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photo courtesy of Marigold Kitchen

In my opinion, there’s no better weekend indulgence than brunch. What other meal offers you the opportunity to consume sweet and savory as well as alcoholic and caffeinated, all at the same time? Philly is awash in great brunch places (my very favorite is the lox and bagel platter at Day by Day), although I find that I often fall into a brunch rut, visiting the same spots over and over again. If you’ve got a similar problem, make sure to check out some of our new (and classic) favorites over the coming weeks!

• The Loft District’s sleek Café Lift specializes in European style delicacies like a banana and chocolate hazelnut crespelle and a pesto and tomato frittata with thick home fries. 428 N. 13th Street.
• A South Philly institution, the quirky, tiny Carman’s Country Kitchen features an exotic and unpredictable brunch lineup that might easily include alligator tail or mincemeat waffles. 1301 S. 11th Street.
• Savor the city’s only traditional Irish breakfast with rashers, beans, pudding and potato bread in the sunny rooms of Ida Mae’s Bruncherie. 2302 E. Norris Street.
• The lines out the door never lie: Sam’s Morning Glory Diner is a favorite for its homemade ketchup and creative pancake specials served with a side of hot biscuits and greasy-spoon attitude. 735 S. 10th Street.
• With an emphasis on fresh, local fare, the former University City drugstore-turned eatery RX turns out classics like eggs benedict and huevos rancheros with the freshest ingredients. 4443 Spruce Street.

More brunch bets after the jump!

• The first meal of the day is the mainstay at downtown West Chester’s Market Street Grill, which has developed a devoted following for its brown sugar-swirl French toast with caramelized bananas and Kennett Square mushroom omelet. 6 W. Market Street, West Chester.
• French fare typically dominates the kitchen at Cochon, a cozy BYO in Queen Village, but the brunch menu is a Franco-American affair with caramelized banana pancakes, grilled tuna salad and Nueske’s hamsteak and eggs. 801 E. Passyunk Avenue.
• Bottomless cups of coffee and a cheery, retro atmosphere have won Café Estelle a following. The housemade pastry, killer breakfast pizza with pancetta and breakfast salad with pork belly lardons keeps “Ëœem coming back. 444 N. 4th Street.
• The Spanish brunch at South Street’s Café Apamate includes traditional thick hot chocolate with churros, tortillas with Manchego cheese and Serrano ham and vegetarian quiche with piquillo peppers. 1620 South Street.
• Marigold Kitchen is University City’s go-to destination for up-market Southern cuisine served in a warmly lit townhouse. Morning offerings include a collard greens and mushroom frittata, braised short ribs with seared cornbread and hollandaise and sides of Surry sausage and stone-ground grits. 501 S. 45th Street.
• Australian-style coffees (flat white or long black, anyone?) accompany “brekkie platters” of eggs, orders of crème brûlee French toast and simple turkey-avocado-brie sandwiches at the South Street favorite Ants Pants Cafe 2212 South Street.
• Set in the Robertson’s Flowers’ Chestnut Hill solarium, Cake offers a brunch that’s unrivaled for its sunny, family-friendly atmosphere, smoked salmon and potato pancake plates and to-die-for baked goods. 184 E. Evergreen Avenue.
• Never mind the name: Supper serves a superb brunch with a fried green tomato eggs benedict, cornmeal pancakes and a roasted tomato and gruyere-topped burger with duck-fat fingerlings. 926 South Street.