Bongo Room

For those of you who love trying new restaurants, may I suggest one in Chicago.  It's called the Bongo Room, and is located in Wicker Park on Milwaukee Ave near North Ave.  It's a cute little restaurant with about 15 tables and a bar seating six.  And, it always has a wait.  That's now you know it's amazing.


What makes this restaurant so special?  It's signature twist on dishes and ever changing menu.  Oh, yeah, and it's portions exceed the size of your face, so you always have leftovers for home.  But, like I said, the ever changing menu means you can keep uncovering new favorites every time you go.  Their pancakes, for example, are stellar.  Today they had Banana Chocolate, Pumpkin Spice, Cranberry Bliss, and Red Velvet with Chocolate.  Each choice comes with three oversized, fluffy cakes and it's own special array of toppings.  They've also been known to have Lemon Pancakes in the summer - hence the "changing" menu.  They switch up their signatures to ensure every visit is unique.  


I personally had the veggie croissant, which included Muenster Cheese, Alfalfa Sprouts, Fresh Spinach, Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Grilled Mushrooms, an Egg, and Basil Mayo (which, was beyond amazing, and I hate mayo, so that's saying a lot!)  It was gigantic and had to be broken down with my knife and fork.  And I'm pretty sure I now have dinner today also.  However, before I had decided on the croissant, I had debated the traditional breakfast burrito and the Sweet Potato Black Bean burrito.  Amazing.  


The pricing?  Decent.  My breakfast, cup of coffee and tip ended up being $17.  For the city, that's not too bad, and for breakfast, it's not too bad either.  Plus, like I said, I ended up with dinner as well, so really it broke down to about $8.50.  Totally doable.  Maybe not every day doable, but for the occasional holiday breakfast, absolutely worth it.  


Happy eating, and I recommend visiting them soon.  They're open until 2pm daily.  Yum!