea omelet comes with grits and a barbecue roux on the side, and tables can upgrade a side to French toast or pancakes. The grits bowl, barbecue shrimp and cucumber lemonade round out a first visit. Panini and salads give lunch visitors options with a lighter feel.

Breakfast is served all day, so timing is flexible. Large parties may wait, while smaller groups are often seated right away. A server who explains the menu helps first-time guests order what they want. Takeout is an option for diners short on time.

French Toast on Decatur Street sits steps from the French Market, and diners often describe it as a breakfast break before exploring the Quarter. The room has a hotel setting and a patio.

Chicken and waffles is the order named most. The bacon, egg and cheese biscuit sandwich also draws strong praise, with a handmade biscuit one diner returned for months later. Puffed pancakes, fried oysters and a toast topped with honey, prosciutto and herbed cream cheese broaden the menu, and a Bloody Mary rounds out a savory morning.

One regular urged locals and visitors to keep coming despite construction on Decatur, noting that the French Quarter businesses need the traffic. Servers and hosts earn warm remarks for recommendations that landed. Patio seating is often open on weekday afternoons, and waits are shorter than at the busiest Quarter brunch spots.