The Bongo Room | Facebook | T: @TheBongoRoom | IG: @TheBongoRoom
1470 N. Milwaukee Ave. (map it!)
Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 489-0690
Open Mon-Fri, 8a-2:30p; Sat & Sun, 8a-2p
Vegetarian/vegan/gluten free? Y/N/N
Kid-friendly? Y
Visit: Saturday, May 20, 2018 at 9 a.m.
On a long weekend trip to Chicago, we stopped on Saturday for coffee and breakfast in Wicker Park. The Bongo Room had been recommended by several friends over the years, so it topped our list. Being the early risers, we arrived about 30 minutes before it opened, so we snuck next door to the 80s throwback Wormhole Coffee.
Bongo Room has three locations around Chicago, and specializes in breakfast, brunch, and lunch. The restaurant decor is fairly muted, with simple accents of fake deer heads (you know) and small lighting fixtures.
There’s a sense of fun to the brunch menu; you won’t find any classic dishes that haven’t been tinkered with.
Case in point: white chocolate and caramel pretzel pancakes.
Let’s drizzle some more chocolate on that, shall we?
They also offer juices, milk, espresso drinks, ice coffee, and a small menu of cocktails, like this refreshing raspberry and pear mimosa.
We started off with an eggs benedict with roasted pork, green and red peppers, and a mustard hollandaise.
The breakfast burrito features a spinach tortilla wrapped around scrambled eggs, guacamole, jack cheese, and an ancho chile cream cheese.
The house potatoes are chunked redskins, properly cooked and nicely seasoned.
And the easy-to-like croissant sandwich features egg, bacon, and muenster cheese.
All in all, it’s a fun stop for breakfast. I’ve heard of long lines on weekends, but we lucked out arriving right when they opened. Coffee at Wormhole and brunch at Bongo Room proved to be a solid combination!
