Over Easy Cafe (Chicago, IL)

This small, but very popular Ravensood cafe specializes in innovative versions of breakfast classics. Everday (except Mondays when they're closed) Over Easy Cafe closes promptly at 3:00 pm, serves lunch after 11, and serves a delicious brunch menu on Sundays.

Sassy Eggs: two eggs served over chorizo-potato hash with cheddar cheese, red peppers, jalapenos, guacamole, sour cream, & ancho ketchup.

El Gordito's Corn Cakes: two eggs any style, two corn cakes, & grilled spiral-cut ham served with red pepper sauce.

Last Thursday (Portland, OR)

First Thursday happens every month in the relatively well-heeled Pearl district of Portland. Art galleries expand their hours, locals bring out their photography and artwork for a street fair, and all the restaurants serve their dinner specials. Last Thursday, held every month along NE Alberta street, does not resemble this at all, it is more like a staging group for Burning Man. You are likely to see Capoeira, Break Dancers, and the multiple displays of the modern Bohemian. Alberta has its own bank of food carts.

Fuego de Lotus Cart - Serves Venezuelan food, specifically known for its Arepas.

The Revolutionaries Plate - Arepa, black beans, plantains, rice with cabbage salad.

Dessert from Solar Waffle Works, a cart powered entirely by the sun with all profits going to Portland schools - Belgian waffle, Mt. Hood strawberries, Nutella, and cream.

Heart (SF, CA)

Wine served in mason jars
Country Line Farm little gems with green goddess dressing
Rancho Gordo heirloom bean stew with grilled eggplant, peppers, tomato confit, and bread crumbs

Tasty n Sons (Portland, OR)

The owner's of Portland's best Tapas (a likely target for a separate entry) decided to open a brunch place this summer. The space is located in N Portland, along the rapidly developing Williams Street. The food is basically brunch tapas, all people are encouraged to share, and 4-5 plates are ordered for a group of 3 typically. My current favorite brunch place.

http://www.tastynsons.com/

The space + kitchen. Carl is busy explaining something, likely related to design.

Biscuits with Venison Gravy (local deer only of course, lets not get carried away here.)

Cast Iron Frittata with asparagus, english peas, sugar snap peas, olives & feta

Burmese Red Pork Stew with short grain rice & eggs two ways

Open Faced Monte Cristo with spiced maple

Mitsuwa (Edgewater, NJ)

  
Ikura-don; gyoza; taiyaki (custard & red bean); matcha soft-serve

Shake Shack @ Citifield (Flushing, NY)

        
Mets crushed the Tigers 14-6!

Shack Fries and Shack Shake; Shack Burger (American cheese, lettuce, tomato and Shack Sauce); Shack-cago dog (Vienna all-beef dog on a poppy seed bun. Drag it through the garden! Topped with mustard, Rick's Picks Shake Shack relish, onion, cucumber, pickle, tomato, sport pepper and celery salt)

Aki (NY, NY)

  
Chef Siggy Nakanishi serves creative Jamaican-Japanese food at this tiny West Village gem.

Tuna Mille-Feuille (tuna, fuji apple, avocado, shiso and tobiko with apple vinegar and white balsamic sauce); Spicy Tuna Tartare (chopped tuna with scallion, red raisins, pine nuts, seaweed, coconuts flake, spicy mayo sauce and mango chutney soy sauce); Montauk Salad (mixed sliced sashimi, pine nuts, wasabi tobiko, garden salad and olive oil vinaigrette); Seared Spanish Mackerel (bell peppers, onions, garlic, vinegar, and seaweed); spicy yellowtail roll and fried oyster roll.

Brother's Korean BBQ (SF, CA)

Dolsot bibimbap 돌솥 비빔밥 Smoke vents don't work too well but it's totally worth the dry cleaning bill.

Melt (Portland, OR)

The battle for best local sandwich spot in Portland is raging between Melt and Bunk. Bunk means a 25 minute bike ride so....

Clocking in at less then 5 blocks from my apartment in NW Portland, Melt is a good place to take friends or get work done. Good veggie options, great selection of local beer, affordable, and a chill location. They have a great happy hour as well - 6 to close every day.

http://www.meltportland.com/melt_sandwiches/testing_melt.html

Falafel Burger with Tzatziki sauce.

In case you don't want the entire burger, they have falafel burger sliders.

Portland Poutine - Fries, Tillamook Pepper Jack, Roasted chilies, scratch gravy. Unsurprisingly this hits the spot on a late night.

Nong's Khao Man Gai (Portland, OR)

Portland Monthly's Best Restaurants 2009 featured a separate section for the best food cart, and the winner was Nong's Khao Man Gai. Luckily you will not be burdened with choice at this cart, Khao Man Gai is the only item on the menu (unfortunate for me).

http://www.khaomangai.com/story.html

An action shot of Nong herself serving the hungry proletariat of Portland. I've never met anyone with as much enthusiasm for A.) having a cart B.) serving chicken to people. Meeting Nong is half the experience.

Rather interesting wrapping for the Khao Man Gai.

Khao Man Gai - poached chicken in thai herb stock, rice, soybean sauce (with garlic, ginger, and chillies). I was told it was delicious.

Rosamunde Sausage Grill (SF, CA)

Best sausage grill ever. Great beer selection, too.

Ritual Roasters (SF, CA)

Elsy's Pupuseria (SF, CA)

Cheap, greasy, corny. With 'pork meat'. Mmm slaw.

Ma Peche (NY, NY)

  
David Chang's first midtown venture with former Ssam bar chef Tien Ho at the helm.  No reservations accepted.  Definitely a worthy addition to the row of inexpensive Japanese restaurants across the street.  This also means that MilkBar is two blocks from my office (dangerous).  The pork ribs and the oxtail soup were the highlights.  NY Magazine praises the ribs as "undoubtedly the finest pork ribs (sticky, charred, infused with lemongrass and caramel) ever to be served in the vicinity of 56th Street and Fifth Avenue."  The soup, which is only served at dinner, tastes more like Taiwanese beef noodle soup than pho, and has more oxtail than noodles.  I don't agree with Adam Platt that this place gets one less star for its "un-Changian" location, but I give GrubStreet credit for taking awesome pictures of the food -- it's dark in there!

Bar area complete with Maggi and Srichacha; pork ribs; spring rolls; oxtail soup; mini crack pies and cereal milk flans.