Brunch at Ann Sather's (Chicago)

This past weekend I went home to Chicago, and seeing as I rarely get to dine out in the city I made it a point to go to one of my favorite spots for breakfast - Ann Sather's. For over 60 years Ann Sather's has been serving up delicious breakfasts and lunches with an assortment of delicious Swedish specialties throughout the menu. I remember my godmother bringing a box of freshly-made Swedish pancakes with lingonberry preserves over to my house for brunch straight from Ann Sather's, so this place has been part of my life for as long as I can remember.

The atmosphere at the Lakeview location is very bright and fun with Swedish-themed art adorning every wall. There are two main dining rooms and on a Sunday morning it is PACKED. Luckily our party of three didn't have to wait too long - maybe 20 minutes.

Since I hadn't had a good Swedish pancake in quite some time, I knew what I wanted from the get-go: The Swedish pancakes with lingonberries and Swedish meatballs. For those of you who aren't familiar with Swedish pancakes, imagine that a French Crêpe and an American flapjack had a baby - the pancakes are light and sweet and just the right thickness -delicious! The meatballs were served in a brown gravy and were a nice size and quite tasty.

Chris chose the French Toast fantasy, and I was quite pleased to be splitting my meal with him in exchange for some of this. Apparently endorsed by Rachel Ray, the "fantasy" consists of marscarpone-filled cinnamon rolls, battered, grilled and topped with granola and fresh seasonal berries. Absolutely delicious, and plenty of food. The mascarpone was nice and buttery, not too sweet and hence not overwhelming. The strawberries and blueberries were great, too, as was the bit of crunch added by the granola.

Jeff opted for a Denver omelet (Ham, Onions and Green Pepper), which also came with two sides. He chose the cinnamon rolls (another thing Ann Sather's is famous for) and hash browns. The cinnamon rolls were perfect and quite large considering it was just an included side. The sugary frosting tasted very fresh, and the hash browns seemed pretty standard.

Considering we all paid $10 or less for such a delicious breakfast, excluding coffee and juice, of course, there was really nothing not to love. The food is wonderful, the atmosphere upbeat and bright, and the service is great - especially considering what a mob scene it was. There were so many other things on the menu I am dying to have, for example the Norwegian smoked salmon and dill omelet (and anything else with smoked salmon!). There will definitely be a next time!