The best brunch in Austin, ranked.
The best brunch in Austin covers elevated destinations worth a reservation, shaded patios worth the wait, a dim sum outlier, and easy casual spots. Ranked here.
The best brunch in Austin, ranked for range and not just one neighborhood: the elevated destinations worth a reservation, the shaded patios worth the weekend wait, the Sunday dim sum outlier, and the casual spots you can walk into. Built from citywide research and cross-checked against the critics, the OpenTable Top 100, and the locals who actually line up. For each spot, the one thing to order and the catch: the reservation you need, the patio that fills by noon, the hours that end at two. Updated as places open, move, and close.
The picks below are our 2026 Eaters’ Choice. Featured spots can add this badge to their own site, free.- East 6th · $$$ · weekend brunch, reserve01
Suerte
The brunch that justifies a reservation. Fermín Núñez’s kitchen takes the same masa program that earned a Michelin nod and points it at the morning: chilaquiles, huevos tejanos, a lengua hash, and a confit suadero taco, eaten on the patio over East Sixth. It landed on OpenTable’s Top 100 brunch list for 2026. Treat it as the meal that is the event, not a quick stop.
- Holly (2115 Holly St) · $$$ · Sat-Sun 11am-2:15pm02
Launderette
Rene Ortiz’s East Austin stalwart, Michelin-listed, and the brunch locals send out-of-towners to. The pull-apart cinnamon buns are the non-negotiable order, with salmon gravlax and buttermilk pancakes close behind. The patio of small white marble tables under blue-and-white umbrellas is half the reason to go. Weekends only for brunch, and it fills, so book ahead.
- Clarksville · $$$ · daily brunch03
Josephine House
A cozy cottage in Clarksville and one of four Austin spots on OpenTable’s 2026 Top 100. The lemon-ricotta pancakes with spiced apples and the citrus-cured Scottish lox are the orders. The draw is that it does brunch every day, not just weekends, so it is the answer for a slow Tuesday morning that deserves better than a chain.
- South Congress · $$$ · weekend brunch04
Perla’s
Oysters and seafood on the most people-watched patio on South Congress, also a 2026 OpenTable Top 100 pick. Start with the raw bar, move to the crab cake benedict, and accept that the see-and-be-seen energy is part of the package. Request the patio when the weather cooperates, which in Austin is most of the year.
- Bouldin · $$$ · Sat-Sun 11am-2pm05
Mattie’s at Green Pastures
Brunch in an 1894 Victorian mansion on oak-shaded grounds, with peacocks that actually wander the lawn. This is the special-occasion pick: the Mother’s Day, the birthday, the out-of-town-parents brunch. The food is Southern farm-to-table and genuinely good, but the setting is what you are paying for. Reserve through Resy, and ask for a table near the windows.
- East Cesar Chavez (4827) · $$ · Sat-Sun 9am-3pm06
Sawyer & Co
A retro mid-century diner doing Cajun food with a Southern twist, or the other way around. The chilaquiles and the grits get the loudest praise, the cocktails are a real menu and not an afterthought, and there is a backyard patio. Prices stay reasonable, which is rare on this list. Weekends get busy, so a reservation helps.
- Back to top
- East MLK · $$ · daily, counter-order07
Sour Duck Market
Photo: Richard Casteel / @dandeliongatherings The casual one you can walk into. An all-day bakery and cafe on East MLK with a big covered patio, a pastry case worth arriving hungry for, and oversized breakfast tacos that are not on anyone’s taco list but should be. Order at the counter, grab a kolache while you wait, and sit outside. Good with a group, good with a dog, good with a hangover.
- Downtown · $$$ · Sunday dim sum brunch08
Wu Chow
The outlier, and the one to pick when the table is bored of eggs. Wu Chow runs a full dim sum brunch on Sundays: soup dumplings, shumai, char siu, and turnip cakes off the cart, with a Bloody Mulan built on Thai chiles and Sichuan peppercorns. Go with a group so you can order wide, and go Sunday, because that is the only day the dim sum runs.
- Downtown (LINE hotel) · $$$ · weekend brunch09
Arlo Grey
Kristen Kish’s restaurant inside the LINE, the polished hotel-brunch option with a view of Lady Bird Lake. Poached eggs, avocado toast, and a cocktail list that takes brunch drinking seriously. This is the dressed-up, downtown, celebrate-something brunch. Reserve, sit by the windows, and lean into the occasion.
- Downtown (2nd Street) · $$$ · weekend brunch10
Aba
Eastern Mediterranean brunch on a lively Second Street patio, another 2026 OpenTable Top 100 name. The move is to brunch family-style: hummus and spreads, wood-grilled pita, and a few mains for the table to share. It runs loud and social, so bring the group that wants brunch to turn into early afternoon.
- Downtown · $$ · weekend brunch, skyline patio11
Gabriela’s Downtown
The answer to brunch with a view that does not cost a hotel-restaurant tab. A tropical rooftop-leaning patio looking at the downtown skyline, Tex-Mex plates, and margaritas built for a Saturday. It packs out on weekends for a reason. Come for the patio and the skyline, and put your name in before you are actually hungry.
The things we passed on are part of the value. Documented for editorial discipline.
- Hotel buffets and chain brunchesFine in a pinch, and a few hotel rooms do a real spread, but a buffet is rarely why anyone remembers a brunch. We sent you to kitchens that cook to order instead.
- Bouldin Creek Cafe and the vegetarian institutionsGenuinely beloved, and the right call for an all-day veggie breakfast on South First. We left it off this particular ranking because it reads more as an everyday breakfast counter than a weekend brunch, but it earns a mention.
- The 2am taco trailers and the breakfast-taco greatsAustin’s best breakfast tacos are a category of their own, and stuffing them in here would shortchange both lists. They live in the tacos guides instead, which this page links to.
- What is the best brunch in Austin right now?
- Suerte, Launderette, and Josephine House are the three most-cited, spanning elevated Mexican, eclectic East Austin, and a daily Clarksville cottage. Josephine House, Perla’s, Aba, and Suerte all made OpenTable’s Top 100 brunch list for 2026. The full ranked list below adds patios, a Sunday dim sum option, and casual neighborhood spots.
- Where is the best brunch in Austin with a view?
- Gabriela’s Downtown for a tropical patio looking at the skyline without a fine-dining bill, and Arlo Grey inside the LINE hotel for a polished room with a Lady Bird Lake view. Both are downtown and both take reservations, which you want on a weekend.
- Where can I get bottomless mimosas for brunch in Austin?
- Bottomless and build-your-own mimosa deals move around, so confirm the current offer before you go. The spots on this list with a serious cocktail program, including Sawyer & Co, Arlo Grey, and Gabriela’s, are the safer bets for brunch drinking. Always check the venue’s current brunch menu for the bottomless terms and the time limit.
- Where is the best brunch in South Austin versus downtown?
- In South Austin, Perla’s on South Congress and Mattie’s at Green Pastures in Bouldin are the standouts. Downtown, Aba on Second Street, Wu Chow for Sunday dim sum, and Arlo Grey at the LINE lead. East of the river, Launderette and Suerte are the destinations.
- Where can I find drag brunch in Austin?
- Drag brunch in Austin is a rotating weekend event rather than a single fixed restaurant. Several Fourth Street and Warehouse District bars and a handful of restaurants host them, with lineups and dates that change month to month. Check current listings for the weekend you want, since seating is usually ticketed and sells out.
- Do I need a reservation for brunch in Austin?
- For the elevated spots (Suerte, Launderette, Josephine House, Perla’s, Mattie’s, Arlo Grey, Aba) yes, book ahead on a weekend. The casual picks (Sour Duck Market, and to a degree Sawyer & Co) take walk-ins, though you should expect a wait by noon on Saturday and Sunday.
- What is the best brunch in Austin for a special occasion?
- Mattie’s at Green Pastures, for the 1894 mansion, the oak-shaded lawn, and the resident peacocks. It is the Mother’s Day, birthday, and visiting-family brunch. Arlo Grey and Suerte are the other two that feel like an event rather than a meal.
- Where is the best casual or budget brunch in Austin?
- Sour Duck Market on East MLK for a counter-order bakery and cafe with a big patio, and Sawyer & Co on East Cesar Chavez for a reasonably priced diner brunch with real cocktails. Both are walk-in friendly and good for a group.
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